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Ecology [clear]
| Title | Offering | Standing | Credits | Credits | When | F | W | S | Su | Description | Preparatory | Faculty | Days | Multiple Standings | Start Quarters | Open Quarters |
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Lalita Calabria
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Program | JR–SRJunior - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | W 12Winter | The Pacific Northwest supports one of the greatest diversities of bryophytes- mosses, hornworts and liverworts - in the world. These terrestrial, epiphytic, and rock-dwelling taxa perform critical ecological roles in our forests, prairies, and urban areas. They intercept and retain nutrients and moisture from rainwater and mist, provide habitat and nesting material for invertebrates and vertebrates, and are important bioindicators of ecosystem health and global climate change.This program focuses on bryophyte taxonomy, ecology and biology. Field trips will emphasize the recognition of ecological life forms and morphological growth forms of bryophytes as well as proper collection methods. Lab activities will involve identifying collected specimens using dichotomous keys and developing proficiency in techniques for the identification of mosses such as dissection, slide-making techniques and use of compound and dissecting microscopes. Lectures will focus on readings from a bryophyte ecology textbook as well as current topics in bryophyte biology and taxonomy. Seminar readings will include a variety of essays, books and scientific papers on the economic, medicinal and aesthetic value of bryophytes. Students will conduct quarter-long group research, which may include herbaria-based taxonomic studies, moss propagation experiments, field-based floristic studies or installation of moss rooftop teaching garden on campus. Students will also contribute to the ongoing curation and databasing of the Evergreen Herbarium Bryophyte Collection. | Lalita Calabria | Mon Tue Thu | Junior JR Senior SR | Winter | Winter | ||||
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Frederica Bowcutt, Gaku Mitsumata and Jeff Antonelis-Lapp
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | As a learning community our central question will be: how can ordinary citizens assist in the important work of shifting society to more sustainable relations with the natural world? We will begin by examining what it means to be ecoliterate.In the fall we will focus on the natural history of the Puget Sound region and contrast that to eastern Washington’s high desert. In October the learning community will visit the sagebrush steppe of Sun Lakes State Park to gain field experience in linking plant and animal distribution patterns with environmental conditions. Through this work, students will learn how to read topographic and geologic maps, and basic mapmaking skills. Students will gain experience in conducting biodiversity assessments in the park and on campus, including vascular plants, birds, mammals and insects. The learning community will explore how ecoliterate citizens can serve as citizen scientists, for example, by helping to monitor plant and animal responses to climate change. To support their work in the field and lab, students will learn how to maintain a detailed and illustrated nature journal. In the winter we will examine the relationship between people and gardens through the disciplines of garden history, children’s literature, and environmental and place-based education. Special attention will be given to urban horticulture that fosters socially just communities and an ecoliterate citizenry. Students will learn how to link scientific knowledge about soils, plants and animals with the pragmatic realities of installing and maintaining educational gardens in public settings. Lectures and labs in soil science, botany, ecology and environmental/place-based education will support this learning. Students will learn to develop K-12 curriculum for the teaching gardens on campus, and pursue opportunities to lead activities in them and the surrounding woods with local school groups. During both quarters, a significant amount of time will be dedicated to honing our ability to write an expository paper. Credit may be awarded in natural history, environmental education, expository writing, children’s literature, horticulture, garden history and botany (with a lab). This program is appropriate not only for students with interest in the natural sciences, but also for students who would not normally select academic programs in the sciences. | K-12 teaching, environmental education, horticulture, natural history and ecology. | Frederica Bowcutt Gaku Mitsumata Jeff Antonelis-Lapp | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall | |||
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Peter Impara
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Program | JR–SRJunior - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | Most people think of a disturbance as disturbing--upsetting the natural balance, throwing into disorder, or interfering--yet disturbances are a common, regular characteristic of many eco systems. Disturbance is an important ecological process affecting ecosystems at multiple spatial and temporal scales. As disturbance plays such an important role in such processes as vegetation community patterns, successional trajectories, and other ecological patterns, understanding disturbance and its ecological influences is vital to developing a basic understanding of significant controls of ecosystem function and composition. In this program we will investigate the role of disturbance as it relates to existing, and historic, ecological conditions. We will examine how the principles of pattern – process interactions and scale are applied to the study and understanding of disturbance processes. We will also relate disturbance to historic and contemporary human resource and land use issues to study the interactions between humans and disturbance over time.Important questions for the study of disturbance include: what is the disturbance regime for a given disturbance? At what spatial and temporal scales do disturbances operate? How do disturbances affect ecological patterns and processes ? How do humans respond to, and try to control, disturbances? To address these questions we will explore disturbance by using field, class and lab approaches. We will visit several disturbance sites as well as learn methods to map and analyze disturbance patterns and the variables related to those processes. Lecture and seminars will address recent research and approaches to characterizing and studying disturbance. Students will be expected to carry out a project investigating a disturbance process and its influence on the local ecology as well as human responses to that disturbance type. Students interested in upper division science credit should be aware that upper division science credit will be awarded only for upper division work. | Peter Impara | Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | |||||
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Lucia Harrison and Abir Biswas
