Degree Programs in Sustainability Science

The Sustainability Science Program does not offer a degree program. Students interested in sustainability science are encouraged to pursue this work within relevant schools and departments at Harvard. Our host institution, Harvard's Kennedy School of Government, offers a variety of doctoral and masters degree programs. An undergraduate concentration in Environmental Sciences and Public Policy is also available. As an indication of the range of topics studied by HKS students, and the faculty who advise them, we provide here a list of student theses that focus on environment and development concerns: doctoral dissertations, HKS Master in Public Administration in International Development "Second Year Paper Analyses", and HKS Master in Public Policy "Policy Analysis Exercises." A listing of faculty interested in the broad areas of environment and development are available on the web sites of the Sustainability Science Program and the Harvard University Center for the Environment. While the Sustainability Science Program does not offer any courses, course links are provided to help with your search.

The Sustainability Science Fellows Program is an international competition to bring younger professionals, including in particular senior doctoral and post-doctoral students, to Harvard's Center for International Development as well as a practitioner fellowships for individuals in governmental, non-governmental or private organizations with at least five years of professional experience doing work involved in linking science and practice for sustainable development. Fellows generally reside at Harvard for one year. Students enrolled in any of these programs are invited to participate in many of the seminars and other events organized by the Sustainability Science Program.

A list of sustainability science programs and a 2007 survey of programs is available from the American Association for the Advancement of Science. It provides a snapshot of a wide range of programs from across the globe that approach sustainability from the perspective of science, technology, and innovation, and the survey describes these programs' structures, goals, and their respective challenges and successes. A 2009 survey of sustainability science in Europe is also available. The journal, Sustainability: Science, Practice and Policy, provides a database of educational institutions offering degree granting sustainability programs generally, not just sustainability science.