Environmental studies are extremely popular today, and numerous universities around the world offer undergraduate and graduate programs in this direction. Most programs are based on multidisciplinary training that aims to foster alumni with a broad systemic view of issues related to environmental awareness and sustainable development. As such, these programs do not place emphasis on providing a fundamental scientific background. This is a common problem in interdisciplinary graduate education; while holding great prospects for innovative and original discoveries, its broad approach also makes it less scientifically profound.
The proposed program is aimed at training MSc students in the physical aspects of environment and natural resources' studies. Such training requires the integration of a relevant academic research framework with a dedicated curriculum. Our academic framework fosters teaching and research in a variety of environmental topics using basic tools from physics, chemistry and applied mathematics. Such tools include, for example, theoretical modeling of phenomena at various scales – from the atomic to the global scale, and developing novel materials and devices from the molecular level to the system size.
The program will incorporate thorough and comprehensive training in the relevant fundamental physical sciences: physics including mathematical physics, chemistry, chemical and materials engineering, etc., along with extensive training in environmental subjects such as climate science, global thermodynamics, solar energy, and renewable energy. The program also includes thesis research as an essential part of the training. The program graduates will therefore be fully prepared to initiate and carry out interdisciplinary environmental research and development, and will be able to bridge and foster collaborations between physical sciences and environmental sciences. This program will replace the "Solar Energy and the Environmental Physics" track in the MSc degree in Desert Studies.
