SevilleWeek-Long Study Tour | Sustainability Program

To have a wider vision of European sustainability policy, it is important to understand Europe as a convergence of cultures and socio-ecological interactions that create one of the most complex institutionalized regions in history. Including Spain as part of the curriculum in this course will help students understand some of the decisions taken in Northern Europe on sustainability policy, the ideology behind it, and the obstacles to face the environmental and social challenges in the 21st century. We will visit the only concentrated solar thermal installations in Europe, tour through Seville’s bicycle infrastructure guided by the designer himself, and visit the European Commission’s Department on Sustainable Development.

Tour Objectives

  • Gain a better understanding of the diversity of challenges and possible sustainability policy options in a diverse region such as Europe
  • Be exposed to a complex socio-ecological region and its challenges
  • Learn about a culture with a complex history and how this can be an example to comprehend the difficulties facing sustainability professionals in the U.S

Possible Activities

  • Meet the designer and initiator of the Seville bicycle network
  • Guided tour and talk on extractivism in the “Archivo de Indias” (the repository of extremely valuable archival documents illustrating the history of the Spanish Empire in the Americas and Asia)
  • Visit an organic farm nearby Seville and meet Ecologistas en Acción (a Spanish grassroots confederation of ecological groups)