Environmental Studies Senior Seminar

Environmental Studies Senior Seminar

Formerly Known as Senior Capstone Seminar

Environmental Studies Senior Seminar

Capstone seminars were replaced with a new Senior Seminar, effective Fall 2020.

The new Senior Seminar is a research and professional seminar attended by all senior Environmental Studies majors for one semester in their senior year. The purpose of the senior seminar includes integrating environmental research and professional development into the senior experience, teaching critical and integrative thinking, and enhancing community- and cohort-building.

You can view most of the past capstone presentations on our YouTube channel.

Current/Past Senior Seminars

Spring 2022

Senior Seminar with Sonali McDermid

Fall 2021

Senior Seminar with Kim Carlson

Spring 2021

Senior Seminar with Kim Carlson

Fall 2020

Senior Seminar with Gernot Wagner

Spring 2020

Title	Instructor
Clean Energy and Innovation	Derek Sylvan
Park over Plastic	Clarisa Diaz

Fall 2019

Title	Instructor
Trash and the City: Single-Use Plastic Waste Management	Kizzy Charles-Guzman
Clean Energy and Innovation	Derek Sylvan
Using Innovative Finance to Create a Conservation Trust for the Okavango River Basin	Jim Tolisano

Spring 2019

Title	Instructor
Urban Ocean Conservation	Ayana Johnson
Clean Energy and Innovation	Derek Sylvan
Marketing Green Homes	John Oppermann

Fall 2018

Title	Instructor
Climate Adaptation Planning: the role of urban residential buildings in climate change preparedness	Kizzy Charles-Guzman
The Historical Ecology of Jerusalem	Eric Sanderson
Waste Diversion Strategies at NYU	Dianne Anderson

Spring 2018

Title	Instructor
Sustaining the Marine Protected Areas of the Bahamas - Using Innovative Finance Mechanisms to Build the Bahamas Protected Area Fund (BPAF)	Jim Tolisano
Clean Energy and Innovation	Derek Sylvan
The Historical Ecology of Jerusalem	Eric Sanderson

Fall 2017

Title	Instructor
Sustainability Planning: Developing a waste management strategy for a suburban nature preserve	Kizzy Charles-Guzman
Developing Solar Projects Across the U.S.	Brendan Noakes
Urban Ocean Conservation: A NYC Case Study	Ayana Johnson

Spring 2017

Title	Instructor
Clean Energy and Innovation: Batteries, Technology, and Public Policy	Derek Sylvan
Leveraging Eco-tourism for Ocean Conservation	Ayana Johnson
Protecting Nature Through Responsible Finance	Jim Tolisano

Fall 2016

Title	Instructor	Intended client
Developing Commercial Solar Projects across the U.S.	Brendan Noakes	Solar Landscape, General Electric
Trash and the City: Solid Waste Management in NYC	Kizzy Charles-Guzman	BagItNYC
Visionmaker.nyc	Eric Sanderson	Wildlife Conservation Society

Spring 2016

Title	Instructor	Intended Client
Developing a Conservation Finance Strategy for the Western Indian Ocean Coastal Challenge (WIOCC)	Jim Tolisano	Innovations in Conservation (ICONS), Rainforest Alliance, Wildlife Conservation Society, NYU Stern Center for Sustainable Business
Clean Power Plan for New York State	William Rom	EPA
Social Resiliency in Coastal Cities	Maryam Hariri	Habitat III

Fall 2015

Title	Instructor	Intended Client
Developing Solar Projects Across the U.S.	Brendan Noakes	Sybac Solar
BagItNYC Fall 2015 Observational Survey	Kizzy Charles-Guzman	BagItNYC
The Future of Welikia: Making visions of the ecological city	Eric Sanderson	Wildlife Conservation Society

Spring 2015

Title	Instructor	Intended Client
Developing Solar Projects Across the U.S.	Brendan Noakes	Safari Energy
Building New Conservation Markets Through Sustainable Financing and Investments- A Case Study From Vietnam	Jim Tolisano	Wildlife Conservation Society
Social Resiliency in Coastal Cities	Maryam Hariri	TBD

Fall 2014

Title	Instructor	Intended Client
Expanding Green Roofs on University Campuses: A Guide	Gwen Schantz & Ben Flanner	The Brooklyn Grange
PlaNYC 2015	Kizzy Charles-Guzman	The Nature Conservancy
Welikia: the Historical and Contemporary Ecology of New York City	Eric Sanderson	Wildlife Conservation Society

