Course Description
Forest ecosystems sustain life and provide aesthetic/spiritual services. This course provides an overview and basic understanding of forest ecosystem services from interdisciplinary and international perspectives. Internet- based lectures are prepared by faculty from several United States and Brazilian universities, and these faculty also lead both web-based and on-campus discussions.
Athena Title
FORECOSYSSERV
Non-Traditional Format
Weekly lectures will be prepared and posted online so that students can view them at any time. Students are required to participate in online discussions with students from other universities in the United States (University of Florida and North Carolina State University) and students from three Brazilian universities participating in the class.
Prerequisite
Permission of department
Semester Course Offered
Not offered on a regular basis.
Grading System
A - F (Traditional)
Course Objectives
By the end of the course, students will be familiar with the categories of forest and soil ecosystem services, aware of different disciplinary approaches and literature on ecosystem services, and experienced in cross-cultural communication among Brazilian and U.S. students.
Topical Outline
Topic 1 – Ecosystem Services a. What are ESs? b. How are ESs used in concepts of sustainability and conservation? c. What are the perceived economic values of ESs; how does one consider economic value of outside-the-market services? d. What are the Forest and Soil ESs? Topic 2 – Economic valuation of Forest Ecosystem Services a. Conceptual frameworks for economic valuation b. Methods for non-market valuation a. Stated preference b. Revealed preference c. Overview of value estimates d. Limitations and alternatives to economic valuation Topic 3 - Production Services a. Lumber and Pulp b. Bioenergy c. Chemical Extractives d. Charcoal e. Pine straw f. Miscellaneous Topic 4 – Physically related Forest and Soil ESs a. Soil conservation and stability b. Water yield c. Flood mitigation Topic 5 – Chemically related Forest and Soil ESs a. Water quality (filtering, water treatment, biological filtering, plant remediation) b. Air quality c. Nutrient Cycling d. Carbon Sequestration Topic 6 – Biologically related Forest and Soil ESs a. Biodiversity (plant and chemical) b. Wildlife habitat and diversity c. Pollination d. Seed Dispersal e. Control of Pests Topic 7 - Spiritual and Aesthetic Services a. Forests and Wilderness Concepts in Religion b. Forest Contribution to Mental Health c. Surgery, Recovery and Trees Topic 8 – Case studies applying economic valuation to different categories of services reviewed in topics 4, 5, and 6