6 ECTS credits
150 h study time
Offer 1 with catalog number 4020582FNR for all students in the 1st semester at a (F) Master - specialised level.
Humans are rapidly changing the world, and hence endangering the vast diversity of living organisms with whom we share this planet. Any consistent trend in the environment that affects at least a substantial part of the globe can be defined as global change. Key examples include climatic change, agricultural intensification, deforestation, nitrification, among several other types of global change. In this course we will address how such changes affect both aquatic and terrestrial biological systems, from the level of individual organisms to the ecosystem level. We will explore to what degree organisms can cope with, or even adapt to human-induced rapid environmental change, and how environmental stressors are affecting the physiology, morphology and behaviour of organisms, and their ecological interactions. Implications of these changes for biodiversity and ecosystem services –such as human health– will also be examined, as well as possible mitigation measures. We will pay special attention to the global phenomenon of urbanization since it involves a ‘cocktail’ of several rapid environmental changes.
The course has both a theoretical and a practical part. The theoretical part covers important aspects of global change biology/ecology and urban (evolutionary) biology, and will be illustrated with key examples from aquatic and terrestrial systems from around the world, some of them based on own research. The theoretical part also includes reading and presentation assignments to small groups on selected (review) papers.
The practical part will consist of excursions (4 days) to various types of green urban infrastructure in Brussels and surroundings to observe and study the challenges and opportunities of measures that increase biodiversity and ecosystem services in an urban context. These excursions will also be used to collect data that will be processed in small groups (1 day) and will be presented and discussed within the entire group (2 hours).
- Course text (Required): Powerpoint slides and selection of (review) papers via Canvas
- Personal notes during class
The final grade is composed based on the following categories:
Oral Exam determines 80% of the final mark.
PRAC Presentation determines 20% of the final mark.
Within the Oral Exam category, the following assignments need to be completed:
Within the PRAC Presentation category, the following assignments need to be completed:
The theory presented and explained in the lectures (including the theory presented by fellow students during the presentation assignment) and WPO (field excursions and related presentations) will be examined in an oral exam. This exam is based on questions which should be answered in written form during the exam before the actual oral assessment. The exam is only open for students that have actively participated in the practical part. Students who missed a part of the WPO must carry out a replacement task.
This offer is part of the following study plans:
Master of Biology: Ecology and Biodiversity (only offered in Dutch)
Master of Biology: Ecology and Biodiversity
Master of Biology: AR Erasmus Mundus Joint Master Degree in Tropical Biodiversity and Ecosystems, start at Brussels
Master of Biology: AR Erasmus Mundus Joint Master Degree in Tropical Biodiversity and Ecosystems, start at Paris
Master of Biology: AR Erasmus Mundus Joint Master Degree in Tropical Biodiversity and Ecosystems, start at Cayenne