Environmental Studies: 1999-2000 Programs

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Applying Principles of Environmental Science
Basic Botany: Plants and People
Ecological Agriculture
Entomology
Environmental Movements
Herpetology
Hydrology
Inroduction to Environmental Studies: Mt. Rainier
Mammalogy
Marine Life: Marine Organisms and Their Environments
Natural Resource Policy: Salmon
Plant Ecology and Taxonomy
Rainforest Research
Shelter: Eco-Design in the Real World
Symbiosis
Temperate Rainforests: Studies in Ecology and Visual Arts
Tropical Rainforests
Worts and Witches: Medieval European Herbalism

Applying Principles of Environmental Science

Fall/Coordinated Study
Faculty: James Stroh, Rob Cole, David Milne
Enrollment: 72
Prerequisites: This all-level program accepts up to 25 percent first-year students. Students must have high school algebra and strong math skills.
Faculty Signature: No
Special Expenses: Travel and lodging for overnight field trip and expenses for maps and texts ($100-$300).
Part-Time Options: No
Internship Possibilities: No
Travel Component: Overnight field trip to the Long Beach Peninsula during the fifth or seventh week of the program.

The class will focus on selected fundamentals of marine biology, quantitative analysis, use of spatial data (particularly map information) and techniques for field studies. The students will use these principles and tools in a study of Willapa Bay, located in Southwest Washington. Several conflicting uses of the environment and invasions by exotic species make Willapa Bay a particularly interesting study site. Program participants will apply principles of geology, marine biology and modeling through simulation to the Willapa Bay estuary and associated uplands. We will have guest speakers discuss policy issues, but this is predominantly a science program.

This very intensive 10-week program of study will include lectures, seminars, labs (including extensive computer use), field trips, literature research seminars and workshops. This class will require many hours of work outside the formal class schedule, especially field, lab and computer time.

  • Credit will be awarded in geographic information systems, quantitative methods, marine biology and earth science.
  • Total: 16 credits.
  • Program is preparatory for careers and future studies in environmental science and related fields.
  • This program is also listed in First-Year Programs.

Basic Botany: Plants and People

Winter/Group Contract
Faculty: Frederica Bowcutt
Enrollment: 24
Prerequisites: None. This all-level program accepts up to 25 percent first-year students.
Faculty Signature: No
Special Expenses: No
Part-Time Options: Yes, consult with faculty for signature.
Internship Possibilities: Yes
Travel Component: None

Basic Botany is an introductory group contract in plant science. We will work through a botany textbook learning about plant anatomy, morphology, systematics, physiology and ecology. Lectures based on the textbook readings will be supplemented with laboratory work getting hands-on experience with plants. Seminar readings will be on the general theme of plants and people. These readings will include, among others, the work of Gary Nabhan, who deals with indigenous peoples and their agricultural practices, Londa Schiebinger, who illustrates how human gender relations are reflected in the plant classification systems used in western science, Stephanie Mills, who discusses ecological restoration as it relates to people, and Mark Plotkin, who seeks to preserve indigenous knowledge of medicinal plants. Students will learn library research methods that they will apply to a research project of their choosing related to plants and people. Time will be spent helping students improve their ability to write a research paper. Students taking this program will be given first priority to a course on plant taxonomy and ecology that will be team taught in spring 2000 by Frederica Bowcutt and Al Wiedemann.

  • Credit awarded in introductory botany, plants and people and independent research in botany.
  • Total: 16 credits.
  • Program is preparatory for careers and future studies in conservation, ecoagriculture, ecological restoration, forestry, herbology, natural resource management, plant ecology or plant taxonomy.
  • This program is also listed under First-Year Programs.

Ecological Agriculture

Fall, Winter, Spring/Coordinated Study
Faculty: Pat Labine, Russ Fox
Enrollment: 50
Prerequisites: Sophomore standing. General chemistry, economics, and/or political science recommended.
Faculty signature: No
Special Expenses: Food and lodging on extended field trips, approximately $100.
Part-Time Options: Yes, with faculty signature.
Internship Possibilities: Yes, spring quarter.
Travel Component: Extended field trips.