Spring 2014

Title	Instructor	Intended Client
Creating Incentives for Conservation Practice on Private Lands - The Adirondack Lands Connectivity & Ecosystem Services Project (ALCES)	Jim Tolisano	Wildlife Conservation Society
Social Resiliency in Coastal Cities	Maryam Hariri	TBD
Welikia: the Historical and Contemporary Ecology of New York City	Eric Sanderson	Wildlife Conservation Society

Fall 2013

Title	Instructor	Intended Client
Election 2013: Developing an Environmental Agenda for the City of New York	Kizzy Charles-Guzman	NYC Administration
The 2050 City: Self- Sustaining Infrastructure and the Urban Future	Gregory Kiss	The 2050 City Project
Developing Effective Citizen Science Efforts to Monitor Water-Air Quality Connections	M. Elias Dueker	NYC Environmental NGO

Spring 2013

Title	Instructor	Intended Client
Can Natural Defenses Be Used to Protect People Against Extreme Events?	Jane Carter Ingram	Wildlife Conservation Society
Greening NYCHA Public Housing in Bedford-Stuyvesant	Melissa Lee	Coalition for Improvement of Bedford-Stuyvesant
Building New Markets for Private Landowners in New York	James Tolisano	Kinship Conservation Fellows

Fall 2012

Title	Instructor	Intended Client
Welikia: The Historical and Contemporary Ecology of Greater New York	Eric Sanderson	The Welikia Project
Appraising Green Infrastructure Opportunities	Gwen Schantz & Ben Flanner	The Brooklyn Grange
Sustainability Performance Reporting by NYC NGOs--Assessing the Challenge	Kizzy Charles-Guzman	NYC Mayor's Office of Long-Term Planning & Sustainability

Spring 2012

Title	Instructor	Intended Client
Beyond Waste: Supporting Community Efforts to Reduce Waste	Sara Pesek	Lower East Side Ecology Center
Animal Agriculture & Climate Change: Global Policies, Finance & Civil Society	Mia MacDonald	Humane Society International and Brighter Green (watch on YouTube
Welikia: The Historical and Contemporary Ecologyof Greater New York	Eric Sanderson	The Welikia Project

Fall 2011

Title	Instructor	Intended Client
Building New Markets for Private Landowners in New York	Jim Tolisano	Kinship Conservation Fellows
Greener & Greater: Building New York's Clean Tech Cluster	Micah Kotch	NYC ACRE
Environmental Policy & Sustainability in NYC	Kizzy Charles-Guzman	NYC Mayor's Office of Long-Term Planning & Sustainability

Spring 2011

Title	Instructor	Intended Client
Greening of NYC Transportation	Noah Budnick	Transportation Alternatives
Welikia: Beyond Mannahatta - The Historical Ecology of NYC	Eric Sanderson	The Mannahatta Project
Animal Product Based Diets & Climate Change	Mia MacDonald	NYC Mayor's Office of Long-Term Planning & Sustainability

Fall 2010

Title	Instructor	Intended Client
Communicating Science: Green Infrastructure Use in Addressing Stormwater Challenges	Sara Pesek	Environmental Protection Agency
Environmental Policy and Sustainability in NYC	Kizzy Charles-Guzman	NYC Mayor's Office of Long-Term Planning & Sustainability
Navigating the Murky Waters of the Gowanus Canal	Margaret Mittelbach	The Gowanus Canal Conservancy

Spring 2010

Title	Instructor	Intended Client
Greening of NYC Transportation	Colin Beavan	Transportation Alternatives
Greening of NYU	Jeremy Friedman	NYU Sustainability Task Force

Fall 2009

Title	Instructor	Intended Client
PlaNYC 3.0	Kizzy Charles-Guzman	NYC Mayor's Office of Long-Term Planning & Sustainability
Navigating the Murky Waters of the Gowanus Canal	Margaret Mittelbach	The Gowanus Canal Conservancy

Spring 2009

Title	Instructor	Intended Client
Greening of Higher Education	Chris Schlottmann	NYU Sustainability Task Force

Fall 2008

Title	Instructor	Intended Client
PlaNYC 3.0	Kizzy Charles-Guzman	NYC Mayor's Office of Long-Term Planning & Sustainability

Innovations in Conservation (ICONS), Rainforest Alliance, Wildlife Conservation Society, NYU Stern Center for Sustainable Business

Innovations in Conservation (ICONS), Rainforest Alliance, Wildlife Conservation Society, NYU Stern Center for Sustainable Business

Innovations in Conservation (ICONS), Rainforest Alliance, Wildlife Conservation Society, NYU Stern Center for Sustainable Business