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Program | FR–SOFreshmen - Sophomore | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | This program offers an introductory study of the Earth, through geology and art. What makes the earth a habitable planet? What forces have shaped the geology of the Pacific Northwest? These questions have fascinated people for centuries. Both scientists and artists rely heavily on skills of observation and description to understand the world, and to convey that understanding to others. Geologists use images, diagrams and figures to illustrate concepts and communicate research. Artists take scientific information to inform their work, and seek to communicate the implications of what science tells us about the world. They also draw on scientific concepts as metaphors for autobiographical artworks. In the fall, we will use science and art to study basic concepts in earth science such as geologic time, plate tectonics, earth materials and how they are formed, the hydrological cycle and stream ecology. Case studies in the Cascade Mountain Range and Nisqually Watershed will provide hands-on experience. In the winter, we further this study to include soil formation, nutrient cycling, ocean basin sand currents, and climate change. Field studies will include a trip to the Olympic Peninsula where we will observe coastal processes. Geologic time and evidence of the Earth's dynamic past are recorded in rocks on the landscape. Students will learn basic techniques in observational drawing and watercolor painting. They will learn the discipline of keeping illustrated field journals to inform their studies of geological processes. They will also develop finished artworks ranging from scientific illustration to personal expression. | geology, environmental studies, education and visual arts. | Lucia Harrison Abir Biswas | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO | Fall | Fall Winter | |||
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Martha Rosemeyer, Thomas Johnson and David Muehleisen
Signature Required:
Winter
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | What is a food system? Why does it matter? A battle for the future of our food system is being waged between competing visions. On one side is the global, industrial-based system that provides large quantities of inexpensive food along with significant environmental and social impacts. The competing vision is a local, community-based system that produces higher quality, more expensive food while seeking to minimize environmental and social impacts. We will explore these competing visions from a critical perspective of social and ecological sustainability. Critical questions that will inform our inquiry include: Can a humane, socially just agricultural system that minimizes environmental degradation meet the food needs of the world? Can farmers be stewards of the soil, biodiversity and landscape? Can we grow high-quality food that is available to everyone? How did we get into this food system predicament anyway? Are local, sustainable food systems best?This program will provide a broad, interdisciplinary study of agriculture. We will emphasize developing "systems" thinking and skills associated with community work, expository writing, laboratory and library research, as well as quantitative reasoning skills. Lectures will focus on ecological principles applied to agroecosystems, soil science and fertility management, crop and livestock management, as well as local to global food system structure, socio-economic aspects of agriculture and agricultural history. Labs will provide a hands-on introduction to soil ecology and fertility. Students will identify needs, gather data and write a report of relevance to developing a sustainable local food system. Multi-day field trips will allow students to visit farms working toward sustainability, meet key players in food system change and attend meetings such as the Washington Tilth Producers conference and Eco-Farm conference in California. : The Agroecology portion of fall quarter will emphasize energy flow and biodiversity as applied to agricultural systems, using Steve Gliessman's textbook, second edition. A social science approach will focus on the role that ideas and institutions have played in shaping US agriculture. We will work toward assessing the needs of our local food system. Seminar books will support our inquiry. Field trips, as well as attending the Tilth Conference in Yakima are planned. : The agroecology portion will focus on soil science, soil ecology and nutrient cycling. We will work with civic engagement as a way to move us toward our vision. A policy workshop focusing both on local and national policy such as the 2012 Farm Bill is planned. Students will gather data and write a report on a particular aspect appropriate to developing a local food system in Thurston County. There will be an emphasis on lab exercises, critical analysis, library research and expository writing. Seminar books will again support our inquiry. A field trip to attend the Eco-Farm conference in California will be part of the curriculum. Students interested in continuing their studies of agriculture in spring quarter can continue with with Donald Morisato and Martha Rosemeyer or with Dave Muehleisen and Stephen Bramwell. | Farm, nursery and garden management; agriculture, food system and environmental consulting firms; state and county agricultural and natural resource agencies; and agricultural and food justice non-profit organizations. | Martha Rosemeyer Thomas Johnson David Muehleisen | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall Winter | |||
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Alison Styring, Steven Scheuerell and George Freeman
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Program | FR ONLYFreshmen Only | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | S 12Spring | The word environment encompasses multiple meanings, from the natural to the built, from the interiors of our minds to the spiritual. In each case there is a constant interface of environments with one another and with other creatures, each defining and circumscribing our experience of the world. Some of our essential questions revolve around how we define the environment and how we are shaped by as well as how we shape the environment, both natural and built. For example, does the concept of wilderness include humans? Is the ecological niche of a human essentially different from that of other living things? We will explore the habitats we occupy along with other creatures in those environments. We will explore dichotomies that foster dynamic tensions, such as the dichotomy between concepts of "natural" versus "human". We intend to investigate these tensions through our study of psychology, personal biography, biology, environmental studies, ornithology and cultural studies. In fall quarter we will develop the foundational skills in environmental studies and psychology needed to understand and critique the writings and current research in community ecology, animal behavior and conservation biology, and to examine the conscious