Teaching

I am an adjunct Professor and advisor at the Gallatin School of Individualized Study at New York University. I also serve as an advisor to the Center for Sustainable Business in the Stern Business School at NYU, and frequently lead senior capstone projects for graduating students in the Environmental Studies program. My teaching and research bring together the science, story, and social connections that establish our relationship to nature, and influence how we use and protect natural areas and biodiversity. My formal classes are a deep exposure to the principles of conservation biology - students get a hands-on experience of the work that goes into the planning and management of parks and wild areas; restoration ecology; human-wildlife relationships; and economic and cultural valuations of nature and environmental services. My teaching also looks closely at how we communicate science and tell the story of nature. Students work with a wide variety of media and arts to widen the scope of science-based communication.

Courses I currently teach at NYU:

Bridging Culture and Nature: An Introduction to Nature Conservation

This course is designed for those who wish to deepen our relationship to nature and then learn how to apply this understanding to the challenging work of conservation biology. The art and science of conservation biology brings together leading thinking from biology, economics, anthropology, psychology, literature, art, and communications to conserve the diversity of life found on our planet. The fieldwork of the physical and biological sciences provides the foundation from which our work as conservation biologists proceeds. However, the applied work of the social sciences, education, business, humanities and arts then serve as the tools we need to manage ourselves and create a relationship with nature that is mutually supportive. In this class we will discover how biologists, business leaders, financial institutions, entrepreneurs, social scientists, and artists all play an integral role in creating and delivering practical conservation solutions. We will begin with an exploration of our own relationship to the natural world. We then examine what biological diversity is, the principal threats to biological systems, and specific actions that are being taken to reverse these threats and protect life on earth. We also explore the premise that “managing” the ecology of the planet really requires us to manage ourselves, and the human cultures we have created. Students will be required to research and share their lessons learned around a selected conservation biology topic, and complete a practical project that demonstrates how each of us can make a difference in strengthening our relationship to nature. At the course conclusion students from all disciplines should see a role for themselves in the conservation work that is an essential focus for this century.

Conservation Biology in Practice: Solutions for People and Nature

The past century of exponential population growth, infrastructure development, and resource uses has stressed nature’s systems to dangerous levels. A particularly ominous threat faces us from the loss of cultural and biological diversity, and the associated challenges posed by severely disrupted climate systems. This practicum seminar allows each student to develop a 21st Century conservation toolkit and learn how to prepare a cutting edge strategy to reduce global threats to biological and cultural diversity. We begin by learning tools from the biological, physical, and social sciences to determine the cause, magnitude, and urgency of threats. We then use the results from these scientific approaches to develop practical conservation solutions that can be applied on the ground. Students will work in teams to select a site-based project from a menu of project options and use tools from anthropology, social psychology, economics, biology, communications and the arts to generate practical and achievable solutions to these risks and threats.

Courses I will offer in coming years:

Telling the Story of Nature - Communication Strategies for Conservation Science

 We are living in an age when the results from science are poorly understood, frequently challenged, and where scientists struggle to communicate the meaning and importance of their work to the general public. Social media, television, film, print and digital advertising, and popular journalism inundate us with stories and messages throughout the day, but few environmental scientists have the expertise or alliances with artists and communicators necessary to navigate these realms and clearly communicate the lessons from their very practical and critically important work. This limitation puts our entire society at risk. Our political choices, buying decisions, and household management are largely prioritized and driven by the messages and information we receive through a constant media barrage. Our response, or lack of a response to societal threats such as climate change, species extinctions, environmental pollutants, energy supplies, health care, and a changing economy will ultimately be driven by the information we have in hand. Even more dangerous is the fact that the concept of “Fake News” has been tacked onto the work of peer endorsed field science. Practicing environmental scientists will need a new repertoire of communication tools to make their work meaningful to others, and will need to forge a deeper alliance with artists and communicators to build this repertoire. In this class students will assemble the tools to respond directly to this need, with a particular focus on communicating messages essential to managing, mitigating, and avoiding imminent threats and challenges to wild natural areas on land and sea.