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2009, 2007 and 2000: Africa and the Global Environment
The course explored the geography,
human ecology and natural history of Africa and Madagascar from a global
environmental perspective: the Guineo-Congolean tropical forest; East African
montane forest islands; fish speciation in the Rift Valley Lakes; savanna ecology;
desertification and famine; sustainable development in forest, savanna and desert,
including the ecology of fire and game ranching; demographics, including the effects
of slavery on current population sizes and women's rights and reproductive
self-determination; patterns and evolution of disease. David Campbell.
2008, 2003, 1998, and 1994: Latin American Environmental Issues
The course explored the geography, natural history, human ecology, and
environmental issues of tropical America (Central America, South America and the
West Indies). Emphasis was on Amazonia (the most complex biome ever to have
existed in the 3.5 billion year history of life on Earth); various theories regarding the
evolution, maintenance and patterns of Amazonian biodiversity; the biological
exploration of the Amazon River Valley; environmentally benign development (such
as extractive reserves and the search for medicinal plants). Other regions discussed
were: the Andean Cordillera, the coastal deserts, savanna (pampas/llanos) and the
West Indies. We discussed the relationship between El Nino and famine in northeastern
Brazil; demography over the past 12,000 years (including the effects of the European
contact); the condition of indigenous tribes; women's rights and reproductive
self-determination (with emphasis on Catholic countries). Readings were from the
contemporary literature. David Campbell.
2006 and 2005: Historical Ecology
Historical Ecology - embracing landscape ecology, archaeology, history, pre-history, epidemiology, toxicology, climatology, palynology, demographics, and more - is a dynamic new synthesis emblematic of the Renaissance time in which we live. We discuss the prolific current literature in this field, with examples from all seven continents and one ocean. David Campbell
2004 and 1999: Environmental History of Powshiek County
Our collective purpose was to investigate,
through a variety of sources of evidence and information, the history of environmental
change in our immediate area. Despite the course title, students worked with either or
both Poweshiek or Jasper County materials (Grinnell is in Poweshiek County, and
CERA is in Jasper County). County boundaries have little to do with environmental
history in any event, but we needed some delimitation of the region to give coherence
to the various projects. The emphasis was on environmental change which involves
humans, either "anthropogenic" change (where human agency is the driving force)
or "extra-anthropic" change (brought about by non-human forces) to which humans
responded. A further emphasis was on environmental changes since Euro-American
settlement, but some attention to pre-European environmental history was entertained,
especially in order to develop an "environmental baseline" (somewhat illusory; we
discussed the term) for Euro-American settlement. Some projects focussed on
contemporary environmental change, but attention to the past was of equal
importance. Jon Andelson.
2002: Eastern Europe
The landscape of Eastern Europe was examined from the end of the Pleistocene ice age to the present, including: Medieval demography and land use, demography of the Black Death, biodiversity of the Danube Valley, the environmental economy of high-sulfur coal, acid rain, the environmental consequences of centralized market-independent industrial planning and collective agriculture during the socialist times, the environmental reforms concomitant with Eastern Europe's entry into the European Community; the unique stratification of the Black Sea. David Campbell
2001: Savannas, Prairies, Pampas and Llanos
Most of our plant and animal food is grown in grasslands, both dry and wet: prairies,
savannas, llanos, pampas, cerrados, campos, várzeas do campo, herbaceous
wetlands and sea grass beds. Necessarily, therefore, most of our plant and animal
domesticates were derived from these same areas, and one cannot understand
humanity’s usurpation of Earth’s surface - nor divine humanity’s future - without
knowledge of these ecosystems. They are, arguably, the most important plant
communities on Earth to civilization - yielding, literally, the staffs of life. Topics
included: the deciphering of the ecology of grasslands, the evolutionary significance
of the basal meristem, the counterintuitive role of fire in the maintenance of grassland
diversity, the myriad adaptations of grassland herbivores, and of the role of disease
(such as African trypanosomiasis, rinderpest and hoof-and-mouth disease) in forging
the landscapes of the Old and New World, the exchange of grazing and browsing
species (including cattle, buffalo, sheep, goats, ostriches, hares) across oceans
and continents, the extirpation of others - such as New World camels, New World
horses, sea turtles, grassland farming practices (sustainable and otherwise), the
dependency of developing economies on export grain commodities, and the decline
in farmland that always accompanies industrialization are strategic issues of global
importance. A central theme of the course was the transformation of the landscape
seascape, one of the rollicking stories of history, yet subjects that are generally
neglected in textbooks. David Campbell.
