From the Equator to the Poles: Case Studies in Global Environmental Change
[ANTH 312/MASC 312; natural sciences/social sciences]
Course Description: This course focuses on case studies on multiple spatial and temporal scales,
highlighting human and environmental dynamics in terrestrial and marine ecosystems. The class
will be based on active learning modules, including group presentations of case studies, writing
assignments, and a final exam.
Brief course description for the Undergraduate Bulletin (limited to 30 words): Case studies in
environmental change, highlighting human and environmental dynamics in terrestrial and marine
ecosystems on multiple spatial and temporal scales. Based on active learning modules, group
presentations, writing assignments.
Class size: maximum 50 students
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------The course will include three weeks of general introduction, followed by four case-study
modules each semester; each module consists of two weeks of lectures, and one week of group
presentation. Different modules may be included in the course during different semesters,
depending on the faculty participating in the course for a given semester. (A single faculty
member will do overall coordination as well as present one of the modules each semester; that
faculty member will receive full credit for the course.)
Student assessment:
-group presentation relating to a case study (see below) [25% of grade]
-individual paper on a topic related to your presentation [25% of grade]
-individual paper on a topic related to another of the case studies [25% of grade]
-final exam [20% of grade]
-class participation [ 5% of grade]
Group presentations: The class will be split into 16 groups; for each module, 4 groups will
each do a 30-minute presentation on a related topic (specific module assignments will be by lot).
To ensure that groups assigned to the first module (presenting within a month of the beginning of
the class) get off to a good start, instructors will make available a list of possible topics for group
presentations.
Individual research papers: Students will write two individual term papers. One paper will be
related to the presentation topic, and should represent your own research related to the group
presentation. The second paper will include an analysis of a case study different from the one for
which you did a group presentation. Each paper should be 5-6 double-spaced pages. Specific
content and formatting guidelines for the papers will be posted by the second week of class.
Final exam: will cover material from all four of the case studies discussed in each semester.
Case studies topics (4 of 6 modules will be used per semester; at least one ANTH module per
semester)
Effects of climate change on coral reef communities [John Bruno]—see attachment
Effects of climate change on Amazon rainforests [Flora Lu]—see attachment
Environmental change in the Arctic [Carol Arnosti]—see attachment
Impacts on indigenous reindeer herders in Siberia [Mark Sorensen]—see attachment
The methane cycle: From microorganisms to global warming [Andreas Teske]—see attachment
The Atlantic meridional overturning circulation [Harvey Seim/John Bane]—see
attachmentSyllabus
From the Equator to the Poles: Case Studies in Global Environmental Change
[MASC 312/ANTH 312; natural sciences/social sciences]
The initial three weeks of the course will provide a broad introduction to global environmental
change, focusing on a few major questions:
Week 1:
-How do we obtain information on past climates?
Proxies/sources of information, including historical (written) records, physical/biological
evidence (fossils, pollen, tree rings, corals, ice cores), chemical proxies (stable carbon and
oxygen isotopic records, organic geochemical biomarkers)
Week 2:
-To what extent are historic changes in climate (and human responses) useful in forecasting
the future?
Timescales of change, geographic extent of climate variations.
Week 3:
-What spatial and temporal scales of climate change and human response might we
consider?
Current questions with respect to global variations in temperature changes, potential effects of
relatively small changes in temperature, cascading effects in ecosystems.
Weeks 4-6:
Case Study 1, plus group presentations
Weeks 7-9
Case Study 2, plus group presentations
Weeks 10-12
Case Study 3, plus group presentations
Weeks 13-15
Case Study 4, plus group presentation.
Note: Term papers due during Week 14.
Final ExamCase Study Topic: Effects of climate change on coral reef communities
(John Bruno)
Lecture 1
A. Broad background info on coral reefs (where/what are they), corals (very basic biology
and ecology) and the role of corals on reefs.
B. Corals and coral reefs over the last 50 million years
C. Modern (Holocene) coral reefs and patterns of recent reef decline
D. General patterns of temperature increase on coral reefs over the last 20 years
Lecture 2:
A. Coral bleaching; mechanisms and ecological impacts
Lecture 3:
A. Coral disease: background on disease ecology, coral pathogens, etc.
B. Role of SST and climate change in driving coral disease outbreaks
C. Other possible drivers related to global change (nutrients, land use changes, etc.)
Lecture 4:
A. Managing for climate change locally (managing for resilience)
B. Future threats from increasing SST: model predictions
C. Other future impacts of climate change: ocean acidification
D. Other threats to reefs
E. Module review and wrap up
Required module readings
Hughes, T. P., A. H. Baird, D. R. Bellwood, M. Card, S. R. Connolly, C. Folke, R. Grosberg, O.
Hoegh-Guldberg, J. B. C. Jackson, J. Kleypas, J. M. Lough, P. Marshall, M. Nystrom, S. R.
Palumbi, J. M. Pandolfi, B. Rosen, and J. Roughgarden. 2003. Climate change, human impacts,
and the resilience of coral reefs. Science 301:929-933.
Hoegh-Guldberg, O. 1999. Climate change, coral bleaching and the future of the world's coral
reefs. Marine and Freshwater Research 50:839-866.
Bruno, J. F., and E. R. Selig. 2007. Regional decline of coral cover in the Indo-Pacific: timing,
extent, and subregional comparisons. PLoS One:e711.
Case Study Topic: Effects of climate change on Amazon rainforests
(Flora Lu)
Lecture 1