The Ecological Agriculture program provides a broad, interdisciplinary study of agriculture from a critical perspective of social and ecological sustainability. In fall seminar we will examine the history and present predicaments of American agriculture. During winter term, we will consider alternatives and possible futures for agriculture. Spring term will focus on the role of agriculture in Third World development. Critical reading and expository writing will be emphasized. In addition to seminar work, there will be substantial study in the natural and social sciences (ecology, soil science, entomology, community studies, farmland preservation, land use planning). Students will also have the opportunity for practical experience in food production at the Organic Farm under the direction of the farm manager. Students wanting more extensive training in agricultural production may begin the program The Practice of Sustainable Agriculture in spring quarter as part of their work in Ecological Agriculture. Other student projects and internships will also be spring quarter options.

  • Credit awarded in ecology, community studies, political economy of American agriculture, agroecology, entomology, land use planning, agriculture and development in the Third World, expository writing, library research and farm practicum.
  • Total: 16 credits each quarter.
  • Program is preparatory for careers and future studies in environmental studies, agriculture and community development.

Entomology

Spring/Group Contract
Faculty: John Longino
Enrollment: 50
Prerequisites: Junior or senior standing. At least one year of college study in biology.
Faculty Signature: No
Special Expenses: Expect $20 worth of individually purchased dissecting tools and lab supplies.
Part-Time Options: No
Internship Possibilities: No
Travel Component: None

This program explores the diversity of insect life. There will be two main components: a lecture series to treat general concepts in entomology and an entomology laboratory addressing insect diversity. Emphasis will be placed on learning major insect groups through the development of an insect collection. To benefit from this program you will need to be familiar with basic language and concepts in biology.

Please note: To participate in this program you must be willing to kill insects for scientific and educational purposes.

  • Credit awarded in entomology*.
  • Total: 8 credits.
  • Program is preparatory for careers and future studies in entomology, environmental studies, ecology, agriculture and zoology.

Environmental Movements

Winter/Group Contract
Faculty: Lin Nelson
Enrollment: 25
Prerequisites: Junior or senior standing. Equivalent of one year in environmental studies or political economy or community development/studies or equivalent programs.
Faculty Signature: No
Special Expenses: No
Part-Time Options: No
Internship Possibilities: Possibly, for 4 credits
Travel Component: None

Environmentalism is shaped by different philosophies and strategies (deep ecology, social ecology, eco-feminism, environmental justice, among others), by other movements (labor, social justice) and by complex organizational and international conditions. In view of historical roots and contemporary debates, we will examine diverse approaches to environmental protection. We will explore how race, class, gender, nationality, identity shape and challenge environmentalism; how democratic knowledge and pedigreed science collide and connect; how communities become enabled to monitor, reshape and restore environments; how organizational form and process impacts movement agendas. Particular issues and strategies for examination will include organizational development and governance, public interest science, participatory research, legal options, direct action and coalition-building. Students will do substantial analysis, field study in the region, consultation with regional environmental advocates, team projects and writing.

  • Credit awarded in environmental policy*, political ecology*, environmental history*, environmental organizations*, community development/studies* and social movements*.
  • Total: 16 credits.
  • Program is preparatory for careers and future study in environmental studies/science, environmental and public policy, community development, non-governmental organizations, public interest research and advocacy.

Herpetology

Spring/Group Contract
Faculty: Steven Herman
Enrollment: 15
Prerequisites: Junior or senior standing; students must have a demonstrable background in natural history.
Faculty Signature: Yes, with faculty interview.
Special Expenses: $300 for transportation and related expenses.
Part-Time Options: No
Internship Possibilities: Yes
Travel Component: Field trip

This group contract will focus on the identification, biology, ecology and conservation of reptiles and amphibians with emphasis on forms found in the Pacific Northwest. Working primarily with two recent field guides written by William Leonard, we will explore the historic and current distribution and abundance of Northwest reptiles and amphibians. Lectures will cover the essentials of this subdiscipline of zoology; preserved specimens will be available in The Evergreen State College Museum of Natural History. Each student will write an account of a species, based on an extensive literature search.

