Diversity in Local Ecosystems
• abiotic: sunlight, wind, temperature, water (pH, flow, dissolved oxygen, turbidity, salinity), soil (nutrients, minerals)
• edaphic: soils – pH, water content, temperature, acidity, aeration, nutrients
• ecological roles: niche, autotrophs, heterotrophs, producers, consumers, decomposers, scavengers, keystone species, indicator species
• relationships and interactions:
— among species
— predator-prey, competition, pollination, symbiosis, mutualism, parasitism, commensalism, mimicry
— between biotic and abiotic-limiting factors
— tolerances — biodiversity index
Processes and Changes in Local Ecosystems
• energy flow:
— energy transfers, food webs, laws of thermodynamics
— photosynthesis
— chemosynthesis
— trophic levels, biomass, energy pyramid, law of 10 (i.e., only 10% of energy is transferred from one trophic level to next higher level)
• matter cycles: water, nitrogen, carbon, phosphorus
• population dynamics:
— exponential growth, logistic size, limiting factors, mortality, natality, growth rate, carrying capacity
— species richness, species abundance (species diversity indices)
— immigration, extinction, theory of island biogeography
• structure:
— community— food chains, food web, cycles, trophic levels, populations
— landscape structure (e.g., habitat fragmentation, scale and pattern, patches, connectivity, corridors, ecotones, edge effect)
• change and stability: natural disturbances, succession, equilibrium, resistance
Sustainability in Local Ecosystems
• benefits:
— ecosystem goods and services (food, water, air, waste, habitat)
— health and medicine
— cultural, economic, social, and other values
— natural capital, sustainable yield
• traditional ecological knowledge: local historical practices and ways of knowing (e.g., agriculture, ethnobotany, forestry, fisheries, mining, energy)
• unsustainable and sustainable:
— harvesting, resource extraction, population growth, urbanization, consumption, land use, habitat loss/fragmentation, climate change, pollution, disease
— species at risk, extinctions, invasive species
— traditional ecological knowledge practices (e.g., controlled burning, harvesting cycles)
Conservation and Restoration of Ecosystems
• environmental stressors: biological, physical, chemical, climatic, fire, radiation, thermal, pollution, harvesting of species, urbanization
• restoration principles:
— recovery of an ecosystem’s health, integrity, and sustainability
— use of ecological, cultural, and historical sources
— dynamic (processes or functions) attributes of ecosystems (e.g., predator-prey cycles, fire, nutrient cycling, hydrologic cycle, pollination, erosion control)
— resistance
— resiliency
— stability
• practices: reclamation, rehabilitation, mitigation, ecological engineering, resource management (e.g., wildlife, fisheries, forestry), traditional ecological knowledge–based sustainable practices (e.g., prescribed fire, selective harvesting, plant propagation and pruning, clam gardens)
• engagement:
— connecting with local leaders, including First Peoples leaders
— advocate for and/or partner with conservation groups
— increase awareness of local projects
— citizen science projects (e.g., monitoring of local populations)
— local stewardship projects (e.g., school gardens)
— projects (e.g., habitat restoration, stream and shore clean-up, protecting species at risk, controlling invasive species)
• abiotic: sunlight, wind, temperature, water (pH, flow, dissolved oxygen, turbidity, salinity), soil (nutrients, minerals)
• edaphic: soils – pH, water content, temperature, acidity, aeration, nutrients
• ecological roles: niche, autotrophs, heterotrophs, producers, consumers, decomposers, scavengers, keystone species, indicator species
• relationships and interactions:
— among species
— predator-prey, competition, pollination, symbiosis, mutualism, parasitism, commensalism, mimicry
— between biotic and abiotic-limiting factors
— tolerances — biodiversity index
Processes and Changes in Local Ecosystems
• energy flow:
— energy transfers, food webs, laws of thermodynamics
— photosynthesis
— chemosynthesis
— trophic levels, biomass, energy pyramid, law of 10 (i.e., only 10% of energy is transferred from one trophic level to next higher level)
• matter cycles: water, nitrogen, carbon, phosphorus
• population dynamics:
— exponential growth, logistic size, limiting factors, mortality, natality, growth rate, carrying capacity
— species richness, species abundance (species diversity indices)
— immigration, extinction, theory of island biogeography
• structure:
— community— food chains, food web, cycles, trophic levels, populations
— landscape structure (e.g., habitat fragmentation, scale and pattern, patches, connectivity, corridors, ecotones, edge effect)
• change and stability: natural disturbances, succession, equilibrium, resistance
Sustainability in Local Ecosystems
• benefits:
— ecosystem goods and services (food, water, air, waste, habitat)
— health and medicine
— cultural, economic, social, and other values
— natural capital, sustainable yield
• traditional ecological knowledge: local historical practices and ways of knowing (e.g., agriculture, ethnobotany, forestry, fisheries, mining, energy)
• unsustainable and sustainable:
— harvesting, resource extraction, population growth, urbanization, consumption, land use, habitat loss/fragmentation, climate change, pollution, disease
— species at risk, extinctions, invasive species
— traditional ecological knowledge practices (e.g., controlled burning, harvesting cycles)
Conservation and Restoration of Ecosystems
• environmental stressors: biological, physical, chemical, climatic, fire, radiation, thermal, pollution, harvesting of species, urbanization
• restoration principles:
— recovery of an ecosystem’s health, integrity, and sustainability
— use of ecological, cultural, and historical sources
— dynamic (processes or functions) attributes of ecosystems (e.g., predator-prey cycles, fire, nutrient cycling, hydrologic cycle, pollination, erosion control)
— resistance
— resiliency
— stability
• practices: reclamation, rehabilitation, mitigation, ecological engineering, resource management (e.g., wildlife, fisheries, forestry), traditional ecological knowledge–based sustainable practices (e.g., prescribed fire, selective harvesting, plant propagation and pruning, clam gardens)
• engagement:
— connecting with local leaders, including First Peoples leaders
— advocate for and/or partner with conservation groups
— increase awareness of local projects
— citizen science projects (e.g., monitoring of local populations)
— local stewardship projects (e.g., school gardens)
— projects (e.g., habitat restoration, stream and shore clean-up, protecting species at risk, controlling invasive species)
Global Water Systems -
• parameters: measuring alkalinity, pH, dissolved oxygen, phosphate, temperature, turbidity, total dissolved solids, nitrate, hardness, conductivity, bacteria
• bio-indicators and indices: — species range of tolerance — Calculate species diversity indices (e.g., Shannon-Weiner diversity index).
• availability: water cycle, scarcity, global water crisis, trends
• water use: personal, industrial, commercial, recreational, agriculture, industry, municipal
• conservation: laws and regulations, habitat restoration, stream and shore cleanup, nutrient loading, protecting species at risk, controlling invasive species, local stewardship projects
• personal choices: rain harvesting, waste water recycling, mitigation, xeriscaping
Global Warming and Climate Change -
• system: weather, climate, greenhouse effect, albedo effect, change over time, positive and negative feedback loops, global temperatures
• energy balance: conduction, radiation, convection, albedo, longwave and short wave radiation, atmospheric circulation and weather
• sinks and sources: — carbon dioxide (fossil fuels, deforestation, ocean) — nitrous oxide (soil cultivation, fertilizers, burning fossil fuels) — methane (livestock, rice cultivation, waste management)
• impacts: rising sea level, desertification, ocean acidification, polar regions, human health (e.g., changes in vectors)
• mitigation: — emission reductions, bike lanes, alternative energy — stabilizing the levels of heat-trapping greenhouse gases in the atmosphere — building and construction (e.g., LEED) — urban green spaces — laws and regulations
• personal choices: home energy use, sustainable transportation, vegetarian diet alternatives, recycle/upcycle
Land Use and Sustainability -
• quality: types, texture, structure, moisture, pH, percolation, nutrient levels, microbes
• land use: landfills, waste, deforestation, erosion, desertification, habitat loss, urbanization, food production, harvesting, mining, golf courses
• food security: availability, food access, food use, distribution
• technologies: pollination, monocultures, crop rotations, fertilization, traditional ecological knowledge
• land management: local plantings, xeriscaping, green spaces, reforestation, harvesting regulations, ecotourism, parks and protected areas, agriculture land reserves, biogeoclimatic zones, laws and regulations • personal choices: 100-mile diet, gardens, composting, organic, reduce, reuse, recycle Global Environmental Changes
• health and environmental impacts: pollutants and toxins, ozone depletion (skin, eye, immune system), acute and chronic effects, air pollutants, atmospheric composition changes, hunger, disease, economic effects, resource use, habitat loss, IPAT model for understanding human impact
• environmental ethics: political, social, economic, environmental, cultural, and health considerations
• perspectives, philosophies: stewardship, role of traditional ecological knowledge, First Peoples laws of nature
• parameters: measuring alkalinity, pH, dissolved oxygen, phosphate, temperature, turbidity, total dissolved solids, nitrate, hardness, conductivity, bacteria
• bio-indicators and indices: — species range of tolerance — Calculate species diversity indices (e.g., Shannon-Weiner diversity index).
• availability: water cycle, scarcity, global water crisis, trends
• water use: personal, industrial, commercial, recreational, agriculture, industry, municipal
• conservation: laws and regulations, habitat restoration, stream and shore cleanup, nutrient loading, protecting species at risk, controlling invasive species, local stewardship projects
• personal choices: rain harvesting, waste water recycling, mitigation, xeriscaping
Global Warming and Climate Change -
• system: weather, climate, greenhouse effect, albedo effect, change over time, positive and negative feedback loops, global temperatures
• energy balance: conduction, radiation, convection, albedo, longwave and short wave radiation, atmospheric circulation and weather
• sinks and sources: — carbon dioxide (fossil fuels, deforestation, ocean) — nitrous oxide (soil cultivation, fertilizers, burning fossil fuels) — methane (livestock, rice cultivation, waste management)
• impacts: rising sea level, desertification, ocean acidification, polar regions, human health (e.g., changes in vectors)
• mitigation: — emission reductions, bike lanes, alternative energy — stabilizing the levels of heat-trapping greenhouse gases in the atmosphere — building and construction (e.g., LEED) — urban green spaces — laws and regulations
• personal choices: home energy use, sustainable transportation, vegetarian diet alternatives, recycle/upcycle
Land Use and Sustainability -
• quality: types, texture, structure, moisture, pH, percolation, nutrient levels, microbes
• land use: landfills, waste, deforestation, erosion, desertification, habitat loss, urbanization, food production, harvesting, mining, golf courses
• food security: availability, food access, food use, distribution
• technologies: pollination, monocultures, crop rotations, fertilization, traditional ecological knowledge
• land management: local plantings, xeriscaping, green spaces, reforestation, harvesting regulations, ecotourism, parks and protected areas, agriculture land reserves, biogeoclimatic zones, laws and regulations • personal choices: 100-mile diet, gardens, composting, organic, reduce, reuse, recycle Global Environmental Changes
• health and environmental impacts: pollutants and toxins, ozone depletion (skin, eye, immune system), acute and chronic effects, air pollutants, atmospheric composition changes, hunger, disease, economic effects, resource use, habitat loss, IPAT model for understanding human impact
• environmental ethics: political, social, economic, environmental, cultural, and health considerations
• perspectives, philosophies: stewardship, role of traditional ecological knowledge, First Peoples laws of nature