1998: Asia and Australia
The course explored the geography, natural history, human ecology, and
environmental issues of Australia and Asia (Asia, Malesia, Melanesia and Australia).
Emphasis was on the tropics. Items discussed will include (along others) the
biological consequences of the Vietnam and Gulf Wars; island biogeography (Malesia);
the consequences of the break up of Gondwanaland; contrasting patterns of Chinese
and Indian demography; the epidemiology of HIV in Thailand and India; heavy metal
pollution in Japan; the role of fire in Australian history; "green" politics in Queensland
and Tasmania; endemism in Lake Baikal. David Campbell.
1997: Sustainable Agriculture
Topics ranged from temperate to tropical agriculture, with emphasis on the biological,
chemical and ecological aspects of sustainability, as well as the economic, political,
social dimensions of agricultural policies in various parts of the world, with particular
emphasis on China. Vern Durkee.
1996: Asian and Australian Environmental Issues
The central topics were: How China's (successful) and India's (failed) family-planning
programs will create two radically different futures for the two nations; energy flow
in vegetarian (Hindu) vs. a meat-eating (Pakistan, China) societies and the implications
of diet for the carrying capacity for humans; the Narmada and Three Gorges dams; the
defoliation of the Mekong River Delta; the role of great rivers (Indus, Ganges,
Yangstee, Yellow, Red) in Asia's environmental history; mangrove ecosystems and
their contribution to marine food chains (and fisheries); the future of the taiga forest
in capitalistic Russia; insular floral diversity in Malesia, and more. Readings were from
the current literature. David Campbell.
1995: The Last Great Places
The Nature Conservancy has designated about 100 "Last Great Places" of
exceptional biological richness in parts of the world ranging from Palau to Paraguay.
In each area the Conservancy and other government and private organizations are
conducting research to find compatible ways to integrate human economic activities
with the conservation of biodiversity. The solutions embrace ecology, economics,
human behavior, public health, history, politics, language and culture. This seminar
explored the problems and solutions of 9 of the Last Great Places: the Maya Mountains
(Belize), the Rio Lagartos (Mexico), Cayambe/Coca (Ecuador), Mbaracayť (Paraguay),
Guaraque Caba (Brazil), Palau (Micronesia), Molokai (Hawaii), the Everglades (Florida),
and Big Darby Creek (Ohio). Readings were from the contemporary literature.
David Campbell.
1993: Antarctica
The course discussed the geography, exploration and exploitation of Antarctica and
the Southern Ocean: latitudinal patterns of species diversity; the adaptations of plants
and animals to extreme cold; Antarctica's keystone position in Gondwanaland;
Southern Ocean food chains and productivity; penguin biology and behavior; seals
and sealing; whales and whaling; krill and its potential as a protein source;
Antarctica's influence on world climate; mineral exploration in Antarctica; Antarctic
colonists; the future of Antarctica, including the Antarctic Treaty and Antarctic
politics. David Campbell.
1992: Island Biogeography
The course discussed the particular characteristics of island floras and faunas:
endemism, giantism, the founder effect, adaptive radiation, and the special vulnerability
of island biotas; it critically examined the theory of island biogeography in the context
of real islands (such oceanic islands) and virtual islands (such as mountain tops), and
discussed the role of island biogeography in the design and long-term utility of parks
and reserves. Readings were from the contemporary literature. David Campbell.
1991: Tropical Forests
Old and New World tropical forests were reviewed from the perspectives of botany,
zoology, ecology and anthropology. Discussions were of species richness, ecosystem
heterogeneity, exploitation, rates of deforestation, and species extinction. Emphasis
was on strategies for the long-term conservation of tropical forests, tropical forests
as gene banks and pharmacopoeias, and the extractive use of tropical forest products.
Readings were from the current literature. David Campbell.
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