GEOG 454 - Forest Environments

Description:
Examinations of topics related to global forest including forest ecology, disturbance regimes, biogeography, and management issues. Case studies will focus on western U.S. forest and highlight the use of geospatial techniques to study forest change.

Prerequisites:
Prerequisites: GEOG 107.

Credits: (5)

Learner Outcomes:
Upon successful completion of this course, the students will be able to:

Describe the distribution of different forest types and explain their distribution in terms of climatic, geomorphic, and human controls.
Demonstrate knowledge of what constitutes a forest environment, both ecologically and theoretically.
Explain how different geospatial technologies (aerial photos, remotely sensed images, GIS maps) are used to study forest environments.
Identify the dominant tree species in Pacific Northwest forests and some components of the understory vegetation; to become familiar with field methods used to study forests.
Read scientific literature, glean the most important information, and be able to discuss it in a classroom setting.
Research a topic related to forests, write a scientific paper about that research, and articulately present the research to the class.

Learner Outcomes Approval Date:
02/17/2011

Anticipated Course Offering Terms and Locations:
Spring Locations: Ellensburg