Seminar in Ecosystem Services
General information
Class meets from 1:00-2:30 on Mondays in TLS 313. The first half hour is presentation followed by 50 min of discussion led by a student. Readings are assigned ahead of time and are selected to provide background and to promote discussion of key issues.
This course is for 2 credits. In addition to class participation, all students are required to write a research proposal. The outline of the proposal is due on April 14 and the proposal draft is due on April 28. The proposal should describe a research project designed to investigate ecosystem services in an ecosystem of your choice.
Schedule
A class schedule is posted here. Each presenter is expected to give a 30-40 min presentation at the beginning, which will provide a conceptual overview of the topic and stimulate questions for class discussions. Questions can be raised during the presentation or after—just let us know what you prefer to do.
Class participants can post readings for their topics or can send them to Robin to post.
Week | Who | Topic | Reading | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
26 Jan | Robin Chazdon | A History of the Concept of Ecosystem Services | ||
4 Feb | Jonathan Glenn | Biodiversity and Ecosystem Function | ||
11 Feb | Benjamin Plourde | Definitions of ecosystem goods and services | ||
18 Feb | Case study from the Millennium Assessment:
Lake District, Wisconsin and South Africa |
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25 Feb | Case studies: CSIRO Ecosystem Services Project | |||
3 March | Ecosystem services; agriculture | |||
10 Mar | no class | |||
17 Mar | Ecosystem services: grasslands | |||
24 Mar | Ecosystem services: temperate forests | |||
31 Mar | Steven Ferketic | Ecosystem services: tropical forests | ||
7 Apr | Ecosystem services: urban areas | |||
14 Apr | Effects of land-use change on ecosystem services | |||
21 Apr | Effects of climate change on ecosystem services | |||
28 Apr | Synthesis and new directions | |||
30th Apr | Chris | Next generation initiatives | Vol. 1 Chapters 21-24 | I'm willing to switch dates (but prefer not to) |