This is a quantitative decision-making course.  At its core, the course employs a systematic framework to approach decisions, particularly those that have conflicting objectives such as economic and environmental concerns.  Optimal solutions for a variety of different systems will be obtained mathematically using a variety of linear and non-linear techniques.  

The purpose of this course is to train students on concrete and rigorous problem-solving tools that provide a mathematical basis for decision-making.  By the end of the course, students will be able to define systems and their boundaries, optimize systems for a set of constraints and objectives, recognize how different modeling choices of the same system can lead to different results, determine the sensitivity of decisions and optimal solutions based on changes in constraints, translate complex problems into mathematical frameworks, and define appropriate sets of solutions when there are multiple, competing objectives.

Example problems span natural resource management, traditional environmental engineering processes, ESG principles, and issues in green design and environmental policy.