Sustainability, by degrees
Urban wind energy. Beehives. School gardens. Rice farms. These and other suggestions were among a crush of 20 capstone projects presented this week at Harvard Extension School. All offered strategies to slow down growing environmental ills — fitting final efforts by candidates for an A.L.M. (master’s degree) in sustainability and environmental management. “They’re very dynamic,” said George D. Buckley of the projects. In May, about 60 students will graduate from a program that has about 325 candidates poised to receive degrees within a year or two. In an average year, he said, roughly 60 percent of students do a capstone project that assesses a real-world problem. The remaining students write a traditional thesis more related to theory. The capstone approach — often an immersive experience in the practicalities of changing the environment — is five years old, said Buckley, a 35-year instructor at the Extension School and an assistant director of the...