This course will provide the opportunity for students to discuss, debate and explore current issues in conservation science.  The course will address themes in weekly units, including tutorials with practical skills, lectures with historical and theoretical discussions, and guest presentations by leading researchers in their discipline.

Upon completion of this course, students will be able to critically evaluate conservation problems and their societal or biological factors by:
              - Identifying and discussing personal and societal motivations for conservation
              - Evaluating sources of uncertainty and assumptions of conservation science
              - Applying ecological concepts to conservation actions such as reserve planning and habitat restoration
              - Analyzing current conservation policy and its influence on society

Instructor:     Dr. Suzie Lavallee (email: suzie.lavallee at ubc dot ca)
                      Office: FSC 3035   [Office hours TBA]

Lecture:    Tuesday and Thursday    9:30 to 11:00     FSC 1221

Tutorials:   Tuesday 1:00-3:00
                   Wednesday   1:00-3:00
                   Thursday   2:00-4:00
                   Friday 12:00-2:00

Course Resources:
CONS 330 will rely mainly on primary scientific literature, which will be made available via the course VISTA site, which will be updated on a twice-weekly basis.
There is no textbook for the course, but students may want to consult conservation biology texts such as "Essentials of Conservation Biology" (Primack, 2002) for additional background materials. There are several conservation textbooks on reserve at Woodward Library for this and other conservation science courses. Please consult the UBC Library Catalogue for more information on reserve materials access.