We will seek specimens on local field trips, and an extensive field trip at the end of the quarter will take us to the Southwest, where reptiles are relatively abundant.

  • Credit will be awarded in herpetology and another course or area of emphasis on reptiles and amphibians.
  • Total: 16 credits.
  • Students who do well in Herpetology will gain an excellent background in the natural history and physiology of reptiles and amphibians and a thorough working knowledge of the natural history of Washington and Southwest reptiles and amphibians. These studies are applicable to career preparation in natural resource work and will be especially helpful for graduate studies in zoology.

Hydrology

Winter/Group Contract
Faculty: James Stroh, Paul Ray Butler
Enrollment: 25 undergraduate students; 18 graduate students
Prerequisites: Graduate standing or junior or senior standing; good math and spreadsheet skills (calculus not required); physics and calculus strongly suggested for the groundwater portion (equivalent of Matter in Motion or Physical Systems).
Faculty Signature: No
Special Expenses: Optional field trips (Grand Canyon dory trip, $1,500; Death Valley hydrogeology, $300).
Part-Time Options: Yes
Internship Possibilities: Yes
Travel Component: Several one-day field trips; two optional two-week trips.

Both graduate and advanced undergraduate students are afforded the opportunity to study surface water and/or groundwater hydrology. Each of these options will be offered as a separate four-credit module. In each area of study, the focus will be on the physical processes that determine the distribution and movement of this vital resource. In addition, students have the option of taking another module covering geographic information systems applications in hydrology, surface-water management in Grand Canyon National Park (16-day dory trip), hydrogeology near Death Valley (two-week field trip, dependent on park service permit; similar trip may be offered as an alternative) and/or an independent research component dealing with a local water-related issue. The two optional field trips will run concurrently at the end of the quarter and are open to both graduate and undergraduate students. Students interested in the Grand Canyon trip should contact Paul Butler by November 19, 1999.

Graduate students can register separately for the hydrology graduate electives: Surface Water Hydrology for 4 credits, and Groundwater Hydrology for 4 credits.

  • Credit awarded in surface-water hydrology*, groundwater hydrology*, application of Geographic Information Systems in hydrology* and research topics in hydrology*.
  • Total: 4, 8, 12 or 16 credits.
  • Program is preparatory for careers and future study in hydrology, geology, environmental science and natural resource management.

Introduction to Environmental Studies: Mt. Rainier

Fall, Winter, Spring/Coordinated Study
Faculty: Ken Tabbutt, Carolyn Dobbs, Gabe Tucker
Enrollment: 75
Prerequisites: Sophomore standing; one year of college. This program will begin two weeks prior to the start of fall quarter; for purposes of this program, fall quarter will run September 13 through December 2, 1999.
Faculty Signature: No
Special Expenses: $200 for overnight, in-state field trips and equipment.
Part-Time Options: No
Internship Possibilities: No
Travel Component: Overnight, in-state field trips.

Mt. Rainier National Park contains the highest mountain in Washington state and one of the most magnificent alpine and sub-alpine environments in North America. Its centennial year is a chance to recognize its value as a park and produces an opportunity for the public to contribute in shaping the future of the park. National parks face an increasingly daunting task of maintaining ecosystem integrity while providing a retreat for humans through an access infrastructure that is expected to accommodate a constantly increasing number of visitors. Visitor safety, as well as the aesthetics and fragile ecosystems of the park, are being jeopardized by inadequate funding. This program will focus on the physical, social and biological aspects of the ecosystems of Mt. Rainier National Park and the impact of both heavy use and park policy on these systems. Mt. Rainier National Park was chosen because of proximity, range of ecosystems, unique hydrologic and geologic environment, recent concerns about potential geologic hazards associated with the mountain and changes in management and park policy. Both quantitative problem solving and writing will be stressed, with writing assignments ranging from field journals to research papers. Service learning will also be an integral component of this program.