and unconscious, and the theories of perception and cognition in psychology. We will examine parallels and linkages among disciplines in terms of methods, assumptions and prevailing theories. In winter we'll continue building on this foundation and move ourselves from theory to practice through an emphasis on methodologies, analyses, and their underlying assumptions. In spring quarter we'll implement the skills and knowledge we've developed through specific student-directed projects and our optional field trip. The faculty will foster creativity, experimentation and imaginative processes as means of discovering and bringing a new awareness to our extraordinary world. The students will respond to the themes of the program through individual and collaborative projects. To build our learning community we will use experiential collaboration activities such as Challenge and Experiential Education as a means to develop a sense of commitment and group citizenship. We will use multicultural discussion opportunities such as Critical Moments to explore the politics of identity and meaning. We will develop our observational skills via field workshops and field trips. We will have writing and quantitative reasoning workshops to further develop students' current skills and to develop advanced skills in these areas. Students completing this program will come to a stronger understanding of their personal lives as situated in a variety of contexts. They will develop strategies for engaging in a range of settings to promote social change, in-depth personal development, increased self-awareness, critical commentary and analyses, and practices that promote stewardship of our personal lives, our immediate environment and global communities. | psychology, behavioral sciences and environmental science. | Alison Styring Steven Scheuerell George Freeman | Mon Tue Thu Fri | Freshmen FR | Fall | Fall Winter | |
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Steven Abercrombie and Alvin Josephy
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 8 | 08 | Evening and Weekend | S 12Spring | An increasing understanding of our relationship with the natural environment is changing our ideas about the design and development of our human-built environment. More than 10,000 years ago we were creating living and working spaces that mimicked nature and our local environment. Since the beginning of the Industrial Age, this process has followed a "hard" path as developers have used electrical energy and man-made materials to solve design challenges. Over the past two hundred years the planning and execution of our built environment at all scales has had the effect of separating humans from their natural environment. Partly because of the impacts of our buildings on nature, we face the specter of huge changes to our natural environment during the twenty-first century. This program will explore the relationship between the natural world and the built environment by using an approach that moves from the theoretical to the practical. The first third of the program will focus on issues familiar in the study of ecology: systems, scale, interconnection and interdependencies, and energy and material flows. Students will be asked to define the elusive topic of sustainability; this investigation will be a key recurring theme of the program. The middle portion of the program will be focused on the practical side of seeking sustainability in the built environment, including discussions on codes and their impact/impediment on greener buildings, various assessment tools for buildings and how they are applied, and how these ideas are playing out in the development world. Finally, the program will drill down to the level of systems and practices including student presentations that will deal with means and methods at a functional level, investigating what makes a building product "green" and other issues. The program will include several quantitative exercises, a theme paper meant to allow the student to explore "sustainability," and a group project focused on materials for the built environment. Field trips to experience an array of projects are planned. The program is designed to encourage students to think of this process as being about cultural change, change in the way we build our spaces, and change in the way we use them, but above all change in the way we use our built environment to connect ourselves to nature once again. | architecture, construction management, infrastructure design, sustainability studies, building science | Steven Abercrombie Alvin Josephy | Tue Sat | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | |||
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Cheri Lucas-Jennings
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Program | SO–SRSophomore - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | This program will explore the broad conditions that shape environmental health, both for humans and within the ecosystem context. We will be moving across and between questions of science, public policy (from municipal to international) and social justice: examining the workings of non-governmental organizations. With the use of regularly scheduled lecture, seminar, work shops and field trips, we will dedicate ourselves to bridging the understanding among scientific, policy and social perspectives. The program goals is to examine emerging strategies and solutions for ecological sustainability - from regional, community-based monitoring to UN negotiations. By means of a small group, quarter-long research project on a topical issue the chemical, biologic and physical risks of modern life will be considered, with an emphasis on industrial pollutants. We will examine models, evidence and debates about the sources, causal connections and impacts of environmental hazards. We will be learning about existing and emergent regulatory science in conjunction with evolving systems of law, regulation and a broad array of community response. This introductory, core program considers problems related to public and environmental health in a broader context of the key frameworks of population/consumption and sustainability. Throughout the program, students will learn from a range of learning approaches: computer-based analysis and collaboration with regional experts, officials and activists. : ? Website: | public policy; communications; political science; planning; public health; law; social welfare; environmental and natural resources | Cheri Lucas-Jennings | Tue Wed Fri | Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall | |||
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Dylan Fischer and Clarissa Dirks
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | The southwestern U.S. is unique in the diversity of habitats that can occur along with dramatic temperature and moisture gradients. Major advances in ecology have been made in these extreme environments, and important work in global change biology is currently being conducted in these systems. This program will use field sites in the Desert Southwest as living laboratories for investigating patterns in ecology, biology, microbiology and evolution. Students will learn about arid environments, plant ecology, field biology, and gain specialized training in microbiology or plant molecular genetics. Students will co-design field projects exploring ecological and co-evolutionary relationships at organism and molecular scales.We will use detailed studies of southwestern cottonwood trees and tardigrades (water-bears) as examples that will let us dive deeply into laboratory and field experiments. We will pair those investigations with broader exploration of southwestern environments to learn about multiple ecosystems and organisms. Early in the program, students will learn to conduct DNS analyses on plants and microscope-based identification of microscopic animals called tardigrades (water-bears). All students will participate in a mandatory two-week field ecology module where they will participate in a major research project examining the effects of desert-tree genetic diversity on ecosystems, learn to identify plant species of the Southwest, keep detailed field journals, conduct research projects, and survey isolated canyons for patterns related to evolutionary history. Along the way, we will visit environmental and culturally significant sites in the Southwest, from cactus forests to canyons and mountain peaks. Finally, at the end of the quarter all students will reconvene for a program conference where students will present their research over the quarter.Our reading list will include major natural history texts related to the Southwest and evolutionary relationships for the organisms we find there. We will emphasize active participation in the scientific process and communication skills. Because of the field component of this program, students should be prepared for extensive time living and working in the field, and should be committed to working through conflicts in group dynamics. | ecology, biology, botany, zoology, microbial ecology and environmental science. | Dylan Fischer Clarissa Dirks | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | ||||
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Kathy Kelly
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Program | JR–SRJunior - Senior | 8 | 08 | Weekend | W 12Winter | S 12Spring | What is a system and how is it different from a pile of parts? What is a whole system? In what ways does understanding whole systems contribute to wisdom and well-being? This two-quarter program will introduce students to general systems theory. Students will learn basic characteristics of systems and explore systems across an array of disciplines—ecological, organizational, economic, and cosmological. Students will be introduced to tools and develop practices to help gain an understanding of complex systems and system dynamics.In winter quarter, students will work with cases from their professional or personal experience to observe and identify system dynamics and then imagine and anticipate possible interventions and consequent systemic effects. In the spring quarter, our study will extend to understanding ourselves in relation to the systems in which we are living as we explore the nearby Nisqually River watershed to see how ecological, economic, and civic systems are interconnected.Students will be introduced to ecological economics, an analytic tool that advances a systems perspective in service of environmental conservation and development in public policy making. Over both quarters, we will observe our class as a living system—a learning laboratory connecting theory to practice—as we develop ourselves as individuals, leaders, and participants in a learning community. Through reading, participatory exercises, reflection, writing, stories, and expressive arts, students will cultivate a systems perspective as a way of understanding complex systems. Students will be better able to design holistically and intervene wisely for greater well-being for themselves, their organizations, and communities.Learning Objectives:Class will meet five weekends per quarter, with online work between meetings. | Kathy Kelly | Sat Sun | Junior JR Senior SR | Winter | Winter Spring | |||
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Noelle Machnicki and Lalita Calabria
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Program | JR–SRJunior - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | Fungi. What are they? Where are they and what are they doing there? How do they get their energy? What roles do they play in ecosystems? How do they grow? What do they taste like? How do they interact with other organisms? The central theme of this program is to answer these and other questions about fungi. Many people are familiar with green plants and their role in using solar energy to turn carbon dioxide, inorganic elements and water into sugars and other molecules. Fungi, which convert sugars and other organic molecules back into carbon dioxide, inorganic elements, water and energy, are less familiar. Nevertheless, fungi play pivotal roles in the various nutrient cycles within terrestrial ecosystems. They also form symbiotic relationships with plants to create mycorrhizae and have a different type of symbiotic relationship with algae to form lichens. In addition, fungi cause a wide variety of diseases that can be important in particular ecosystems as well as in agriculture and medicine. This program will focus on understanding these unique, ubiquitous and interesting organisms. We will cover fungal and lichen taxonomy, the ecology and biology of fungi and lichens, lab techniques for studying/identifying them, current research, as well as social and economic aspects. There will be an emphasis on work in the laboratory learning to classify fungi and lichens using chemical and microscopic techniques, along with a wide variety of taxonomic keys. These topics will be explored in the field, in the lab, and through lectures, workshops and student research project presentations. Students should expect to spend a minimum of 50 hours/week on program work. Students will be engaged in technical writing, library research, critical thinking and developing their oral presentation skills. | ecology, biology, natural history, education, and environmental studies. | Noelle Machnicki Lalita Calabria | Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall | ||||
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Dylan Fischer and Rip Heminway
Signature Required:
Fall Winter Spring
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Contract | JR–SRJunior - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | S 12Spring | The GIS internship, based in the Computer Applications Lab, is focused on developing advanced knowledge and skills in spatial data management and analysis through development of campus GIS data, database administration, and the support of research projects such as the Evergreen Ecological Observation Network (EEON) project. Through this internship students will gain advanced understanding of working with GIS software, and specifically in using GIS for natural resource applications. Specific opportunities include working in detail with LiDAR data, high quality aerial images, assessing forest canopy structure, and identifying forest canopy type using GIS software and data. This intern will also build instructional and support skills by assisting in the instruction of GIS workshops and curricular programs. | GIS, environmental studies, and computer science. | Dylan Fischer Rip Heminway | Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall Winter Spring | ||
