introduction to biogeography of the global garden

GEOG1403GARDENBIOGEOGRAPHY OF THE

GLOBAL

June 11, 2007Humanity made history.

Photograph: Andrew Munsch

ruralpopulation

urbanpopulation

Photograph: zman z28

nature can seem distant and alien

Photograph: C.C. Chapman

Photograph: anotherpioneer

Photograph: Judy Baxter

MATTERDOES NATURE REALLY

ANY MORE?

ABSOLUTELY IT DOES

A wildfire burns near the Los Alamos Laboratory in Los Alamos, New Mexico, on June 28, 2011. Jae C. Hong/Associated Press

The carcass of a cow decomposes on the side of a road near Lagbogal, Kenya. Sayyid Azim/Associated Press

The Quad Cities River Bandits and the Peoria Chiefs play a game inside the Mississippi River on April 20, 2011.Paul Colle!i/The Dispatch/AP

NATUREWHAT IS

WORTH?

GEOG1403GARDENBIOGEOGRAPHY OF THE

GLOBAL

This course is NOT about environmental activism.

Photograph: paolaharvey

This course IS about environmental SCIENCE.

OUR ENVIRONMENT

living things

OUR ENVIRONMENT

The MAIN focusof our course.

THE BIOSPHEREthe global ecological system including all living things, as well as their relationships with the elements of the lithosphere, hydrosphere and atmosphere.

We’ll start with the fundamentals of our physical environment

Photograph: Frank Kovalchek

How do species interact with their environment?

Photograph: Ki!en Wants

Why do some organisms thrive...

...while others disappear?

Biogeography is the study of the facts and the patterns of species distribution. It's the science concerned with where animals are, where plants are, and where they are not.“

”David Quammen, Song of the Dodo

Provided by the SeaWiFS Project, NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center and ORBIMAGE

Photograph: Kitsu

3MINUTES

STEP ONETurn to the person on your left and introduce yourself.

(If you don’t have anyone on your left, join the two folks to your right).

STEP TWOIdentify TWO ways the environment has

an influence on your life.

(Be as specific as you can)

NATUREWHAT IS

WORTH?

TO YOU

Who am I?

DR. SCOTT ST. GEORGEASSISTANT PROFESSORDEPARTMENT OF GEOGRAPHY

Please call me

Scott

history

historyenvironmental

Collecting specimens to study tree growth in southern Arizona

Taken during my first trip in a helicopter, flying over the northern Rockies.

X

Photograph: Arlen Tees

X

X

Where am I from?

Winnipeg

Minneapolis

Winnipeg Jets Hockey Club

What are my qualifications?

Doctor of PhilosophyUniversity of Arizona

Master of ScienceUniversity of Western Ontario

Bachelor of ScienceUniversity of Winnipeg

h!p://umn.edu/~stgeorge

www.twi!er.com/sco!stgeorge

What will youget out of this class?

Former GEOG1403 students studying how natural hazards a"ect Minnesota’s forests.

! Biological Sciences requirement

! Environmental Theme requirement

We’re in charge.

We’ll talk about how this course is going to work.

GEOG1403NEXT CLASS

By FRIDAY’S CLASS

READ THE SYLLABUS

WAITING LISTIF YOU WANT TO BE ADDED TO THE

Send an email to Ms. Bonnie WilliamsDepartment of Geography

willi046@umn.edu