For senior undergraduate students who have developed some knowledge of a discipline and its research methods, this course offers an opportunity to work on the research project of a professor. Students enrolled will become involved in original research, develop their research skills, and share in the excitement and discovery of creating new knowledge. Professors' project descriptions for the following fall-winter session are posted on the ROP website in mid-February and students are invited to apply at that time. See Experiential and International Opportunities for more details.

This course offers specialists and advanced majors an opportunity to do sustained and intensive research on a topic developed in consultation with the instructor. Course instruction will consist of training in various research methodologies, advice and help in putting together reading and research lists, and guided workshops where students can practice drafting, editing, and peer editing as well as comparing notes and research materials.

Advanced study of a topic in critical game studies that addresses urgent and evolving questions in critical approaches to games, e.g., defining games, play and players, game production, violence in games, and the social and pedagogical benefits of games.

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This course will introduce students to the history of the book and other technologies of human record. Focusing on the pre- and early modern periods, the course asks the question--what material substances and objects do people use to share imaginative stories? And, what difference can knowing about these make to the history of literature, including literatures in English? The course is partly experiential and collaborative in design. We will learn from one or more present-day book makers: e.g. an Ojibwe maker of birch bark scrolls; or a modern parchment maker or bookbinder. We will visit the Fisher Rare Book Library to see, among others books, one made in 1474 by William Caxton, England’s first printer. And we will collaborate with students working in Forensic Science and Chemistry to use scientific techniques--from advanced microscopy to x-ray fluorescence spectroscopy--to develop and answer humanistic questions about books: e.g. Where did book makers obtain their materials? How have book making technologies--and with them literary texts and traditions--travelled around the globe? What evidence have readers of old books left behind? Underpinning the course is a critical approach to the so-called “Toronto School”--that is, “the theory of the primacy of communication in the structuring of human cultures and the structuring of the human mind.” Is the work of e.g. Harold Innis and Marshall McLuhan relevant to the 21st study of literature? What messages are still readable in the media used by the literary communities of the past?

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The course allows students to workshop their own creative project/s with the instructor and their peers. Restricted to students who in the opinion of the Department show special aptitude. Detail requirements will be posted in advance of this date. Students should contact the instructor or the Undergraduate Advisor for more information.

This introductory environmental science course examines large-scale features of Earth, natural hazards, Earth's climate and weather systems, energy and mineral resources, human population growth, extinction and biodiversity, environmental toxins, vanishing soils and expanding deserts, forests, urban environmental management, and food resources. Interdisciplinary interaction among Science, Social Science, and Humanities is a major theme.

(Formerly GGR234H5) Environmental management builds on topics discussed in ENV100 and GGR111/112, by focusing on conceptual frameworks and specific tools that can be used to formulate environmental management goals and support decision-making. Case studies will be used throughout to highlight different approaches, focusing primarily on Canadian examples. Topics include ecosystem and adaptive management, environment impact assessments, and the role of stakeholders.

The United Nations Commission on Environment and Development popularized the term sustainable development in its 1987 report, Our Common Future. How far have we come since then, as a global community, in implementing sustainability as a model for development? In this course we will examine the history, measurement, and present-day models and applications of sustainability and sustainable development in both the public and private spheres. Sustainability is an integrative concept that addresses social, cultural, political, and economic factors within the constraints of the biophysical environment.

This course provides a richly rewarding opportunity for students in their second year to work on a research project with a professor in return for course credit. Students enrolled have an opportunity to become involved in original research, learn research methods and share in the excitement and discovery of acquiring new knowledge. Based on the nature of the project, projects may satisfy the Sciences or Social Sciences distribution requirement. Participating faculty members post their project descriptions for the following summer and fall/winter sessions in early February and students are invited to apply in early March. See Experiential and International Opportunities for more details.

Tourism has long been an important industry around the world, but increasingly questions are being raised regarding the social and environmental sustainability of tourism. This course will look at the impacts (both negative and positive) that tourism has on the natural environment, society, and local economies. It will explore how tourism relates to mobility, globalization, recreation and outdoor activity, planning, the environment, cultural identities, protected areas, and wildlife conservation. This course begins with an introduction to tourism more generally and then focuses in on critical perspectives and the development of eco-tourism, cultural tourism, and volunteer tourism. As part of this course, students may have the option of participating in an international learning experience that will have an additional cost and application process.

The Earth is one, but the world is not. We all depend on one biosphere for sustaining our lives. Yet each community, each country, strives for survival and prosperity with little regard for its impact on others. These are the opening words from the report of the UN World Commission on Environment and Development, which first popularized the concept of sustainable development. In this course we examine 'environment' and 'development' and 'human well-being' as inseparable challenges. We consider global, regional, and local environmental problems from the perspectives of developing nations, and investigate the economic, social, and political roots of these problems.

Garbage archaeologist William Rathje once said, "Garbage isn't generic junk. It's elements of our behavior all thrown together." The history of human civilization is reflected in what societies have thrown away over the ages. But in recent decades both the quantity and types of waste generated by human activities have changed radically. In this course we will address the philosophical, social, and management challenges associated with waste in Canadian and international contexts, as well as examining some of the technological and scientific aspects of specific waste management problems.

This hands-on course introduces students to field methods and integrative problem solving in environmental sciences. Topics will include sampling methods and protocols employed in terrestrial, aquatic and atmospheric assessment and monitoring, as well as experimental design, data analysis and presentation. Practical sessions will involve outdoor field experiences on campus and neighboring areas.