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Erik Thuesen
Signature Required:
Fall
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Contract | SO–SRSophomore - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | Erik Thuesen | Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall | ||||||
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Peter Impara
Signature Required:
Winter
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Contract | SO–SRSophomore - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | W 12Winter | Landscape ecology approaches ecological patterns and processes at broad spatial and temporal scales. Students interested in broad-scale spatial analysis of ecosystems as a contract option should have some experience in field data collection, spatial analysis, GIS, and ecological research. A previously determined area of study or focus is recommended.Students interested in spatial analysis of ecological and environmental patterns and processes at landscape scales for winter quarter should contact me in late fall quarter. Contracts should include a mix of research, data collection, spatial analysis and GIS, and a summary of results in a written report. Internships will be sponsored as long as the internship is focused on broad-scale ecological work and the supervisor is able to oversee work in spatial analysis. | Peter Impara | Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Winter | Winter | |||||
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Kathy Kelly
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 8 | 08 | Evening and Weekend | Su 12Summer Session I | The purpose of this program is to expand and deepen students' understanding of systems theory, especially living systems. Students will use critical and technical skills, research and field experience, and reflective practices to understand, integrate, and interpret their environment.Following a brief (re-)introduction to systems theory, we will examine the dynamics of the Nisqually watershed that includes the Olympia area. Students will become familiar with efforts for ecosystem protection and restoration and consider the implications of greater systems thinking in public policy-making. We will use an ecological economics framework that identifies nature's services and places an economic value on those services, a tool that is useful for conservation and development planning.The program engages experiential as well as cognitive learning as students participate in exercises to raise awareness of ways of being present in and perceiving the place we live. Students will develop map reading skills and practice journaling in both narrative and field journal styles as a means of recording, reflecting upon, integrating, and presenting knowledge. Readings, coupled with these exercises, will fuel discoveries about how our surroundings shape our thoughts, emotions, and actions.Field trips include a series of visits to sites within the watershed, including sensitive natural areas and places of local historic significance. | Kathy Kelly | Fri Sat | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Summer | Summer | ||||
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Christopher Coughenour and Peter Impara
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Program | JR–SRJunior - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | This program will merge the fields of geomorphology and ecology to provide students with a broad understanding of both how landscapes form and function and how lifeforms (microbial, plant and animal)organize themselves across this earth template. The many processes and steps in the geological evolution of an area profoundly influence the ever-changing physical environment (e.g. the soils, nutrient transport, surface and ground waters, climate, among others when taken together) and, thus, the organisms and ecosystems that so intimately interact with these environments. How species are distributed, how communities are structured, and how ecosystems function are all dependent upon interactions with the physical environment.We will cover major topics in geomorphology: plate tectonics and the large scale evolution of Earth's surface, weathering and sediment transport in the continental and marine realms, climate, and environmental controls on the physical and chemical evolution of landscapes. We will also cover important concepts in ecology and biogeography: evolution, ecosystem ecology, community ecology, population ecology, and landscape ecology. Topics that will be particularly informed by the synergy of ecology and geomorphology are early Earth evolution, climate change, extremophiles, ecological succession, and paleoecology. Students will be exposed to a variety of environments through local and overnight field trips. One multi-day field trip will involve a visit to the Death Valley National Park to observe extreme environments, geologic processes, and extremophile biology. Group research projects will focus on studying the biology and environments of extremophiles, including but not limited to microorganisms, fungi, invertebrates, plants, and vertebrates. Seminar readings will familiarize students with topics in environmental studies as related to ecology and/or geology. Students will be evaluated on attendance, assignments, scientific writing,field and lab work, and exams. | geology, field ecology, environmental science, land management, geography, and conservation biology. | Christopher Coughenour Peter Impara | Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall Winter | |||
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Karen Hogan
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Program | SO–SRSophomore - Senior | 12 | 12 | Evening and Weekend | F 11 Fall | Models allow us to test our understanding of particular systems and, if the models are good, to make predictions. Types of models include conceptual, graphical, mathematical, and systems simulation models. In biology, processes that can be modeled range from Michaelis-Menten analysis of enzyme kinetics, to diffusion of carbon dioxide and water into and out of a leaf, to population dynamics of plant and animal species, to global climate models. This program will look at a range of approaches to modeling different levels of biological processes. After an introduction to modeling concepts and techniques, students will work in groups to construct models of biological processes of their own choosing. A high level of engagement and initiative is expected in this program; upper-division credit is possible. Students willing to share their expertise in some area of mathematics or computing are encouraged to participate. | Karen Hogan | Wed Sat | Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall | ||||