Broad background info on tropical forests (where/what are they), key biotic and abiotic
characteristics which influence conservation and resource use by humans

Patterns and theories of biodiversity

Importance of rainforests to global processes and biogeochemical cycles
Lecture 2:

The human side of tropical forests: livelihoods of indigenous peoples and colonists

Changes in human utilization of tropical forests over time

Disturbance regimes and resource management
Lecture 3:

Patterns of ecological degradation, land use change and climate change

Implications for socio-cultural welfare
Lecture 4:

Land use change effects on tropical forests and climate

Climate change effects on land use and tropical forests

Module wrap-up
Required module readings
Bala, K., et al. 2007. Combined climate and carbon-cycle effects of large-scale deforestation.
PNAS 104: 6550-6555.
Brondizio, E.S. 2005. Intraregional analysis of land-use change in the Amazon. In Seeing the
Forest and the Trees: Human-Environment Interactions in Forest Ecosystems, E.F. Moran and
E. Ostrom, eds. Cambridge: MIT Press. Pp. 223-252.
Chapman, C.A., L.J. Chapman, T.T. Struhsaker, A.E. Zannes, C.J. Clark, and J.R. Poulsen. 2005.
A long-term evaluation of fruiting phenology: Importance of climate change. Journal of Tropical
Ecology 21: 1-14.
Clark, D.A. 2007. Detecting tropical forests' responses to global climatic and atmospheric
change: Current challenges and a way forward. Biotropica 39: 4-19.
Falowski, P., et al. 2000 The global carbon cycle: A test of our knowledge of earth as a system.
Science 290: 291-296.
Gullison, R.E., et al. 2007. Tropical forests and climate policy. Science 316(5827): 985-986.
Hartshorn, G.S., et. Al. 1992. Possible effects of global warming on the biological diversity of
tropical forests. In Global Warming and Biological Diversity. New Haven: Yale U Press. Pp.
137-146.
Huntgate, B.A., et al. 2003. Nitrogen and climate change. Science 302: 1512-1513.
Laurence, W.F., and G.B. Williamson. 2001. Positive feedbacks among forest fragmentation,
drought, and climate change in the Amazon. Conservation Biology 15: 1529-1535.
Laurence, W.F., et al. 2006. Rapid decay of tree-community composition in Amazon forest
fragments. Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci. 103: 19010-19014.
Malhi, Y., and O.L. Phillips. 2004. Tropical forests and global atmospheric change: A synthesis.
Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London 359: 549-555.
Messina, J.P., and M.A. Cochrane. 2007. The forests are bleeding: How land use change is
creating a new fire regime in the Ecuadorian Amazon. Journal of Latin American Geography
6(1): 85-100.
Nepstad, D., S. Schwartzman, B. Bamberger, M. Santilli, D. Ray, P. Schlesinger, P. Lefebvre, A.
Alencar, E. Prinz, G. Fiske, and A. Rolla. 2006. Inhibition of Amazon deforestation and fire by
parks and indigenous lands. Conservation Biology 20(1): 65-73.
Sponsel, L.E. 1995. Relationships among the world system, indigenous peoples, and ecological
anthropology in the endangered Amazon. In Indigenous Peoples and the Future of Amazonia,
L.E. Sponsel, ed. Tucson: University of AZ Press. Pp. 263-293.
Terborgh, J., and E. Anderson. 1998. The composition of Amazonian forests: Patterns at local
and regional scales. Journal of Tropical Ecology 14(5): 645-664.
Wright, S.J., and O. Calderon. 2006. Seasonal, El Niño and longer term changes in flower and
seed production in a moise tropical forest. Ecology Letters 9: 35-44.
Case Study Topic: Environmental change in the Arctic
(Carol Arnosti)
Lecture 1: Glaciers and sea ice
