Message from the Chair

Susan Harrison portrait

Susan Harrison, Chair

Welcome to the Department of Environmental Science and Policy. We consist of a diverse group of researchers and educators that come together around training students, and conducting fundamental and applied research to solve environmental problems associated with resource use, climate change, and population growth. Our department is unique within UC-Davis and the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences in combining biological, physical and social sciences to find effective solutions to these environmental challenges. Our up-to-date interdisciplinary undergraduate and graduate programs offer both science and policy training through standard classroom teaching, field courses, internships, and independent study. They prepare our graduates for careers in diverse fields ranging from public policy to environmental sciences, as future environmental managers and problem solvers.

Our world-class faculty members have wide-ranging research interests which make for diverse educational opportunities. Some research highlights include the impact of environmental activism on resource management, how environmental beliefs affect environmental stewardship, the benefits of transportation planning to reduce automobile dependence, the design and economic management of marine fishery reserves, the effects of invasive species on the diversity and functioning of ecosystems, the effects of climate change on ecological communities and endangered species. We also house research units that focus on the management of the Lake Tahoe watershed, and on the dissemination of global environmental information. For more details on faculty research and teaching interests, please see the Faculty page.

We would be delighted to have you talk with our student, faculty, and staff advisers about our courses, majors, or any other aspects of our programs. Please email us!

Susan Harrison, Chairperson