Chemistry for the Society and Planet

CHEM 111 is a non-technical elective that uses real-world problems, climate change, water scarcity, plastics, the metals inside your phone, as the lens for understanding what chemistry actually is and why it shapes contemporary life. The work is conceptual rather than computational: you read Chemistry in Context, sit through lectures and discussions, and are assessed through ten quizzes, two midterms, and a final, with no lab component. It's designed as a chemical-literacy course for students from any discipline, so there are no prerequisites and it doesn't feed into the chemistry major sequence; think of it as a science GE that leaves you able to read an article about lithium supply or carbon emissions without getting lost.