When the Faculty voted three years ago to approve a new concentration in Environmental Science and Public Policy (ESPP), it didn't expect the concentration to be as popular as it has become.

While organizers of the concentration said they expected about 20 to 25 students, 47 students enrolled in the concentration its first year. That number jumped to 84 in 1994 and 91 in 1995.

This year, the number rose by about 30 percent, to 120 concentrators, and students, faculty and alums praise the concentration for its interdisciplinary nature and the chance it offers to develop a sub-field of expertise.

The concentration has enormous breadth, encompassing coursework in biology, chemistry, earth and planetary science (EPS), government, economics and mathematics.

ESPP concentrators generally say they appreciate the broad base of knowledge of the environment and policy-making they receive from the curriculum.

A few argue, however, that the concentration falls short because its courses are too disparate.

They also say that while it forces students to develop innovative solutions to environmental problems, their answers are not feasible and their exercises are often futile.

Uniting Interests

Despite the Faculty's near-unanimous vote in approving ESPP, critics warned that the concentration was unnecessary because students could study EPS and take electives in social science areas.

But those concentrating in ESPP say those criticisms are not valid, and cite their foundation in the politics of environmental policymaking as opposed to EPS's emphasis on the science of the earth.

As the first class of seniors who originally declared ESPP as a concentration approaches graduation, many say ESPP allowed them to unite their interests better than any of the older concentrations would have.

And they add that they are happy with the concentration overall, citing the hands-on approach of the junior tutorial and the opportunity to develop relationships with respected professors as its major strengths.

"[ESPP's] best successes are the fact that it seems that the faculty really cares about the students and it's a small enough group that you get specialized attention," says James S. Castle'97.

Rudd W. Coffey '97 says he went on a spring-break field trip to Florida last year with the members of his junior tutorial and two professors who insisted that the class call them by their first names.

"ESPP allows you a lot of freedom to design your own program and take courses in different programs and have it count," he says.

James J. McCarthy, chair and head tutor of ESPP, agrees with Coffey. One of the initial proponents of the concentration, he says he believes it is needed and appreciated by undergraduates.