Courses

A study of the life history and distribution of marine organisms in several major habitat types, including soft sediment and rocky substrate communities. Emphasis is on field and laboratory work in a survey of common local marine plants and animals and their relationships. Includes field work in the Lower Mainland, Gulf Islands, and/or Vancouver Island.

A study of the structure and dynamics of ecosystems. Consideration of plant and animal populations in relation to physical, chemical, and biological factors affecting their interaction and productivity. Considerable laboratory time is devoted to the study of local ecosystems, field sampling techniques, and field trips to ecological research areas.

Students are invited into understanding and using quantitative and computational inquiry to understand and discern computer-based spatial analysis as a mode of inquiry. Students develop confidence in using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and accompanying computer- based, spatial analytical tools to model geographic problems using mathematical and computing notation. Students are provided with the opportunity to investigate the theory and practical utility of GIS through collecting empirical spatial data, analyzing quantitative data, conducting computational spatial analyses to answer meaningful geographic and environmental questions, making judgements based on quantitative information derived from these analyses, and communicating the results with purposeful, multi-audience cartographic products.

A thematic case study approach to Canadian Environmental History that highlights the nation's unique reciprocal relationships with nature as illustrated through ideas (Wilderness), material resources (Water) and social/ethical issues (Global Warming). Investigates how natural elements like climate, topography, plants, animals and diseases have influenced our choices about nature, and how cultural content, like clean/green energy initiatives, pipeline projects, save the whale campaigns, and fear of climate change, have shaped our perceptions of the places we inhabit. Critically engages the ethical decisions we make about the environment that may determine the future we wish to construct as Canadian and global citizens.

This course provides a survey of the history of science and technology from the ancient world to the present with particular emphasis on the early-modern and modern eras. While much of the focus is on developments in the Western world, this course also examines select issues and events in a comparative world perspective.

The crucial role of plant ecology in shaping major habitats, including those in British Columbia, will be examined. A trip to Salt Spring Island will highlight the threatened Garry oak ecosystem and other features of interest. Field trips throughout the course will highlight the population dynamics and interrelationships of plant communities in natural habitats, agricultural crops and managed forests. Critical assessment of planetary stewardship will form a common theme across various issues in plant ecology.

This course explores the botanical riches of the tropics, focusing on the plant life of Hawaii. The course traces fundamentals of plant taxonomy, physiology and ecology in relation to complexities of existence on the most isolated island chain in the world. Issues related to indigenous vegetation including effects of introduced animals and plants, agriculture and ethnobotany will be discussed. The course will involve one week of lectures at Trinity Western University Langley campus and two weeks of lectures and field work in the Hawaiian Islands.

A scientific examination of the physical processes which shape landform development, structure, and dynamics. Topics include: weathering, slope systems, fluvial and coastal environments, and glacial and periglacial systems. Special emphasis is placed on deciphering past events from current landscape structures. Field trips and field studies are required.

A scientific investigation of the various aspects of soil as a natural resource. Topics include: physical, chemical, and biological characteristics of soils applied in the context of soil formation, soil classification and land use, agriculture, and environmental engineering. Soil mapping and spatial distribution of soils is also considered. Field trips and field studies are required.