Fall quarter will introduce students to forest biology, physical geology, political science and legal research. Comparisons will be made between the legal definition and management of various federally administered public lands, including forest service wilderness areas, national monuments, national forests and national parks. The focus during winter quarter will be geologic hazards, environmental geology, disturbance ecology, human communities and human ecology. These topics address the impact that humans have on the park and the impact, or potential impact, of the park on human communities. Spring quarter will introduce nutrient cycles, aqueous chemistry and geochemistry, and allow students the opportunity to work on team research projects that focus on Mt. Rainier and its environs.

  • Credit awarded in political science, social science field research, forest ecology, botany, physical geology, environmental geology and aqueous chemistry.
  • Total: 16 credits each quarter.
  • Program is preparatory for careers and future studies in environmental studies, natural resource management and public policy.

Mammalogy

Fall/Group Contract
Faculty: Steven Herman
Enrollment: 15
Prerequisites: Junior or senior standing; introduction to biology; general understanding of natural history and interest in field work.
Faculty Signature: Yes, with faculty interview
Special Expenses: $150 for transportation and related expenses.
Part-Time Options: No
Internship Possibilities: Yes
Travel Component: Field trip

Mammalogy is an advanced program designed to familiarize students with the class Mammalia, emphasizing Washington mammals through lectures as well as lab and field work. Students will be required to prepare 10 scientific study skins and research one species of mammal in both the library and the field. Our major (three-day) field trip takes us to the east side of the Cascades early in the quarter. Most other field work will be local, emphasizing live trapping. Students will maintain field records using a rigorous technique pioneered by Joseph Grinnell. Required materials will include a curatorial kit, standard field guides, Mammalogy by T. Vaughn and shorter texts as needed.

  • Credit will be awarded in mammalogy and another course or area of emphasis on mammals.
  • Total: 16 credits.
  • Students who do well in Mammalogy will gain an excellent background in the natural history and physiology of mammals and a thorough working knowledge of the natural history of Washington mammals, including selected marine species. These studies are applicable to career preparation in natural resource work and will be especially helpful for graduate studies in vertebrate zoology.

Marine Life: Marine Organisms and Their Environments

Winter, Spring/Group Contract
Faculty: Dave Milne, Erik Thuesen
Enrollment: 50
Prerequisites: Junior or senior standing; at least two quarters of college chemistry and two quarters of biological sciences with labs; an ability to work easily with numbers and equations; experience using a personal computer.
Faculty Signature: No
Special Expenses: Up to $60 per quarter for overnight field trips.
Part-Time Options: No
Internship Possibilities: No
Travel Component: Three- to four-day, in-state field trips.

Marine Life focuses on marine organisms, the sea as a habitat, relationships between the organisms and the physical/chemical properties of their environments and their adaptations to those environments. Students will study marine organisms, elements of biological, chemical and physical oceanography, field sampling methods with associated statistics and laboratory techniques. Throughout the program, students will focus on the identification of marine organisms and aspects of the ecology of selected species. Physiological adaptations to diverse marine environments and comparative anatomy will also be emphasized. The class will study physical features of marine waters, nutrients, biological productivity and regional topics in marine science. Concepts will be applied to faculty-designed experiments and student-designed research projects. Excel spreadsheets and elementary statistics will facilitate data analysis. Seminars will analyze appropriate primary literature on topics from lectures and research projects.

The faculty will facilitate identification of student research projects, which may range from studies of trace metals in local organisms and sediments to ecological investigations of local estuarine animals. Students will design research projects during winter quarter and write a research proposal for a program peer review. The research projects will be carried out during spring quarter. The scientific process is completed when results of the research projects are documented in written papers, and students give oral presentations during the last week of spring quarter. This two-quarter process requires that students enroll in winter and remain in the program through spring.

