Nov 18, 2024  
2024-2025 Graduate Calendar (Draft) 
    
Catalog Navigation
  Calendar Home
  Programs
  Courses
  Disclaimer
  Mission Statement
  Graduate Students Rights and Responsibilities Policy
  Schedule of Important Dates
  Application and Admissions
  Scholarships, Awards, Bursaries and Financial Assistance
  Fees
  Academic Regulations
  Code of Student Conduct
  Academic Computing Information
  My Portfolio
HELP
2024-2025 Graduate Calendar (Draft)

Sustainability Science (PhD)

Location(s): Main Campus

Facebook this Page (opens a new window)
Tweet this Page (opens a new window)

Return to {$returnto_text} Return to: Programs

Doctor of Philosophy in Sustainability Science
https://brocku.ca/esrc/ssci/

Faculty and Administration

Dean
Ingrid Makus
Faculty of Social Sciences

Associate Dean
Dawn Zinga
Faculty of Social Sciences

Core Faculty

Professors
Christine Daigle (Philosophy), Diane Dupont (Economics), Xavier Fazio (Education), David Fennell (Geography & Tourism Studies), Francine McCarthy (Earth Sciences), Tim O’Connell (Recreation & Leisure Studies), Gary Pickering (Biological Sciences), Michael Pisaric (Geography & Tourism Studies), Ryan Plummer (Environmental Sustainability Research Centre), Liette Vasseur (Biological Sciences)

Associate Professors
Julia Baird (Environmental Sustainability Research Centre and Geography & Tourism Studies), Jessica Blythe (Environmental Sustainability Research Centre), Marilyne Carrey (Environmental Sustainability Research Centre), Todd Green (Marketing, International Business & Strategy), Timothy Heinmiller (Political Science), Magnus Hultman (Marketing, International Business & Strategy), Kevin Turner (Geography & Tourism Studies)

Assistant Professor
Sylvia Grewatsch (Marketing, International Business and Strategy)

Participating Faculty

Associate Professors
Adam Dickinson (English Language & Literature), Garrett Hutson (Recreation & Leisure Studies)

Assistant Professors
Kiyoko Gotanda (Biological Sciences), Vaughn Mangal (Chemistry)

Adjunct Professors
Amy Bowen (Environmental Sustainability Research Centre), Gillian Dale (Environmental Sustainability Research Centre), Sherman Farhad (Universidad de Córdoba), Jennifer Holzer (Environmental Sustainability Research Centre), Bradley May (Environmental Sustainability Research Centre), Timothy F. Smith (University of the Sunshine Coast, Australia)

 

Acting Graduate Program Director
Garrett Hutson
ghutson@brocku.ca


Coordinator
Erin Daly
SSCI@brocku.ca

Program Description

This program is offered through the Environmental Sustainability Research Centre (ESRC).

At its core, sustainability science is a transdisciplinary field that strives to generate creative, real-world solutions for complex problems. The PhD in Sustainability Science aims to cultivate a sustainable and equitable future by offering a state-of-the-art education in an established transdisciplinary centre that integrates rigorous scientific practice with an understanding of the unique linkages between humans and the environment. We seek to develop world class sustainability scientists who take a transdisciplinary approach to identifying critical social- environmental challenges, and who work toward formulating and implementing innovative solutions that support decision making, policy development, and best practices both locally and globally.

Our Faculty, who come from diverse disciplines and units, share a common interest in environmental sustainability. Brock University is located in a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve - a site seeking to reconcile social, economic and biophysical challenges confronting societies around the globe.

Facilities

The program has two graduate student offices equipped with computer monitors and internet access. Core and participating faculty have active research programs with access to a variety of laboratories, specialized equipment, and array of field sites in Canada and internationally. The geographical location of Brock University, in a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, on the Niagara Escarpment and near the Great Lakes, provides rich opportunities for local field research.

Admission Requirements

Successful completion of a Masters-level degree (or equivalent) in environmental sciences, environmental studies, or a related field from an accredited university with an average of at least 80%.

Successful completion of SSAS 5P01  and SSAS 5P02 , or their equivalent, is also required. Applicants without these courses may take them during their initial year of study.

Applicants will be expected to demonstrate Proof of English Language Proficiency.

Agreement of a core program faculty member to supervise the student is also required for admission. Admission is not guaranteed by attainment of the minimum requirements. Admission is a competitive process.

Degree Requirements

Admitted students will consult with their supervisor when planning a program of study. The student’s plan of study must be approved by the Graduate Program Director.

Degree requirements are:

Comprehensive Examination

Comprehensive examinations are one program progression milestone. Students will be required to define a series of areas or topics that are relevant to their research and sustainability science, and will develop questions surrounding these topics in conjunction with their supervisory committee. The supervisory committee will then select one of the questions, and submit it to the Graduate Program Director, in consultation with the Graduate Program Sub-Committee, for approval. The student will then be required to write a well-researched and argued paper that answers the selected question. Critically, students must indicate how their arguments are situated within the field of sustainability science. Students are required to publicly present their work, defend their arguments, and answer questions posed by their supervisory committee. See Sustainability Science PhD Handbook for complete details.

Research Proposal

Development, presentation, and approval of the research proposal by the supervisory committee. The research proposal should be informed by the comprehensive examination and be clearly situated within sustainability science. The proposal should clearly communicate the intended research project in terms of rationale, aims/objectives, methodological considerations, scholarly contributions, and timelines. Upon satisfactory approval of the research proposal by the supervisory committee, a recommendation is made to the Graduate Program Director, on behalf of the program, for Admission to Doctoral Candidacy. See Sustainability Science PhD Handbook for complete details.

Dissertation

Intensive and independent research in sustainability science is at the heart of the program. Students are required to undertake substantive independent research from which they produce and publicly defend a dissertation.

Students will receive guidance/mentorship from their supervisor and supervisory committee. A committee, composed of examiners within and outside of Brock University, will evaluate the dissertation. In the dissertation and defence, students will clearly demonstrate their mastery of independent research, capacity for scholarly excellence, understanding of sustainability science, and ability to make an original contribution to knowledge. See Sustainability Science PhD Handbook for complete details.

Return to {$returnto_text} Return to: Programs


Facebook this Page (opens a new window)
Tweet this Page (opens a new window)