Degrees & Learning
Sustainability at Southern Oregon University
Academic Programs
Southern Oregon University identifies sustainable practices as a specific emphasis within our University mission. This commitment is realized, in part, by offering a wide range of exceptional programs that emphasize sustainability and environmental awareness.
SOU offers sustainability-focused programs including Sustainability and, Environmental Science and Policy. SOU students will also find courses emphasizing our commitment to sustainability in various programs from art to business.
Sustainability is inherently linked to how we learn and what we learn, and this is reflected in SOU courses to help students in the current and future world.
For all SOU’s Academic Programs, please visit here.
Examples of Sustainability Focused Academic Programs at SOU
Sustainability Focused or Inclusive Courses
Southern Oregon University offers many courses related to sustainability across the majority of departments and academic programs. We value a multidisciplinary approach.
Visit here to see our wide range of sustainability related courses across multiple programs. The list was last edited in May 2025.
SOU’s Living Laboratory
At Southern Oregon University, learning is active, applied, and real. Our campus and community form a living laboratory where students turn ideas into action and theory into real-world solutions. Learning is rooted in place, shaped by relationships, and focused on the systems that connect our built, natural, and social environments. To find out more about our Living Laboratory, please visit here.
Community and Resilience Leadership Program
The Community Resilience and Leadership (CRL) Student Fellows Program is a year-long hands-on, community-engaged learning program for students who want their education to make an impact beyond the classroom. CRL connects students from all majors with community partners to tackle real regional challenges like climate and energy resilience and community well-being. CRL gives students the unique opportunity to apply their passions to real-world problems and gain experience that prepares them for meaningful careers. If you’re looking for a transformative learning experience that blends purpose, practice, and impact, CRL is a place to start. Learn more here.
Integrating Sustainability Across the Curriculum
Southern Oregon University developed a program on integrating sustainability into the curriculum. The program, titled Southern Oregon University Sustainability Curriculum Initiative (SOUSCI) was initiated in Fall 2019. Each year, a cohort of faculty attend workshops and monthly meetings with program facilitators and guest speakers to support the integration of sustainability into their courses. Each year the focus is on one aspect of sustainability: environment, economic, or social.
Faculty have integrated sustainability in a variety of courses including communications, food and beverage management, film theory, land use planning, marketing, international financial marketing, and argumentation and critical thinking.
Additional examples of integrating Sustainability across the curriculum for how and what we learn
SOU Digital Cinema accepted as Green Film School Alliance member