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Stephen Beck and Karen Hogan
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 12 | 12 | Evening and Weekend | W 12Winter | S 12Spring | In this program we'll explore the connections between human evolutionary biology and ethics. What are our ethical or moral values, and where do they come from? Is it correct, as evolutionary psychologists would argue, that our fundamental ethical values are innate and function to facilitate social interactions? In what sense, if any, are ethical claims correct or incorrect; and if they are, how can we justify them? Are we evolutionarily unique among Earth’s species and, if so, does that uniqueness give us special moral obligations towards other species? We will study the fundamentals of biological evolution, and we’ll read and discuss classic and modern works on moral and ethical philosophy. Credit will be awarded in biology and ethical philosophy. | Stephen Beck Karen Hogan | Tue Wed Sat | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Winter | Winter Spring | |||
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Stephen Bramwell
Signature Required:
Fall
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | The schedule for The Practice of Sustainable Agriculture has been shifted to the agricultural calendar. This is the third quarter of a three-quarter sequence that started in last spring quarter. This program integrates theoretical and practical aspects of small-scale organic farming in the Pacific Northwest and requires serious commitment from students—we start at 8 AM Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday and all students will work on the farm, which may include early mornings before class. Each week of the program there will be eight hours of classroom instruction and twenty hours of practicum work at Evergreen's Organic Farm.The program's academic classroom portion will cover a variety of topics related to practical farm management, including annual and perennial plant propagation, entomology and pest management, plant pathology and disease management, weed biology and management, soil quality and soil management, crop botany, animal husbandry/physiology, polycultures, integration of crops and livestock, orchard management, appropriate technology, weather forecasting, and climatology. As part of their training, students will be required to develop and write farm management and business plans. On a weekly basis, students can expect to complete seminar readings and reflective writings, work through assigned textbooks, and write technical reports to demonstrate an integration of theoretical concepts and practice gained through the farm practicum.The academic practicum on Evergreen's organic farm will include hands-on instruction on a range of farm-related topics including greenhouse management and season extension techniques, farm-scale composting and vermiculture, seed saving, irrigation systems, mushroom cultivation, farm recordkeeping, tool use and care, farm equipment operation and maintenance, and techniques for adding value to farm and garden products. Students will also have the opportunity to explore their personal interests related to agriculture, homesteading, and developing communal farms/ecovillages through research projects. Each quarter we will visit farms that represent the ecological, social and economic diversity of agriculture in the Pacific Northwest. Students will also attend and participate in key sustainable and organic farming conferences within the region. After completing this program, students will have an understanding of a holistic approach to managing a small-scale sustainable farm operation in the Pacific Northwest. | agriculture, farm and garden management, and applied horticulture. | Stephen Bramwell | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall | ||||
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David Muehleisen and Stephen Bramwell
Signature Required:
Spring
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Program | SO–SRSophomore - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | What does it take to start up and run a small-scale agricultural business? Do you know how to grow organic food? Are you interested in contributing to the success of the campus Organic Farm? Join us on the farm for hard work and a wide-ranging examination of these and other questions.In this three-quarter program which begins spring quarter, we will integrate the theoretical and practical aspects of organic small-scale direct market farming in the Pacific Northwest by working on the Evergreen Organic Farm through an entire growing season (spring, summer and fall quarters). All students will work on the farm a minimum of 20 hours per week. The program is rigorous both physically and academically and requires a willingness to work outside in adverse weather on a schedule determined by the needs of crops and animals.Our exploration of critical agricultural topics will occur through a curriculum that is intricately tied to what is happening in the fields as the growing season progresses. The major focus of the program will be developing the knowledge and skills needed to start up and operate a small-scale agricultural operation based on a sound understanding of the underlying science and business principles. At the same time, hands-on farm work will provide the context for developing applied biology, chemistry and math skills.Each quarter, we will cover a variety of seasonally appropriate topics needed to operate a sustainable farm business. In the spring, we will focus on soil science and nutrient management, annual and perennial plant propagation, greenhouse management, crop botany, composting, vermiculture, and market planning. In the summer our focus will be on entomology and pest management, plant pathology weed biology and management, water management and irrigation system design, animal husbandry, maximizing market and value-added opportunities and regulatory issues. The fall quarter's focus will be on season extension techniques, production and business planning, the use and management of green and animal manures, cover crops, and crop storage techniques and physiology.Additional topics will include record keeping for organic production systems, alternative crop production systems, apiculture, aquaponics, urban agriculture, small-scale grain-raising, mushroom cultivation, and techniques for adding value to farm and garden products. Students will learn how to use and maintain farm equipment, ranging from hand tools to tractors and implements. Students will have the opportunity to develop their personal agricultural interests through research projects. Topics will be explored through on-farm workshops, seminars, lectures, laboratory exercises, farm management groups, guest lectures, field experimentation and field trips to regional agricultural operations. Books typically used in the program include by Gershuny, by Mohler and Johnson (eds.), by Wiswall, by Ekarius, by Altieri, and by Coleman. If you are a student with a disability and would like to request accommodations, please contact the instructor or the office of Access Services prior to the start of the quarter. Access Services, Library Bldg. Rm. 2153. Contact Program Coordinator Steve Schmidt, PH: 360.867.6348; TTY 360.867.6834; E-mail: schmidts@evergreen.edu. If you require accessible transportation for field trips, please contact the instructor well in advance of the field trip dates to allow time to arrange this.Students planning to take this program who are receiving financial aid should contact financial aid early in fall quarter 2011 to develop a financial aid plan that includes summer quarter 2012. | farm and garden management; working with non-profit organizations focusing on food, land use and agriculture; State and County Extension; and State and Federal regulatory agencies. | David Muehleisen Stephen Bramwell | Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | ||||
