Like natural and agroecosystems, industrial systems may be viewed as systems that transform energy and material inputs and produce specific outputs in their contexts, including environmental, social and human impacts. Unlike conventional approaches to cost accounting and efficiency measurement in the analysis of industrial operations, the approach of industrial ecology is to pay attention to these inputs and outputs holistically. The course will introduce techniques for accomplishing this and students will examine cases using them. Students will also conduct team research on real-world problems on or off campus. The overall goal is to consider how production processes might be modified or restructured in ways that make them more compatible with the human, biological and physical environment, less demanding of non-renewable resources, and therefore more sustainable.