EGS5044F - Urban Ecology

Course Outline:

The aim of this module is to introduce students to both the theory and practice of urban ecology. Students will be expected to engage critically with current theories and debates as presented in the urban ecology literature. In addition to this, there will be a significant focus on practical methods and skills. Students will be expected to interrogate the urban landscape, identify and pose relevant ecological questions, and design and implement appropriate methods to answer these ecological questions. Broad theoretical areas to be engaged in, all in the context of the city, include: biogeography, alien invasion, landscape fragmentation, conservation, restoration, ecosystem services, and social ecology. At the NQF 9 level students will be expected to apply theoretical considerations in engaging in questions that speak to more than one area of urban ecology, for example speaking simultaneously to urban design and climate change.