Conservation Psychology
ENVR-40000
Learn How Human Behavior Drives Environmental Solutions in Energy, Water, Waste, and Climate Action
Efforts to conserve water and energy, reduce auto-dependency, promote recycling, and adapt to climate change all share a common challenge: they depend on human behavior. This course explores how psychological principles, theories, and methods can be applied to understand and address environmental problems. Students will gain an overview of contemporary environmental issues with a focus on the role of human behavior, and examine key psychological foundations for conservation, including the commons dilemma, connectedness with nature, rational choice, values, and incentives. The course also highlights real-world solutions, analyzing both successful and unsuccessful interventions designed to influence behavior. Case studies will cover topics such as water conservation, recycling and waste management, transportation, and energy use, equipping participants with practical insights to design and evaluate effective environmental programs.
Learning Objectives:
- Gain an understanding of the field of Conservation Psychology
- Describe the behavioral causes of environmental problems
- Specify the psychological factors that lead people to engage in conservation behavior
- Identify the effective strategies used to promote conservation behavior
AICP Credit: AICP members can earn Certification Maintenance (CM) credits for this activity. For a list of additional UC San Diego Extended Studies AICP CM Events go to American Planning Association.
CM | 27
Join us October 22nd at 12pm for an engaging free webinar session, led by our Instructor Frances Lang.
Sign up here: Shaping Ocean Futures Through EveryDay Action
Introduction to Conservation Psychology
Hear from Dr. Wesley Schultz as he discusses how conservation psychology can help us understand and change unsustainable behaviors to drive real environmental impact.
Course Information
Wesley Schultz has more than 20 years experience teaching and conducting research on the behavioral foundations of sustainability. He is Professor of Psychology at California State University, San Marcos, and has served as Scientific Advisor to numerous businesses and governmental organizations, including ENERGY STAR, CalEPA, and Keep America Beautiful. He currently serves as President of the Environmental Psychology Division (4) of the International Association of Applied Psychology (IAAP), and he is on the editorial board for the Journal of Environmental Psychology.
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Course sessions
Section ID:
Class type:
This course is entirely web-based and to be completed asynchronously between the published course start and end dates. Synchronous attendance is NOT required.
You will have access to your online course on the published start date OR 1 business day after your enrollment is confirmed if you enroll on or after the published start date.
Textbooks:
All course materials are included unless otherwise stated.
Policies:
- No refunds after: 4/14/2026
Schedule:
Instructor:
Kayla Cranston, Ph.D, Environmental Studies
Dr. Cranston is the Director of Conservation Psychology Strategy and Integration at Antioch University New England. In this position, she leads environmental professionals and surrounding communities through co-design processes to collaboratively create conservation programming with the humans who will be impacted by that programming the most. She designs and implements science-based strategy to increase long-term engagement in conservation programming with an eye to inclusive evaluation practices to promote a sustainable relationship between a diverse population of humans and nature. She leads the design and administration of a suite of professional development services aimed to build the capacity of conservation professionals to effectively integrate Conservation Psychology into their daily work.
Dr. Cranston recently served as Conservation Education Researcher at Saint Louis Zoo to lead evaluation of K-12 environmental education programs and an urban participatory asset mapping program there. Her research brings a psychological perspective to evaluating conservation education programming and the well-being of community members who are directly affected by local conservation projects. Dr. Cranston has shared her expertise in conservation psychology by teaching the topic to graduate and undergraduate students at Antioch University New England, Keene State College, UC San Diego Extended Studies, and Oregon State University. She has consulted with organizations like WWF, USFW, American Museum of Natural History, Woodland Park Zoo, Roger Williams Park Zoo, Detroit Zoo, Zoo New England, Zoological Society of London, Cleveland Metroparks Zoo, the Regional Network for Conservation Educators in the Albertine Rift, and the Tropical Biology Association to apply psychological principles and tools to strengthen conservation education programs and evaluate community engagement programs. Visit www.kaylacranston.com for more on the 5 Factors of Sustained Engagement framework Dr. Cranston created to integrate the science of human behavior into community engagement for biodiversity conservation.