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Stephen Bramwell and David Muehleisen
Signature Required:
Summer
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Program | SO–SRSophomore - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | Su 12Summer Full | This is a spring, summer, fall program and is open only to students continuing from the spring. For the full program description, see . | Stephen Bramwell David Muehleisen | Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Summer | Summer | |||||
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Lucia Harrison
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | The study of stream ecology and visual art will provide the framework and tools to examine, observe, record, and know a place. We will explore the role of art and science in helping people develop a deep and reciprocal relationship with a watershed. Designed for beginning students in art and ecology, we will study the characteristics of local streams and make drawings that are inspired by a connection to a specific stream. The Nisqually River Watershed will be the focus for our collective work while the numerous local streams will serve as individual focal points for student projects throughout the quarter.Through reading, lectures and field study, students will learn the history of the watershed, study concepts in stream ecology, learn to identify native plants in the watershed and learn about current conservation efforts. They will develop beginning drawing skills and practice techniques for keeping an illustrated field journal. Students will work in charcoal, chalk pastel, watercolor, and colored pencil. Students will explore strategies for using notes and sketches to inspire more finished artworks. Students will study artists whose work is inspired by their deep connection to a place. Each student will visit a local stream regularly, keep a field journal, and in the second half of the quarter, students will create a series of artworks or an environmental education project that gives something back to their watershed. | Lucia Harrison | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | |||||
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Nancy Anderson, Frances V. Rains and John Baldridge
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Program | FR–SRFreshmen - Senior | 8, 12, 16 | 08 12 16 | Day and Evening | F 11 Fall | How much do you really know about the Salish Sea/Puget Sound region, its peoples, its landscapes, and its natural inhabitants? Come join us as we explore the intersection of place, culture, and health and how these factors reflect inequity in access to—and degradation of—resources in and around the Salish Sea. Central elements of this thematically based program will include the history of colonization and decolonization of Native peoples of the Salish Sea that accompanied European settlement, Indigenous rights, a critique of current policies and practices that have not promoted the achievement of social or health equity, the effect of industrialization on the health of the Salish Sea and non-human life forms, and the public health policies that may intervene to improve overall health and wellness in the surrounding communities. Both quarters will examine these themes through multiple lenses including political ecology, political economy, public health, and Native Studies. Our readings will include current case studies, empirical research, and counter-narratives.The learning community will work on understanding the consequences of privilege on an individual basis—how our individual behavior contributes to environmental degradation and social injustice, specifically the attempted genocide of Native Peoples. Students will learn about the fundamental relationships between our focus themes, as well as strategies that may more successfully address social justice and environmental issues. Learning will take place through writing, readings, seminars, lectures, films, art, and guest speakers. Students will improve their research skills through document review, observations, critical analysis, and written assignments. Oral speaking skills will be improved through small group and whole class seminar discussions and through individual final project presentations. Options for the final project will be discussed in the syllabus and in class with proposals that aim to improve community health, the sustainability of the Salish Sea, and for Native Communities many of whom have lived at its edge for thousands of years before European settlement.This program is a combined offering of Evening and Weekend Studies and the full-time, daytime curriculum. All students will meet in the evenings on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Students registering for 12 credits will complete a 4-credit in-program internship (10 hours per week). Students registering for 16 credits will meet in both the afternoons and evenings on Tuesdays and Thursdays. | Nancy Anderson Frances V. Rains John Baldridge | Tue Thu | Freshmen FR Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall | ||||
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Steven Scheuerell
Signature Required:
Spring
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SOS | SO–SRSophomore - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | S 12Spring | This program is designed for students who have the independent drive to deepen their existing knowledge and/or work experience in a profession that works directly with the land. Students will do their independent learning by working with faculty to develop an individual course of study or by completing a previously arranged internship with an organization, agency, or business. This program will support a wide range of student learning goals from land-based professions such as farming, ranching, forestry, tideland aquaculture, landscape architecture, land-use planning, environmental/ecological/natural history studies, parks and conservation area management, and outdoor education and recreation.Students will be expected to participate in weekly forums (both online and in person, depending on student project location) to share their experiences and compare the knowledge and skills needed to succeed in their chosen profession. Students present their independent learning and work collectively during a final multi-day symposium that will focus on the common issues and social values of working with the land given the different student learning experiences.Student work over the quarter will include a written study proposal, submitting weekly learning progress reports, forum participation, self-evaluation of learning, final presentation and symposium participation. | natural resource management, agriculture, forestry, land use planning, parks and recreation, and wilderness education. | Steven Scheuerell | Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Spring | Spring | ||||
