Con·ser·va·tion crim·i·nol·o·gy (n):
the multi- and inter-disciplinary approach to understanding environmental crime and risk

Conservation criminology is an approach to research, teaching and outreach currently under development at MSU. With the goal of improving evidence-based practices related to environmental crimes and risks, conservation criminology offers a conceptual framework that integrates criminology and criminal justice, conservation and natural resource management and risk and decision science. Research projects examining a diverse set of crimes and risks created by multiple actors are being used to refine the conceptual model.

A Master’s level certificate program that examines the practical and theoretical implications of the conservation criminology framework is currently available to traditional and professional students. It consists of three online courses that examine environmental crimes and risks at the individual, corporate and global levels. The program is jointly offered by Michigan State University's Department of Fisheries & Wildlife, the School of Criminal Justice, and Environmental Science & Policy Program.