Global Change Ecology

Course outline:
How are organisms and ecosystems affected by the drivers of global environmental change? This course begins with a brief overview of key drivers of global environmental change, including both natural (e.g. Milankovich cycles) and anthropogenic "forcings" (e.g. greenhouse gas emissions, nitrogen deposition and pollution, land-use change). It then examines how these drivers influence (and are influenced by) primary productivity, nutrient cycling, water relations and vegetation-climate feedbacks. Biological responses to global change are examined in the context of marine, freshwater and terrestrial ecosystems. The course provides an integrated knowledge of contemporary environmental issues related to global change (e.g. carbon sequestration, climate change mitigation, and dynamic global vegetation models).