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Steven Scheuerell
Signature Required:
Fall
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SOS | SO–SRSophomore - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | This program is designed for students who have the independent drive to deepen their existing knowledge and/or work experience in a profession that works directly with the land. Students will do their independent learning by working with faculty to develop an individual course of study or by completing a previously arranged internship with an organization, agency, or business. This program will support a wide range of student learning goals from land-based professions such as farming, ranching, forestry, tideland aquaculture, landscape architecture, land-use planning, environmental/ecological/natural history studies, parks and conservation area management, and outdoor education and recreation. Students will be expected to participate in weekly forums (both online and in person, depending on student project location) to share their experiences and compare the knowledge and skills needed to succeed in their chosen profession. Students present their independent learning and work collectively during a final multi-day symposium that will focus on the common issues and social values of working with the land given the different student learning experiences. Student work over the quarter will include a written study proposal, submitting weekly learning progress reports, forum participation, self-evaluation of learning, final presentation and symposium participation. | natural resource management, agriculture, forestry, land use planning, parks and recreation, and wilderness education. | Steven Scheuerell | Sophomore SO Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall | ||||
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Paul Butler and Dylan Fischer
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Program | JR–SRJunior - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | F 11 Fall | Temperate rainforests are poorly understood and highly valued ecosystems of the Pacific Northwest and other coastal landscapes around the world. This type of ecosystem supports complex interactions among constituents of the atmosphere, the forest and the underlying geology. By focusing on the biogeochemistry and nutrient cycling of the forest, we will understand the interplay between the biotic and abiotic components of these ecosystems. We will examine the pools and fluxes of organic and inorganic nutrients as well as the processes that link them. We will examine forest ecosystem science in temperate rainforests worldwide, and our lectures and field labs will emphasize the temperate rainforests of the Olympic Peninsula, with a three-day field trip at the beginning of the quarter. Students will gain field experience with group independent studies on campus and at remote sites. Students will acquire experience with various sampling techniques that are used measure nitrogen, water, and carbon in forested ecosystems in a single, intensive, multiple-week lab exercise on forest biogeochemistry. Weekly seminars will focus on reading a major forest-ecology textbook and and understanding scientific articles from the primary literature. Each student will develop a scientific research proposal throughout the quarter that requires the development of research and quantitative skills. Finally, controversy over forest management is an integral component of human interactions with modern temperate rainforests. We will explore current and past controversies in forest ecology related to old-growth forests, spotted owls and other endangered species, sustainable forestry, and biofuels. We will also visit local second growth forests to examine the impacts of sustainable forest management on temperate rainforest ecosystems. Readings and guest lectures will introduce students to major ecological issues for temperate rainforests. | forest ecology, chemistry, geology and field research. | Paul Butler Dylan Fischer | Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall | ||||
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Dina Roberts and David Phillips
Signature Required:
Winter
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Program | JR–SRJunior - Senior | 16 | 16 | Day | W 12Winter | The tropics are the cradle of the world's biodiversity. This program will focus on Costa Rica, emphasizing biological richness, field ecology, the physical environment, statistical analysis of field data, conservation biology and Latin American culture. The first seven weeks of the program will be held on the Evergreen campus, followed by a three-week field trip to Costa Rica. The on-campus portion will include lectures and labs on global patterns of biological diversity, quantification and analysis of ecological diversity, an overview of major taxa of Neotropical plants, insects and vertebrates, and discussions of the physical environment of tropical regions. This material will be integrated with classes in introductory statistics and conversational Spanish.During the Costa Rica field trip, we will visit four major field sites, including coastal habitats, tropical dry forest, cloud forest and lowland rain forest. Students will learn about common plants and animals in each area, dominant landforms and ecological processes, conservation issues and current biological research activities. Students will also learn techniques of field research by participating in quantitative field labs, both faculty and student led. In the evenings there will be a series of guest lectures by research scientists. The field trip will require rigorous hiking and backpacking in remote locations. | environmental studies, ecology, conservation biology, evolutionary biology and Latin American studies. | Dina Roberts David Phillips | Junior JR Senior SR | Winter | Winter | ||||
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Alison Styring
Signature Required:
Fall Winter Spring
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Research | JR–SRJunior - Senior | V | V | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | S 12Spring | Alison Styring | Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall Winter Spring | ||||
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Dylan Fischer
Signature Required:
Fall Winter Spring
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Research | JR–SRJunior - Senior | V | V | Day | F 11 Fall | W 12Winter | S 12Spring | plant ecology and physiology, field ecology, restoration ecology | Dylan Fischer | Junior JR Senior SR | Fall | Fall Winter Spring |