  • Credit may be awarded in marine biology*, oceanography*, invertebrate zoology*, marine ecology* and research*. Although circumstances may change, we anticipate that all credit will be designated “upper-division science” for those students completing both quarters of the program.
  • Total: 16 credits each quarter.
  • Program is preparatory for careers and future study in marine science, environmental science and other life sciences.

Natural Resource Policy: Salmon

Fall/Coordinated Study
Faculty: Jovana Brown, TBA
Enrollment: 50
Prerequisites: Junior or senior standing; Introduction to Environmental Studies or Political Economy or equivalent.
Faculty Signature: No
Special expenses: Approximately $50 for field trips.
Part-Time Options: No
Internship possibilities: No
Travel Component: None

Many wild salmon stocks in the Pacific Northwest are on the brink of extinction. This program examines this critical resource issue in terms of policy making and salmon biology. The fate of the salmon has been determined by international, federal, state and tribal policies. We will begin the quarter by learning about the factors that have contributed to the decline of salmon such as land-use practices, water uses, fish harvest, hatcheries and other practices and policies. This program will then examine the multiple levels of policy making and what has actually been implemented to attempt to save the salmon. We will pay particular attention to the importance of treaty rights of American Indians in the Pacific Northwest and co-management of salmon. New approaches to salmon habitat issues such as watershed planning will also be examined. We will ask whether these approaches are based on sound ecological principles and offer reasonable hope for salmon recovery.

  • Credit awarded in natural resource policy*, salmon biology and ecology*, water resource policy* and aquatic conservation*.
  • Total: 12 or 16 credits.
  • Program is preparatory for careers and future studies in environmental, natural and social sciences.

Plant Ecology and Taxonomy

Spring/Group Contract
Faculty: Al Wiedemann, Frederica Bowcutt
Enrollment: 28
Prerequisites: Junior or senior standing; botany background; preference is given to students who have completed Basic Botany: Plants and People.
Faculty Signature: Yes. Test and faculty interview to determine introductory botany background. Students may contact Al Wiedemann, (360) 866-6000, ext. 6023, or Frederica Bowcutt, (360) 866-6000, ext. 6744, to arrange for the test and interview.
Special Expenses: $200 for field trip.
Part-Time Options: No
Internship Possibilities: Yes, consult faculty
for signature.
Travel Component: Field trip.

We will work through a plant ecology textbook learning primarily about community ecology. Lectures will loosely follow the textbook readings. Students will work twice weekly in the laboratory learning how to use Hitchcock and Cronquist’s Flora of the Pacific Northwest, a technical key for identifying plants. Time will be spent in the field and laboratory discussing diagnostic characteristics of plant families. Seminar readings will be scientific journal articles focused on vegetation ecology. Students will learn basic vegetation sampling methods that they will apply to a group field project. This project will allow students to develop data analysis and presentation skills in addition to learning about field methods. A required multiple-day field trip will give students an opportunity to learn about Pacific Northwest plant communities in the field.

  • Credit awarded in plant taxonomy, plant ecology and vegetation of the Pacific Northwest.
  • Total: 16 credits.
  • Program is preparatory for careers and future studies in conservation, ecological restoration, forestry, natural resource management, plant ecology or plant taxonomy.

The Practice of Sustainable Agriculture

Spring, Summer, Fall/Course
Faculty: Pat Moore
Enrollment: 18
Prerequisites: Junior or senior standing, good writing skills.
Faculty Signature: Yes. Students must demonstrate good writing skills, a background in natural and environmental science and an interest in pursuing a career in agriculture or horticulture. To apply, students must fill out a short questionnaire available from the faculty at the Organic Farm during winter quarter and submit it to the faculty prior to or at the Academic Fair on March 10, 1999. Eligible students will be notified at the Academic Fair or by phone the day before the fair.
Special Expenses: Field trips, approximately $60 -$80.
Part-Time Options: No
Internship Possibilities: No
Travel Component: Field trips.

