Civil engineers, sustainable builders and environmental engineers will find a number of industry related classes and educational resources available to them through open courseware. From classes in ecology to evaluating chemicals and toxic waste to testing soil samples to renewable energy to land conservation, open courseware in environmental engineering offers busy students and professionals a free, convenient solution to going back to school or enrolling in expensive training programs. Interested students can take a few online classes or follow resources to readings and course assignments which broaden an engineer’s view of his or her field and expose them to new policies, trends and theories in environmental engineering. Open courseware allows engineers to try out a new field without having to invest in going back to school or deciding to make a career switch right away.

This collection of courses includes classes from MIT and the Paris Tech Grad School. Classes like Ecology II: Engineering for Sustainability; Chemicals in the Environment: Toxicology and Public Health; and Aquatic Chemistry cover topics in evolution, ecosystems, renewable energy, sustainable energy, environmental policy, environmental ethics, public health, and the various chemical processes found in oceans, rivers, lakes, streams, bays, and other water environments. Through environmental engineering open courseware classes, students will be exposed to other fields of study like economics, politics, socio-cultural issues and more, as many classes and lecturers are dedicated to showing how many industries and ideas affect the environment.

• Fundamentals of Ecology [MIT] - Learn about “the flow of energy and materials” in this course, which covers topics in ecosystems, evolution and natural selection, trophic dynamics and more.
• Ecology II: Engineering for Sustainability [MIT] - Learn about renewable energy, conservation laws, and other topics in sustainable engineering in this class.
• Land Conservation Management [Paris Tech] - This French-language class covers the basics in land conservation management.
• Chemicals in the Environment: Toxicology and Public Health [MIT] - Engineers learn about the effects of toxins in the environment on public health.
• Aquatic Chemistry [MIT] - Students learn about the chemical processes in water environments in this course.