Environmental sustainability education at the university of Michigan: Collaboration with industry to provide experiential learning opportunities

The Concentrations in Environmental Sustainability (ConsEnSus) Program at the University of Michigan is a new multi-disciplinary opportunity for graduate students in the College of Engineering to pursue interests in environmental sustainability white obtaining a traditional engineering Master's degree. Students from several engineering departments complement traditional disciplinary course requirements with courses in environmental regulations, policies, and technology. A required case studies course of the ConsEnSus Program brings practicing engineers together with students to discuss real-world sustainability problems. The industrial participants interactively present relevant case studies, and provide opportunities for experiential learning through classroom activities and term projects. This paper will further explain the ConsEnSus Program, its implementation, the initial successes of the program, and the case studies course and term project that was developed in collaboration with industry.