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Fall 2012 Curriculum

University of MiamiThe fall semester at IOI is run in affiliation with the University of Miami's Biology Department.

Tuition costs are standard UM tuition and financial aid applies if applicable. The program fee for the semester is comparable to UM room, board and semester living costs and covers housing in Galapagos, all meals, national flights within Ecuador (round-trip airfare between Quito and Galapagos), hotels, airport/ferry transfers and excursion costs.

Non-UM undergraduate students are welcome to join the program and are encouraged to apply.

The Fall 2012 program targets Biology, Pre-med and other science majors looking to satisfy a broad suite of degree relevant credits in one of the most beautiful and unique natural environments on Earth such as:

The Fall semester will introduce students to the unique terrestrial environments of this island archipelago through a series of interrelated courses each focused on the Galapagos.

Upon arrival in the Galapagos, an initial Orientation period will provide an overview of local life, culture, economy, general behavioral briefings, adaptation and awareness training. This will be followed by classes taught in two week modules, with faculty rotating in and out for their individual courses. The total semester experience is twelve weeks with a one week break built into the schedule.

Fall Calendar 2012: September 10th – December 3rd (15-17 credits total)

9/10 – 9/16 General Intro to Galapagos
9/17 – 9/28 ECS 272/APY 405/INS 321 (WRI), Political Ecology in the Galapagos, 3 credits
10/1 – 10/12 BIL 525 (HON, WRI), Herpetology in the Galapagos, 3 credits
10/15 – 10/26 BIL 335/ECS 380 (WRI), Ecology and Land Use in the Galapagos, 3 credits
10/29 – 11/2 FALL Recess
11/5 – 11/16 BIL 330, Ecology, 3 credits
11/19 – 11/30 BIL 433 (WRI), Conservation in Practice, 3 credits
Throughout BIL 495, Community Outreach, 2 credits (independent study)

Course Descriptions

General Intro to Galapagos
An overview of local life, culture, economy, general behavioral briefings, adaptation and awareness training

ECS 272/APY 405/INS 321 (WRI), Meltzoff
Political Ecology in the Galápagos, 3 credits
This course reviews the historical development and contemporary issues of Latin America through the cultural, political and social lens of the Galapagos.  It places the Galapagos within the wider Ecuadoran and Latin American context, exploring phenomena such as dependent development and the environment, multiculturalism, social inequality, and center-periphery political dissonance.  You will meet descendents of historical figures and interact with locals from multiple walks of life.

BIL 525 (HON, WRI), Tosney
Herpetology in the Galápagos, 3 credits
The Galápagos Islands are a perfect place to study natural selection and its living products.  In these desert islands, unique species and the demanding environmental pressures that drive natural selection are more visible and accessible than they are in more lush and complex environments.   The selection pressures will be studied in lectures and intensive field work, with a focus on the lives and adaptations of the charismatic reptiles of the Galapagos.

BIL 335/ECS 380 (WRI), Janos
Ecology and Land Use in the Galápagos, 3 credits
This course will briefly examine how fundamental principles of ecology are manifested on Isla Isabela, the largest of the Galápagos Islands.  These principles will then be employed to evaluate land usages including subsistence and production agriculture, animal husbandry, fuel wood and timber, and conservation with ecotourism.  Course participants will be acquainted with habitats, flora, and fauna from the vicinity of Puerto Villamil to the rim of Volcán Sierra Negra, and will analyze agricultural practices and problems of the mist zone on this volcano’s southeastern flank.

BIL 330, Horvitz
Ecology, 3 credits
This course will study organisms in relation to their environment, with a focus on interactive hands-on learning experiences that connect empirical nature with abstract thinking.   Lectures, discussion and field work will help students begin to understand ecosystem ecology, how plants disperse and colonize, how plants cope with spatial and temporal variability in their environments and how plants and animals interact as well as origins and effects of invasive species and actions of bio-control agents.

BIL 433 (WRI), Besserer
Conservation in Practice 3 credits
Intersection between economic development, science and conservation in one of the world's most pristine and fragile ecosystems.  Exploration of how tourism offers an alternative to unsustainable fisheries that once drove the local economy yet has created a new set of pressures on the people and the environment.  Mitigation efforts, science, and international conservation mesh with an understanding of local politics, customs and cultures.

BIL 495, Meltzoff, Besserer
Community Outreach (Independent study) 2 credits
Throughout the term, you will engage in civic activities identified in consultation with the people, government and public health facilities of the small, rural village of Villamil, the sole habitation on Isla Isabela.

NOTICE OF NONDISCRIMINATORY POLICY AS TO STUDENTS
The Isabela Oceanographic Institute admits students of any race, color, national and ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national or ethnic origin in administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship and loan programs, and athletic and other school administered programs.