This program will provide upper-division students with direct experience in the practices of sustainable agriculture. There will be weekly lectures, occasional field trips and an emphasis on practical skill development in intensive food production at the Organic Farm. Students can expect instruction in soils, plant propagation, greenhouse management, composting, green manures, the use of animal manures, equipment operation, small farm economics, pest control, livestock management, weed control strategies, irrigation system design and management, basic horticulture, machinery maintenance, vegetable and small fruit culture, marketing, orchard systems and more.

Completing a short questionnaire and a faculty signature are prerequisites to joining this program. The goal of the questionnaire is to assess motivation, maturity, communication and writing skills and background in environmental studies. Transfer students must complete the questionnaire and mail a description of college courses taken, related work experience and letters of recommendation no later than the eighth week of winter quarter. Pat Moore, faculty, will contact transfer students during weeks nine and 10 of winter quarter. Continuing students should contact faculty at the winter quarter Academic Fair on March 10, 1999.

  • Credit awarded in horticulture, soils, greenhouse management and agroecology.
  • Total: 8 credits each quarter.
  • Program is preparatory for careers and future studies in agriculture, horticulture and outdoor education.

Rainforest Research

Spring/Group Contract
Faculty: TBA
Enrollment: 20
Prerequisites: Junior or senior standing. Temperate Rainforests or Tropical Rainforests or equivalent.
Faculty Signature: Yes. Interview and project proposal required.
Special Expenses: The program will involve independent research at various sites throughout Costa Rica, overseen by an in-country faculty liaison. It is expected that most students in the program will already be in Costa Rica, having attended the three-week field trip at the end of the Tropical Rainforests program. Students must finance their own travel and project needs. Expect costs of $20-$30 per day for basic living expenses in Costa Rica.
Part-Time Options: No
Internship Possibilities: No
Travel Component: Costa Rica.

This program is a successor to the Temperate Rainforests and Tropical Rainforests programs; applicants from those programs will receive first priority. Students will carry out an independent scientific research project in Costa Rica. Proposals for projects will have been developed during the earlier rainforests programs, or through direct consultation with faculty. It is expected that projects will involve extensive field work in tropical biology.

  • Credit awarded in tropical biology*.
  • Total: 16 credits.
  • Program is preparatory for careers and future studies in environmental studies, ecology and conservation biology.

Shelter: Eco-Design in the Real World

Fall, Winter, Spring/Coordinated Study
Faculty: Rob Knapp, TBA, TBA
Enrollment: 72
Prerequisites: None. This all-level program accepts up to 25 percent first-year students.
Faculty Signature: No
Special Expenses: Three-day in-state field trips fall and winter quarters, approximately $35 per trip, payable by week three of each quarter; four-day field trip to Oregon spring quarter, approximately $50, payable by week one of the quarter.
Part-Time Options: No
Internship Possibilities: Yes, with faculty signature.
Travel Component: In-state and out-of-state field trips.

What are ecologically sound homes and workplaces for real, present-day human beings? We will pursue this question by combining large visions with solid foundational knowledge.

The heart of the program is designing: homes and workplaces must be imagined before they can be built. A yearlong design studio will teach relevant skills and knowledge through a series of small and large projects.

For some students, this may mean participating in the design of specific real-world buildings, such as Evergreen’s new Seminar II classroom building, an appropriate-technology house at the college’s Organic Farm, a possible expansion of Housing or a youth hostel for downtown Olympia. We are arranging the program to make this involvement easy and productive.

Other students may focus more on off-grid living, Third World needs, waste management, energy, alternative materials such as straw, earth or recycled tires, the technological visions of people like Buckminister Fuller or Amory Lovins, the whole systems understanding of Lynn Margulis and others, or the social visions of Boston’s Dudley Street Project.

As vital background to designing, students and faculty will do readings, lectures, seminars, library research and site visits on two major themes: human needs, wants and hopes; and nature’s processes, within which human life must take place.

Both students and faculty will develop their facility in graphics, structural and environmental analysis, modeling, literature searching on and off-line, group problem solving and effective writing.

