Australia

Sustainability and Environmental Action Seminar – syllabus
(ENVI3000 / 8 credits)

An interdisciplinary course focusing on an analysis of efforts to pursue sustainability in Australia. The course is designed to empower students to make a positive contribution to making societies more sustainable.

Research Methods and Ethics – syllabus
(ANTH3500 / 3 credits)

A course in the concepts of learning across cultures and from field experience and the development of the research skills necessary to undertake either an Independent Study Project or an internship. Material includes cross-cultural adaptation and skills building; project selection and refinement; writing a research proposal; referencing; appropriate methodologies such as interviewing, surveying, observation, and content analysis; field study ethics and the World Learning/SIT Human Subjects Review Policy; developing contacts and finding resources; gathering, organizing, analyzing, and communicating data; and maintaining a work journal.

In addition to taking the above courses, students will also need to enroll in one of the following two courses:

Independent Study Project
Independent Study Project – syllabus
(ISPR3000 / 5 credits)

These projects are primarily conducted in northern New South Wales or Melbourne, with other locations occasionally approved when appropriate to the project. Students may undertake a traditional research project or, alternatively, produce a creative piece (e.g., art, film, creative writing). All projects must relate to sustainability. A number of students have pursued highly successful creative ISPs, but students must apply for permission to undertake creative ISPs, and this will only be granted if the student can prove that s/he has adequate pre-existing skills. For example, if a student is majoring in the medium (e.g., creative writing), we accept that as evidence of pre-existing skills; otherwise, we ask them to provide proof of his/her skills, such as writing awards, exhibitions of work, and publication of work. For more information, please inquire with the admissions counselor.

For many students the ISP is the highlight of their academic experience in Australia. The ISP allows students to apply the knowledge and skills they have obtained throughout the semester to a sustainability issue. They will work with an assigned advisor to develop a proposal and will spend the last five weeks of the program in the field and writing up their report. Students are encouraged to undertake projects in northern New South Wales or in Melbourne. Occasionally permission can be granted to undertake projects in other locations that are appropriate and safe.

Sample ISP topic areas:

• Effect of dolphin feeding on environmental perceptions of tourists
• Permaculture as an alternative to traditional agriculture
• The role of art in promoting sustainability
• Creating effective urban community gardens
• A feasibility study for the introduction of solar energy at Macquarie University
• Developing a sustainability guide for students on the program
• Developing a map and track guide for the Royal National Park in Sydney
• A study of the voluntary simplicity movement in Melbourne
• Creating the artwork for a National Parks Service campaign on bell-miner related dieback
• A piece of travel writing on the Murray River and the meaning of sense of place
• A study of the transition town movement in Australia

Browse this program’s Independent Study Projects / undergraduate research.

OR

Internship and Seminar
Internship and Seminar – syllabus
(ITRN3000 / 5 credits)

This seminar consists of a five-week internship with an environmental nonprofit organization or a government department or agency focused on environmental issues. Permission may be granted to undertake an internship with a for-profit entity, but this will only be given if the entity is primarily focused on environmental outcomes. The aim of the internship is to enable the student to gain valuable work experience in the field of sustainability and to enhance their skills in an international work environment. In consultation with their internship organization and their SIT internship advisor, students will identify a project focus and internship supervisor. A minimum of 175 hours must be spent working for the organization. Students will complete an internship and submit a paper in which they discuss the overall structure and work of the organization, process their learning experience on the job, and analyze their focus topic. The paper must also document a comprehensive schedule and the specific skills and knowledge acquired through the experience and how the student intends to apply these skills and knowledge upon return to the United States. A focus will be on linking internship learning with the program’s theme of sustainability.

Sample internships:  

• Researching and writing materials for a social media outreach campaign with 1 Million Women
• Campaigning with The Wilderness Society for a new national park in Victoria
• Developing a children’s space within the Mullumbimby Community Garden
• Taking photographs and developing promotional materials for the Melbourne Farmers’ Market
• Collating and analyzing information from a renewable energy forum at the New South Wales Office of Environment and Heritage
• Assessing demand for local foods at Armidale City Council
• Working on a campaign to preserve the Great Eastern Ranges with Australian Conservation Foundation
• Developing a travel plan for a large hospital with Victoria’s Health Department
• Assessing the effectiveness of sustainability initiatives targeting small businesses at Tasmanian Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment
• Campaigning against the expansion of salmon farming with Environment Tasmania
• Helping Ocean Planet with marine conservation campaigns in Tasmania

You will participate in several multi-day interactive workshops.

Ecopsychology Workshop

The quiet and majestic eucalypt forest around the Forest Haven Meditation Center is an ideal venue for the two-day workshop in environmental psychology. You will camp overnight in the forest and wake to a dawn chorus of bird calls. Dr. Elizabeth Bragg, an ecopsychologist, will explore with you ways to remain resilient in the face of serious environmental crises. She will also familiarize you with a range of philosophical perspectives on the natural environment, from economic rationalism to deep ecology and ecofeminism. This will enable you to begin to pinpoint and develop an understanding of your own individual environmental philosophy and to appreciate the need to understand the environmental philosophies of others.

Aboriginal Worldview Workshop

Dr. Mary Graham, a Bundjalung elder who has been teaching with SIT Study Abroad since 1993, will lead this one-day workshop, which explores the way in which the land is central to Aboriginal identity. The workshop will examine differences in the way indigenous peoples view and relate to their environments. By coming to understand a radically different worldview, you will be able to deconstruct dominant western worldviews. You will be led to critically analyze your own relationship with the environment and to reflect on what contemporary western societies can learn from indigenous cultures that might help them in their efforts to become more sustainable. The workshop is run in Aboriginal style with the group sitting in a circle and sharing stories.

Social Change and Environmental Action Workshop

This workshop, led by Dr. Elizabeth Bragg, will present models of social change and examine the type and scale of changes that are needed to solve our major environmental problems. It will present examples of successful environmental campaigns, and you will be introduced to a wide range of environmental activists. The workshop will provide you with practical tools to take effective environmental action at different levels: personal, community, and structural/political. You will explore ideas for projects you can undertake while still an undergraduate, and you will be encouraged to identify and value skills you already possess.