Australia: Sustainability and the Environment

  Australia

• New South Wales: 
Byron Bay

Term: Fall, Spring 
Dates: September - December/February - May

Description: The School for International Training's Study Abroad programs offer field-based study in over 40 countries. Students earn 16 semester credits on a 15-week experience designed to encourage global awareness that enables people to live and act in an interdependent world. Groups of seven to 25 students are lead by one or two academic directors.

With its magnificent beaches, estuaries, rainforests, and mountains, subtropical northern New South Wales is widely recognized as one of the most beautiful and biologically important areas of Australia. This idyllic landscape has attracted many settlers committed to preserving the natural environment and establishing more sustainable lifestyles; at the same time, development pressures associated with tourism and rapid population growth have emerged. The resultant conflicts over development have made this region a world leader in sustainability.

Based in Byron Bay, one of the most scenic and culturally interesting towns in Australia, this interdisciplinary program is designed to empower you to contribute to making our societies more sustainable. The United Nations has declared 20052015 the decade of "Education for Sustainable Development." Examining innovative solutions to environmental problems in Australia will prepare you to take part in this endeavor. Extended excursions to Fraser Island and Tasmania (both UNESCO World Heritage sites) and to Aboriginal communities will give you a broad understanding of the environmental and cultural diversity of Australia.

Highlights: Two weeks homestay in Lismore and surrounding areas. Tasmania, Fraser Island,Aboriginal camping trip, farmstay

Environmental components: Workshops focusing on environmental philosophy, including ecofeminism and deep ecology; Aboriginal worldviews; sustainability; national park management and conservation efforts.

Cost in US$: please inquire for more information

Experience Required: no

Scholarships are Available.

Application Process Involves:

• Letters of Reference
• Physical Exam/Health Records
• Transcript
• Written Application

Post Services Include:

• Exit DebriefingAbroad
• Alumni Network
• Job and Internship Network

SIT Study Abroad's Mission Statement: SIT Study Abroad is the accredited higher education institution of World Learning, a private, nonprofit international organization promoting international and intercultural understanding, social justice, and economic development through education, training, and field projects around the globe. SIT prepares students to be interculturally effective leaders, professionals, and citizens through SIT Study Abroad, undergraduate, field-based academic programs operating in more than 50 countries worldwide, and thorough short-term professional training and graduate degrees in language teaching, conflict transformation, international education, social justice in intercultural relations, management, and sustainable development.

Year Founded: 1932