This program actively seeks students from a variety of levels, backgrounds and interests. The problems of ecological design are too big to be solved or even understood by any one kind of person. Be ready to participate energetically, to learn from fellow students as well as faculty, to share skills and insights generously. Some program activities will be organized according to level; others will be shared by all.

  • Credit awarded in design studio, natural science, humanities and social science. Upper- division credits will depend on student background and performance.
  • Total: 16 credits each quarter.
  • Program is preparatory for careers and future studies in design professions, environmental studies, community development, social science, humanities and natural science.
  • This program is also listed under First-Year Programs, Expressive Arts, and Scientific Inquiry.

Symbiosis

Fall/Group Contract
Faculty: Erik Thuesen
Enrollment: 25
Prerequisites: Junior or senior standing. A minimum of one year of college-level chemistry with lab and course work in botany, microbiology, mycology or zoology.
Faculty Signature: Yes. A signature indicates that the faculty has approved prerequisites; it does not guarantee entry into this program. New transfer students who cannot attend the Academic Fair may obtain a signature with an interview by telephone, call (360) 866-6000, ext. 6584, or by Email thuesene@evergreen.edu.
Special Expenses: No
Part-Time Options: No
Internship Possibilities: No
Travel Component: None

Symbiosis can be defined as “the living together of differently named organisms.” This program will look at the biology of symbiotic associations through lecture, readings, laboratory, field work and seminar topics taken from the primary literature. Although we will pay particular attention to mutualistic symbioses, we will also study parasitic associations. Defining aspects of plant-animal, animal-animal, bacteria-plant, bacteria-animal, protozoa-animal and fungi-plant symbioses will be examined at the organismal, physiological, cellular, biochemical, molecular and ecological levels. Characteristics that define the integration between the host and symbiont of specific associations will be investigated through fieldwork and in the laboratory. Students will complete a take-home examination, keep a lab notebook and undertake a small research project that culminates in a poster with a short oral presentation.

  • Credit awarded in symbiosis*, symbiosis seminar*, parasitology*, ecological physiology*, symbiosis laboratory* and research*.
  • Total: 16 credits.
  • Program is preparatory for careers and future studies in environmental and life sciences.

Temperate Rainforests: Studies in Ecology and Visual Arts

Fall/Coordinated Study
Faculty: Nalini Nadkarni, Susan Aurand
Enrollment: 50
Prerequisites: Junior standing; one year of ecology/natural history coursework, desire to learn drawing skills.
Faculty Signature: Yes, submit one-page letter outlining: relevant courses/programs, work/internship experience and reasons for taking the program, including the names of references (preferably Evergreen faculty) to either Nalini Nadkarni, Lab II or Susan Aurand, Lab I, by May 7, 1999. Students will be notified of acceptance at the Academic Fair or by mail.
Special Expenses: Approximately $220 for overnight field trip and art supplies.
Part-Time Options: No
Internship Possibilities: No
Travel Component: In-state field trips.

Temperate rainforests are a poorly understood and highly valued ecosystem in the Pacific Northwest and other parts of the world. They support a complex and interconnected web of life that encompasses a tremendous diversity of biota, including humans. In Temperate Rainforests, we will learn about ways of understanding these ecosystems using a variety of contemporary approaches in ecology and natural history and drawing. Our focus will be on the ecology and aesthetics of rainforests of the Olympic Peninsula. We will also examine how temperate rainforests have been understood through art, particularly of the native cultures of the forest. We will make our own images expressing our understanding of and relationships to the forest. Students will undertake an independent study project that combines science and art. The program will go on an extended field trip to the Olympics to study biological and aesthetic aspects of temperate rainforests.

  • Credit awarded in forest ecology*, drawing, natural history and art history/aesthetics.
  • Total: 16 credits.
  • Program preparatory for careers and future study in forest ecology, arts and humanities.
  • This program is also listed under Expressive Arts.

