Teaching Experiences
ESPM 276: Graduate Seminar in Advanced Forest Ecology, UC Berkeley, Spring 2023
This course focuses on the patterns of tree mortality and their consequences for future vegetation dynamics, disturbance regimes, and ecosystem processes. As part of this, we discuss management challenges and opportunities to increase forest resilience to wildfire, drought, and insect infestations. Our focus is on the western U.S. but we also draw on literature from other regions. The literature included ranges from ecophysiology to dendroecology to climate science, and our goal is to integrate this diverse literature to understand the ecological consequences of climate variability on forest ecosystems of the western U.S. and globally.
ESPM 185: Applied Forest Ecology, UC Berkeley, Fall 2023
Applied forest ecology, or silviculture, is the application of ecological principles to the management of forest stands. This course offers a detailed treatment of modern silviculture theory and methods and provides laboratory and field experience in the utilization of ecologically-based forest management practices. Specific topics include: disturbance regimes, stand dynamics, desired future conditions, silvicultural treatments including even-aged and uneven-aged management, reforestation principles, and ecological restoration techniques.
ESPM 15: Intro to Environmental Science, UC Berkeley, Spring 2023
ESPM 15 is designed to introduce students to the science underlying biological and physical environmental problems, focusing on water and air quality, global change, cycling of energy and matter, waste and pollution, biodiversity, and preservation of ecosystems.
Forest Ecology, Colorado State University, 2017-2021 (Fall and Spring semesters)
This course provides an overview of concepts central to forest ecology (e.g., energy budgets, primary production, competition, disturbance, trophic interactions, etc.), with an emphasis on the important role that site conditions and disturbances play in shaping current and future forest conditions. Thinking about how or what a forest is doing and what might happen in the future requires some basic knowledge of these different fields, but also an ability to synthesize information across fields and be comfortable with non-linear thinking and uncertainty. In this course, we review case studies to illustrate how concepts apply to real-world examples, and we focus on how to interpret ecological information in graphs and how this information can be used to help solve many challenging questions facing society.
Biological Data Management, University of Colorado, Spring 2014 and Summer 2015
This course provides students with the data science skills to effectively summarize datasets using relational databases and provides a background to effective data management. As part of this course, students integrate their ecological knowledge with their data skills to answer questions using real world data. I designed and taught this course for upper division undergraduate students at CU-Boulder.
Here is an example lab developed for this course that encourages students to think critically about an ecological problem, organize and analyze real ecological data, and draw inferences based on their findings. Redmond et al. 2014 TIEE
Redmond MD, Preston DL, and RM Gaffney. 2014. Effects of multiple invasive species in experimental aquatic communities. Teaching Issues and Experiments in Ecology. Vol. 10: Practice #2.
Check out this excellent article by Strasser and Hampton (2012) that highlights the importance of undergraduates learning data management skills and how they are lacking in undergraduate curriculum. This article and my personal experiences is why I decided to design and teach this data management course.
Plant Ecology, University of Colorado, Fall 2013
Designed and led a one week case study for an upper division undergraduate course taught by N.N. Barger (~45 students). Check out our published case study!
General Biology Lab II, University of Colorado, Spring 2012
Taught four 18 person labs (1st half of the semester only). Topics included:
-taxonomy & phylogenetics
-diversity (stemming from protists to animals)
-anatomy
-physiology
General Biology Lab I, University of Colorado, Fall 2011
Taught two 18 person labs. Topics included:
-the scientific method
-genetics
-photosynthesis & respiration
-statistics (t-test and regression analyses)
English Teacher, Colegio Tuna, Kapawi, Ecuador, Spring 2008
This was a unique experience in the Ecuadorian Amazon where I taught middle school and high school level students English (taught 6 classes). Most of the students in the village wanted to study ecotourism and their village (Kapawi) had recently received ownership of a nearby ecolodge. Thus, the community decided it would be beneficial to have an English teacher and with the help of a non-profit organization, Pachamama Alliance, I was able to come!
