Environmental Sustainability with Foundation Year (Hons) University of Derby

Overview

Pressure is increasing on industries and governments around the world to respond to the harmful outcomes of human activity, and rapidly develop innovative approaches to ensure the sustainable future of the environment. The Environmental Sustainability with Foundation Year (Hons) course from University of Derby is designed to meet the growing demand for graduates skilled in shaping innovative solutions that have a positive impact on environmental and sustainability issues.

Key facts

• This is also an interdisciplinary course, enabling you to specialise in a specific area to suit your career ambitions or study a range of topics for a broad knowledge-base
• The programme reflects an outside-in approach, embedding issues around (inter alia) the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, United Nations Biodiversity Framework and IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) 30 Year Plan for Biodiversity.  Our graduates will have an interdisciplinary and problem-solving approach to global sustainability, an understanding of the responsibilities of personal and organisational actions and accountability, and an applied and solution-based approach to global issues
• Learn from an expert teaching team of active researchers, investigating topics such as climate change, marine ecosystems, environmental degradation, ecosystem services, urban sustainability and biodiversity conservation

Careers

As part of the consultative process when creating the course, we engaged with leaders from across the industry to ensure that the content we deliver is aligned to the skills and experience that employers need from graduates now and in the future. These included representatives from industry, the United Nations Environment and Development UK Committee, local authorities, and environmental consultancies.

Your experience will be valued by organisations where sustainable growth is a priority. This could include helping them to achieve targets such as moving to 100% renewable energy, increasing their energy production or switching to electric vehicles. You could also lead on developing strategies for conserving wildlife, better waste management, reducing greenhouse gases, managing environmental and sustainability plans, designing sustainable environments, and much more. Companies are investing in experts who can strategically advise the business and educate their workforce. As the importance of sustainability continues to grow, the diversity of career options is increasing too. Sectors you could go into include:

• Environmental agencies

• Global businesses

• Local authorities and government

• Environmental consultancies

• Wildlife conservation