Finding Direction: How the Quinney Scholarship Helped Marie Wood Discover Her Path
When Marie Wood first stepped onto Utah State University’s campus as a high school student, she had no idea that a simple detour would change the course of her life.
Welcome to the Department of Environment and Society - Where Science Meets Sustainability
We deliver undergraduate education in environmental studies, recreation resource management, geography, and geospatial information science. We deliver graduate education in interdisciplinary environmental social science, ecology, recreation resource management, geography, and environmental policy. Our researchers use the social, environmental, and interdisciplinary sciences to understand human-environment interactions at a range of spatial scales and to bring human considerations into natural resource and environmental management.
Our faculty promote people-centered solutions for sustainability transitions and for climate change adaptation, mitigation, and resilience. Together, we have expertise in various disciplines and fields, including archaeoecology; ecological economics; ecology; environmental, social, and behavioral sciences; geographic information science (GIS); human-environment geography; land change science; natural resource and environmental policy; and recreation resource management.
Values of community engagement inform our teaching, and we are USU-certified as a Community-Engaged Department.
ENVS Events
Utah’s historic snow drought is one that trees will likely never forget
This winter was Utah’s warmest on record, and statewide snowpack has cratered to new record lows. That’s likely to leave a mark, said Justin DeRose, an associate professor of applied forest ecology at Utah State University. “2026 is shaping up to be a mar...
Checking On Utah: Wellbeing Survey Launches in More Than 55 Utah Communities
Residents across Utah have the opportunity this spring to weigh in on how life is going in their own communities through the Utah Wellbeing Project, now in its seventh year tracking feedback on everything from social connection to safety.
Jobs and Opportunities
Current ENVS Position Opportunities and Student Opportunities with Partnering Organizations
Seminars/Webinars
During the Fall and Spring Semesters, QCNR regularly hosts weekly seminars and webinars featuring academics and professionals in natural resources fields from around the world.