I didn't have a camera with me, but below are a few photos that I was able to compile.
This course focuses on the patterns of tree mortality and their consequences for future vegetation dynamics, disturbance regimes, and ecosystem processes. As part of this, we discuss management challenges and opportunities to increase forest resilience to wildfire, drought, and insect infestations. Our focus is on the western U.S. but we also draw on literature from other regions. The literature included ranges from ecophysiology to dendroecology to climate science, and our goal is to integrate this diverse literature to understand the ecological consequences of climate variability on forest ecosystems of the western U.S. and globally.
ESPM 185: Applied Forest Ecology, UC Berkeley, Fall 2023
Applied forest ecology, or silviculture, is the application of ecological principles to the management of forest stands. This course offers a detailed treatment of modern silviculture theory and methods and provides laboratory and field experience in the utilization of ecologically-based forest management practices. Specific topics include: disturbance regimes, stand dynamics, desired future conditions, silvicultural treatments including even-aged and uneven-aged management, reforestation principles, and ecological restoration techniques.
ESPM 15: Intro to Environmental Science, UC Berkeley, Spring 2023
ESPM 15 is designed to introduce students to the science underlying biological and physical environmental problems, focusing on water and air quality, global change, cycling of energy and matter, waste and pollution, biodiversity, and preservation of ecosystems.
Forest Ecology, Colorado State University, 2017-2021 (Fall and Spring semesters)
This course provides an overview of concepts central to forest ecology (e.g., energy budgets, primary production, competition, disturbance, trophic interactions, etc.), with an emphasis on the important role that site conditions and disturbances play in shaping current and future forest conditions. Thinking about how or what a forest is doing and what might happen in the future requires some basic knowledge of these different fields, but also an ability to synthesize information across fields and be comfortable with non-linear thinking and uncertainty. In this course, we review case studies to illustrate how concepts apply to real-world examples, and we focus on how to interpret ecological information in graphs and how this information can be used to help solve many challenging questions facing society.
Biological Data Management, University of Colorado, Spring 2014 and Summer 2015
This course provides students with the data science skills to effectively summarize datasets using relational databases and provides a background to effective data management. As part of this course, students integrate their ecological knowledge with their data skills to answer questions using real world data. I designed and taught this course for upper division undergraduate students at CU-Boulder.
Here is an example lab developed for this course that encourages students to think critically about an ecological problem, organize and analyze real ecological data, and draw inferences based on their findings. Redmond et al. 2014 TIEE
Redmond MD, Preston DL, and RM Gaffney. 2014. Effects of multiple invasive species in experimental aquatic communities. Teaching Issues and Experiments in Ecology. Vol. 10: Practice #2.
Check out this excellent article by Strasser and Hampton (2012) that highlights the importance of undergraduates learning data management skills and how they are lacking in undergraduate curriculum. This article and my personal experiences is why I decided to design and teach this data management course.
Plant Ecology, University of Colorado, Fall 2013
Designed and led a one week case study for an upper division undergraduate course taught by N.N. Barger (~45 students). Check out our published case study!
General Biology Lab II, University of Colorado, Spring 2012
Taught four 18 person labs (1st half of the semester only). Topics included:
-taxonomy & phylogenetics
-diversity (stemming from protists to animals)
-anatomy
-physiology
General Biology Lab I, University of Colorado, Fall 2011
Taught two 18 person labs. Topics included:
-the scientific method
-genetics
-photosynthesis & respiration
-statistics (t-test and regression analyses)
English Teacher, Colegio Tuna, Kapawi, Ecuador, Spring 2008
This was a unique experience in the Ecuadorian Amazon where I taught middle school and high school level students English (taught 6 classes). Most of the students in the village wanted to study ecotourism and their village (Kapawi) had recently received ownership of a nearby ecolodge. Thus, the community decided it would be beneficial to have an English teacher and with the help of a non-profit organization, Pachamama Alliance, I was able to come!
I didn't have a camera with me, but below are a few photos that I was able to compile.
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