The Florida Atlantic University (FAU) School of Environmental, Coastal, and Ocean Sustainability (ECOS) is a partnership between the Charles E. Schmidt College of Science and Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute (HBOI). This multidisciplinary and multi-unit initiative serves as the driver for diverse academic and research entities to create a comprehensive environmental hub at FAU. ECOS leverages each group's outside partners, including many government agencies and educational institutions, combining the full breadth of partnerships with the University’s teaching, research and outreach mission to enhance opportunities and bring forth the collective environmental capabilities of FAU.   

ECOS serves as an umbrella for numerous academic offerings in departments and interdisciplinary program areas that provide advanced bachelor’s, master’s, doctoral, and certificate programs.  

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Become an Affiliate Member

The FAU School of Environmental, Coastal, and Ocean Sustainability (ECOS) invites faculty, postdoctoral fellows, and graduate students from any organizational unit within FAU to become affiliate member of the School. 

Members will be added to the ECOS Canvas site to view upcoming conferences, community engagement opportunities, funding opportunities, jobs for new grads, and more. 

call for Nominations: ecos Research Award  

The School of Environmental, Coastal, and Ocean Sustainability is pleased to announce the ECOS Research Award(s), recognizing the most influential published manuscript on emerging topics related to ECOS. This award aims to acknowledge exceptional contributions to the field and encourage impactful research within our community. The award includes a $500 honorarium. The deadline to apply is March 13, 2024.

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VISION

Our vision is to become a leading nexus of environmental education, research, and community engagement, across public, private, and non-profit sectors to create a resilient future that prepares and lessens anthropogenic impacts on South Florida ecosystems and human communities while serving as a model for other regions across the state, region, and globe.   

RESEARCH

Located in a region at the forefront of challenges that much of the world is facing due to the intersection of the natural environment with a rapidly growing urban population. Six FAU campuses in South Florida span a region where growing urban areas impact the natural world, from the accelerating risks of climate change (e.g., rising temperatures, coastal erosion, more frequent and intense storms and floods) to habitat destruction, environmental contamination, and harmful algal blooms. With its robust programs in environmental research, education, and community engagement, FAU and ECOS have the opportunity to provide leadership and guidance to enhance the resilience of South Florida's ecological systems and human population. 

Our faculty and scientists are widely published and funded by the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the United States Geological Survey, the South Florida Water Management District, the U.S. Department of Transportation, the Florida Department of Transportation, and a range of other public and private sources. 

View the partners of ECOS.

 

 

Educational Programs 

• B.A./B.S. Biological Sciences
• B.A./B.S. Chemistry
• B.A./B.S. Geosciences
• B.A./B.S. Physics
• Bachelor of Urban & Regional Planning
• Bachelor of Urban Design Undergraduate
• Semester by the Sea at HBOI
• B.S. Certificate in Environmental Science
• B.S. Biology/MS Environmental Science fast-track combo program
• M.S. Biological Sciences
• M.S. Chemistry
• M.S. Environmental Science
• M.S. Geosciences
• M.S. Marine Science and Oceanography
• Master of Urban and Regional Planning
• Graduate Certificate in Environmental Restoration
• Graduate Certificate in GIS
• Ph.D. Chemistry
• Ph.D. Geosciences
• Ph.D. Integrative Biology (concentration in Environmental Science or Marine Science & Oceanography)

Partnerships 

• Department of Biological Sciences
• Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
• Department of Geosciences
• Department of Physics
• Department of Urban and Regional Planning
• Center for Environmental Studies
• Center for Geo-Information Science
• Center for Urban and Environmental Solutions
• Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute 
• Riverwoods Field Laboratory (a part of the Center for Environmental Studies)  

Giving  

Supporting the Next Generation of Environmental Problem Solvers  

• Undergraduate scholarships, paid research opportunities, and internships
• Graduate research assistantships
• Postdoctoral program

Programmatic Support

• Expand academic programming and related initiatives
• Support student travel and conference participation
• Support The Invading Sea to inform the public about climate change issues 

ECOS Research Fund 

• Seed funding to support new research initiatives and collaborations
• Support outreach, community engagement and citizen science 

ECOS Endowed Chair 

• Attract a premier researcher to lead ECOS initiatives 

Give to ECOS

Contact Schmidt College of Science Director of Development, Todd Clark at clarkt@fau.edu or 561.297.2689.

Contact  

Questions? Please contact Director of the School for Environmental, Coastal, and Ocean Sustainability and Professor, Colin Polsky, Ph.D., at cpolsky@fau.edu.  

Administration

Colin Polsky, Ph.D.
Founding Director, School of Environmental, Coastal, and Ocean Sustainability
Director, Center for Environmental Studies
Professor of Geosciences
cpolsky@fau.edu
954.236.1088  

 

 

Michael McCoy, Ph.D.
Associate Director, School of Environmental, Coastal, and Ocean Sustainability
Associate Professor of Quantitative Ecology with a dual appointment in the Department of Biology and Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute
mccoym@fau.edu
772.242.2621