Tropical Rainforests

Winter/Coordinated Study
Faculty: John Longino, Susan Aurand
Enrollment: 50
Prerequisites: Junior or senior standing, one year of college-level science, previous college-level art experience preferred but not required.
Faculty Signature: Yes. Students will submit an application during fall quarter of the 1999-2000 academic year. It will contain: (1) an essay addressing fulfillment of the prerequisites, interest in the program, background knowledge in organismal biology and whether they wish to be considered for the Costa Rica field trip; (2) evaluation from a previous science program; and (3) the name and telephone number of a previous instructor. Assessment will be based on writing skills and background knowledge in organismal biology. Selection for the Costa Rica field trip (24 students maximum) will be based on interviews at or before the fall Academic Fair. Students who cannot be on campus can arrange telephone interviews.
Special Expenses: Art supplies: $150, Costa Rica field trip: $700 airfare, $900 food, lodging, transport in Costa Rica.
Part-Time Options: No
Internship Possibilities: No
Travel Component: Three-week field trip to Costa Rica at the end of winter quarter.

This program will focus on tropical forests from both scientific and artistic perspectives. Tropical ecosystems are home to most of the world’s biodiversity, and our understanding of the origins and maintenance of this diversity relies on principles of community ecology, evolution and biogeography. At the same time, images of tropical rainforests have been a powerful inspiration for artistic expression, and aesthetic concerns are strong motivations for conserving tropical forests.
The program is designed for advanced science students and requires no previous experience in the arts. Skill-building will include technical scientific writing, quantitative analysis of diversity data, drawing, scientific illustration and visual literacy. This is a successor to Temperate Rainforests, although Temperate Rainforests is not a prerequisite. Faculty will lead an approximately three-week field trip to Costa Rica at the end of the quarter (enrollment limit of 24). Students who cannot take part will carry out independent activities on campus. Admission to the program will be by application. Admission to the field trip will be by interview. Assessment will be based on writing skills, knowledge of organismal biology and evidence of a genuine interest in combining advanced science and art studies. This program contains an optional two-credit support course in conversational Spanish.

  • Credit awarded in tropical biology*, art history, aesthetics.
  • Total: 16 credits.
  • Program is preparatory for careers and future studies in environmental studies, ecology, conservation biology, arts and humanities.
  • Program is also listed under Expressive Arts.

Worts and Witches: Medieval European Herbalism

Fall/Group Contract
Faculty: Frederica Bowcutt
Enrollment: 25
Prerequisites: Sophomore standing. Students must be able to write a research paper and know how to read a text critically. Willingness to read copious amounts is essential.
Faculty Signature: Yes. A questionnaire will be available in advance through the faculty in Lab II or at the Academic Fair, May 12, 1999. Students must provide a research paper writing sample during the interview or with their questionnaire. Frederica will interview selected students. Acceptance list will be posted outside Frederica’s office door prior to registration.
Special Expenses: $150 for overnight field trips.
Part-Time Options: No
Internship Possibilities: No
Travel Component: Overnight field trips.

Botanical knowledge is developed within a cultural context as is any scientific discipline. This program will focus on cultural dimensions of plant science as practiced between roughly the 13th and 17th centuries in Western Europe. During this time period, the study of plants revolved around medicinal uses. Herbals served as the primary texts. Part of our study will be on old herbals including aesthetics and plant taxonomy. We will also spend some time on herb gardens and their design. Other topics include trends during this time period toward the professionalization of medicine and the impacts of this on plant folk knowledge and rural practitioners of herbal medicine. Issues of gender will factor into our explorations of this professionalization as well as changing attitudes about the environment.

We will spend time exploring different world views or paradigms held during this period in history. We will also attempt to make connections to contemporary trends in health care. Some time will be spent on plant uses and identification skills, however this will not be the primary focus of the class. The focal point will be exploring the roots of western botany as an ethnobotany, richly linked to a web of cultural influences. This course will be rigorous, requiring copious amount of reading and research papers written in an expository style. Willingness to be a co-learner within a community doing research in this area of study is essential.

  • Credit awarded in history of plant science*, gender and science* and ethnobotany*.
  • Total: 16 credits.
  • Program is preparatory for careers and future studies in midwifery, naturopathy, herbal medicine and botany.