Postgraduate Course: Ecosystem Services 2: Ecosystem Values and Management (PGGE11169)
Course Outline
| School | School of Geosciences |
College | College of Science and Engineering |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate) |
Availability | Not available to visiting students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | This course focuses on the concept of ecosystem services, its history and rise to prominence. We explore the ways in which ecosystem services can be valued, measured and monetized by society, across the spectrum from intrinsic values (aesthetics, inspiration, cultural) to extractive values (e.g. fisheries, forestry, mining). Both theoretical and practical applications of ecosystem valuation are explored through case studies of policies and projects , as well as fieldwork near Edinburgh. Real-world examples of ecosystem services being valued are presented by guest speakers (practitioners), and current policy responses are examined including payment for ecosystem services projects, biodiversity offsets, certification schemes and REDD+. Students have the opportunity to explore a case study in depth through both class work and assessment.
This course engages both critically and creatively with the idea of valuing ecosystem services, looking at the importance of governance and power structures, the difficulties in valuing complex and unpredictable ecosystems, and the trade-offs between efficiency and equity that often occur. Students will work in groups to design and implement an ecosystem assessment; a task that is typically too big and demanding to undertake individually. Strategies for effective group work will be explored and you will be able to reflect on your own participation and role within a community of learning.
NOTE: Students must have some prior knowledge of statistics to satisfy the learning outcomes of this course. Students should contact the course organiser if they are unsure whether or not their background is suitable. |
| Course description |
Indicative course outline:
W1 Ecosystem processes, functioning, services and values
W2 Theory and practice of measuring ecosystem services
W3 Practical valuation techniques 1: introduction, revealed preferences and cost-based approaches
W4 Practical valuation 2: Stated preferences
W5 Beyond the (classical) economics of valuation
W6 Ecosystem service assessments: Feedback on study design and fieldwork plan
W7 Ecosystem service assessments: Fieldwork
W8 Frameworks for analysing the governance of ES
W9 Instruments for incorporating ES into policies, projects and decisions
W10 Ecosystem service assessments: student presentations
W11 Course overview and feedback
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
|
Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | Students must have taken Ecosystem Dynamics and Functions (PGGE11170) and passed at MSc level (only applicable to those not on the MSc Ecosystem Services). If you have not, and wish to take this course, you will need to have passed ecosystem science/ecology at honours level as part of a previous degree.
Students must have some prior knowledge of statistics to satisfy the learning outcomes of this course. Students should contact the course organiser if they are unsure whether or not their background is suitable.
Note that, because the assessment forms and integral part of the course, students are not permitted to sit in and/or audit this course.
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Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2014/15, Not available to visiting students (SS1)
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Quota: 35 |
| Course Start |
Semester 2 |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Lecture Hours 44,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
152 )
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| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
0 %,
Coursework
100 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
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| Additional Information (Assessment) |
A1: Policy brief (4 pages) on key issue in ecosystem services (20%).
A2: Ecosystem service assessment (group assignment) written report and presentation (80%). Various due dates.
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| Feedback |
Not entered |
| No Exam Information |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- You will gain experience in identifying, categorising, quantifying and valuing ecosystem services (including doing interviews, analysis of primary data and writing group reports).
- You will learn about the limits to and assumptions behind different valuation methods and the ecosystem services to which these can be applied.
- You will learn to think critically about 'value' as a concept and 'valuation' as an activity that is rarely value-neutral.
- You will learn to see ecosystem services valuation in the context of political processes and wider societal debates about the protection and commodification of nature.
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Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Not entered |
| Keywords | ecosystem services, valuation, PES, REDD |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Janet Fisher
Tel: (0131 6)50 5097
Email: Janet.Fisher@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Mrs Alice Heatley
Tel: (0131 6)50 4866
Email: alice.heatley@ed.ac.uk |
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