Students begin by reading Dr. Seuss' "The Lorax" as an example of how overdevelopment can cause long-lasting environmental destruction. Students discuss how to balance the needs of the environment with the needs of human industry. Student teams are asked to serve as natural resource engineers, city planning engineers and civil engineers with the task to replant the nearly destroyed forest and develop a sustainable community design that can co-exist with the re-established natural area.

Increasingly volatile climate and weather; vulnerable drinking water supplies; shrinking wildlife habitats; widespread deforestation due to energy and food production. These are examples of environmental challenges that are of critical importance in our world, both in far away places and close to home, and are particularly well suited to inquiry using geographic information systems. In GEOG 487 you will explore topics like these and learn about data and spatial analysis techniques commonly employed in environmental applications. After taking this course you will be equipped with relevant analytical approaches and tools that you can readily apply to your own environmental contexts.

The goal of the second grade Wetland: Habitat storyline is to introduce students to wetlands and the living things that call them home. In this storyline students develop an understanding of what a habitat is, different types of habitats, what living animals and plants can be found in a wetland, and what plants need to grow

The goal of the fifth grade Wetland: Ecosystem Benefits storyline is to build on students’ previous knowledge of plant/animal needs, habitats, and protection of Earth’s resources. In this storyline students develop an understanding of wetland ecosystems, photosynthesis, what plants need to grow/gain mass and blue carbon wetlands.

The American Chestnut was once one of the most important trees in the Eastern US. It was important to wildlife as a food source and to people for a variety of uses. In the early 1900’s an imported Japanese Chestnut tree carried a fungus to which American trees had no immunity. It devastated the native Chestnuts. How can science offer a solution to this problem? Students will study how biotechnology is being used to develop a blight resistant tree. They will engage in hands-on activities that have students apply their knowledge of DNA and genetics to simulate the steps needed to find the genes for resistance and insert them into an American Chestnut tree. Lessons are designed to be used for any level of Biology student and do not require high tech equipment.

This resource is a video abstract of a research paper created by Research Square on behalf of its authors. It provides a synopsis that's easy to understand, and can be used to introduce the topics it covers to students, researchers, and the general public. The video's transcript is also provided in full, with a portion provided below for preview:

"What exactly is a forest? Most people have a mental picture of what a forest is. But beyond physical appearance are values associated with what this forest provides to people and nature. Depending on your perspective, a forest may be seen as a source of timber, an ecosystem containing important biological diversity, a home for indigenous people, or a sink for carbon. A single, uniform definition of forests is unable to capture these diverse perspectives, and applying only one definition can hinder conservation, management, and restoration efforts. Yet, clear definition criteria are needed for assessing forest loss or gain at large spatial scales. To address this predicament, an international research team discusses historical forest definitions and concepts, and provides guidelines for future researchers and policy makers to navigate the complex landscapes of modern forests. The way forward, they argue, requires multiple definitions designed and applied to specific goals..."

The rest of the transcript, along with a link to the research itself, is available on the resource itself.

This learning sequence is anchored in the phenomena: Salmon populations in the Pacific Northwest are declining.

Part of the job of Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) is to figure out why salmon populations are declining and create plans for how to help increase fish populations. Throughout this unit, students will engage with the phenomenon of Pacific salmon population decline as they explore salmonid species and discover how WDFW raises healthy fish in hatcheries.

Students will explore salmonid life cycles and discover patterns among life cycles of plants and animals who interact with salmon. Students will then learn what makes healthy habitats for salmon. They will evaluate solutions to the problems of salmon migration above and below dams and examine salmons’ role in a healthy river system. Students will embark on a virtual field trip (in person field trips also available) to a WDFW fish hatchery to learn about current practices in hatchery management and identify ways the hatchery meets the habitat needs of fish. Finally, students will be called to work as an engineering team and help develop a tool to support salmon recovery by working as conservation engineers.

This course explores the creation (and creativity) of the modern scientific and cultural world through study of western Europe in the 17th century, the age of Descartes and Newton, Shakespeare, Rembrandt and Molière. The class compares period thinking to present-day debates about the scientific method, art, religion, and society. This team-taught, interdisciplinary subject draws on a wide range of literary, dramatic, historical, and scientific texts and images, and involves theatrical experimentation as well as reading, writing, researching and conversing.

The planet’s most endangered wolf is the red wolf, with only one wild population, a nonessential experimental group established in eastern North Carolina, of 15-17 individuals in existence as of 2022. The story of the red wolf is rich in history, dating back to the early 20th century wolf exterminations to the red wolf recovery program launched in 1967. Now, there are new issues on the rise. Shortly after the peak of success with the recovery program, red wolf numbers experienced a sharp decline due to human-caused mortality and hybridization with coyotes. This course seeks to understand the historical and modern events leading to the current state of the red wolf and prompts investigation into different restoration methods to form suggestions for the next best course of action. This lesson plan was created as part of an independent study in restoration ecology with Professor Marja Bakermans.

This resource is a video abstract of a research paper created by Research Square on behalf of its authors. It provides a synopsis that's easy to understand, and can be used to introduce the topics it covers to students, researchers, and the general public. The video's transcript is also provided in full, with a portion provided below for preview:

"Coral reefs are especially sensitive to environmental changes, which is evident from mass “bleaching” events, where corals expel the microalgae living in their cells. Reefs have suffered during both climate change and oil contamination, and chemical remediation efforts can harm corals further. A recent study sought to evaluate the impacts of oil contamination and find potential alternatives to chemical dispersants. Using a mesocosm experiment with the fire coral Millepora alcicornis, which is sensitive to environmental changes, researchers constructed a realistic oil-spill scenario and compared the effects of a chemical dispersant, Corexit 9500, to those of bioremediators. They found that bioremediators – bacteria, filamentous fungi, and yeast – helped to mitigate the effects of the oil and maintain the integrity of the coral. In contrast, the chemical dispersant negatively affected host physiology and altered the coral-associated microbial community..."

The rest of the transcript, along with a link to the research itself, is available on the resource itself.