Biogeochemistry and Global Change: Material from 2016

Welcome to the Biol 510 webpage. The 2016 version of this course was entitled: Biogeochemistry, Buddhism, and Global Change

This ecology course will examine the underlying causes of global change issues at levels ranging from biogeochemical processes through to human behaviour. The aim of the course is to develop students' perspectives on the relationship between ecology and the sustainability of our current civilisation. Students will lead informal seminar discussions on some component of this theme that is of particular interest to them.
This course is for final year undergraduates and is specifically aimed at enhancing their capacities for critical thinking, intelligent open discussion, group work, and independent learning. By the end of the course, students should be able to critique the potential for Buddhist philosophical perspectives to help our society in addressing global change issues.

Initial sessions will provide an overview of the Earth’s major global change issues, the underlying biogeochemistry, and various Buddhist philosophical perspectives on our civilisation’s predicament. The principal questions that this course will address are:
How might Buddhist philosophical perspectives be useful in addressing global change issues?
Could the concept of mindfulness be useful in promoting sustainable ecological behaviour?

Learning outcomes:

By the end of this course, the student should be able to:

1. Demonstrate an understanding of several major global change issues that integrates ecological, economic and social perspectives
2. Critically assess the constraints (ecological, economic, social, behavioural and political) that underlie society’s responses to global change issues 
3. Discuss and evaluate how human biology, biogeochemistry and global change can be linked through Buddhist philosophical perspectives
4. Search, critically assess, and synthesize primary and secondary literature in the natural and social sciences
5. Justify and actively promote mindful awareness as a means to initiate social action on a chosen global change issue
6. Develop and present cohesive, original syntheses on the potential of mindfulness and other Buddhist philosophical perspectives to influence the future sustainability of our civilisation

Professor: Paul Grogan

Seminar times: Mondays 10.00; Wednesdays 08.30
Location: Room 3110, Biosciences building

Links: 

• FINAL CLASS VIDEO (course synthesis): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OxviV5Xizkw
• Students' course project Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/MindfulMarch/?fref=ts

Calendar: Sessions are 1.5 hours

Assessment:

15% Active participation in discussions (questions, comments, suggestions)
15% Seminar written questions
10% Seminar
30% Group projects
30% Final Essay (Thesis argument: Buddhist philosophical perspectives, including mindfulness, provide the ultimate solution to achieving a sustainable civilization)

Schedule: