This course will focus on the concept of place - a geographic setting where nature and culture intertwine and unfold through time. Humanity is inseparable from the natural systems on which it depends; to study them in isolation reinforces an artificial dichotomy. Our class will foster an opportunity to think of the places where we live as complex systems so that we can understand the interdependence of the ecological and social systems. Just as a species must evolve and adapt to changing environmental conditions, so must a community if it is to endure and thrive. The quest for increased self-reliance and resilience in many communities, such as Burlington, is predicated on an intimate knowledge of the ecological potential and cultural heritage of the local landscape. Using the Burlington landscape as our classroom, we will spend two weeks exploring human actions as components of the eco-social system and how we can live sustainably within our places. We'll utilize an interdisciplinary approach to landscape analysis that stresses not only inventorying the biotic and physical components (pieces), but examining how these pieces are distributed in the landscape (patterns) and what forces drive these patterns (processes). Students will be immersed in investigating, understanding, and communicating the unfolding of the story of a place from its geological origins up through the present. Such an in-depth understanding of a particular place -- the flora, fauna, climate, culture, physical features, and ecological processes that make it unique -- is fundamental to our ability to design elegant ways of living that promote sustainability and vitality.

Walter Poleman ()

Dates: July 15 - August 9, 2013; Instr Perm required; Open to only UVM freshman degree students; July 15 - July 26, 2013 online; 7/29-8/9 on campus MTWRF 9:30 am to 3:30 pm; This is a hybrid course; Student has to apply to program via application process http://www.uvm.edu/~summer/precollege/uvm-jumpstart/

There are no courses that meet this criteria.