Environmental Management and Sustainability
Environmental management and sustainability is a field that asks how human societies can organise themselves and their activities to protect the natural systems on which they depend. It combines environmental science with an understanding of governance, behaviour, and organisational practice, asking not just how the environment works but how people, organisations, and communities can be moved to manage it better. The field has expanded rapidly as the urgency of climate change, biodiversity loss, and resource depletion has moved environmental concerns to the top of public and policy agendas.
At the University of Plymouth, this three-year full-time programme includes a foundation year, a sandwich placement year, a year abroad, and work placements, making it one of the most practically and internationally comprehensive programmes available in this field. You will explore how action on environmental management and sustainability happens at every scale, from global policy frameworks to local community initiatives, engaging with real case studies and developing your understanding of the factors that drive or obstruct change. The programme brings together environmental science, social science, and management thinking, reflecting the genuinely interdisciplinary nature of the challenges it addresses.
The placement year gives you direct professional experience in an environmental or sustainability role.
Graduates work in environmental consultancy, local and national government environmental departments, conservation organisations, sustainability roles in businesses, environmental NGOs, planning, and international development organisations. The combination of scientific understanding, policy awareness, and management skills makes graduates adaptable and effective in a field that is growing and diversifying rapidly. Postgraduate study in environmental management, sustainability, conservation, or environmental policy is a natural route for those who wish to develop their expertise further.