-basic background on ice formation and accumulation
-ice records as sources of information on past climates
-ice effects on heat transfer, albedo, circulation (brine formation)
Lecture 2: Greenland
-ice records and ice melt
-assessment of slippage rates/factors affecting glacial movement
- sea level rise: projections
-changing ways of life in Greenland
Lecture 3: the polar ice cap
-factors affecting seasonal ice accumulation (circulation, winds, larger-scale patterns)
-growing evidence of ice-cap thinning/lesser extent of seasonal ice
-ecological effects: polar bears, seals, patterns of primary productivity, movement of organisms
across polar basin
-human impacts: international disputes about territorial waters; issues of navigation; resource
claims
Lecture 4: permafrost and ground cover
-effects of melting (construction, engineering, location and stability of settlements)
-changes in vegetation patterns, movement of more southerly species northwards
-impact on indigenous communities
Required readings:
-Grebmeier et al., 2006. A major ecosystem shift in the northern Bering Sea. Science 311: 1461-1464.
-Talbot 2007. Measuring the polar meltdown. Technology Review. Nov/Dec, 54-59.
-Kerr, R.A. 2002. A warmer Arctic means change for all. Science 297:1490-1492.
-Stokstad, E. 2004. Defrosting the carbon freezer of the north. Science 304: 1618-1620.
-Stocker, T.F., and C.C. Raible. 2005. Water cycle shifts gear. Nature 434:830-833.
-Greene & Pershing. 2007. Climate drives sea change. Science 315: 1084-85.
-Corbyn 2007. Atlantic invaders. Nature Reports Climate Change 6:82-83.
-Dowdeswell, J.A. 2006. The Greenland Icesheet and global sealevel rise. Nature 311: 963-964.
-Kerr 2006. A worrying trend of less ice, higher seas. Science 311: 1698-1701.
-Richter-Menge et al., 2007: The Arctic Report Card (NOAA)
Case Study Topic: Impacts of ecosystem change on the livelihoods of indigenous circumpolar
populations
(Mark Sorensen)
Lecture 1. Cultural ecology of subsistence lifeways in the Arctic.

Tundra reindeer herders and sea mammal hunters of the Arctic coast.

Domestication of reindeer and nomadic lifeways.

Ecological diversity and herding strategies: size and composition of herds.

Comparative perspective with herders in elsewhere in Asia.
Lecture 2 Biological and cultural adaptations to the circumpolar environment.

Early human occupation of Siberia and North America

Human biology of circumpolar populations

Climate change in history and impacts on human populations
Lecture 3. Ecology of pastoralism in Eurasia.

Impacts of collectivization on indigenous Siberian groups.

Collectivization and shifting patterns of land use and land tenure.

Decollectivization, privatization and the post-socialist transition.

What are the biggest threats facing herding and sea mammal societies in Eurasia today?

Sustainable development and pastoralism in Siberia.
Lecture 4. The impacts of climate and ecosystem change on indigenous lifeways.

Impacts on viability of herds.

Impacts on human health and well-being.

Case Study: Evenki, Eveny, and Nenets reindeer herders in a rapidly changing arctic
environment.

Summary and conclusions.
Readings: Selections from the following plus additional readings TBD:
David G. Anderson. Identity and Ecology in Arctic Siberia: The Number One Reindeer Brigade.
Oxford University Press. 2000
Balzter, H., Gerard, F., Weedon, G., Grey, W., Combal, B., Bartholome, E., Bartalev, S. and Los,
S., 2007, Coupling of vegetation growing season anomalies with hemispheric and regional scale
climate patterns in Central and East Siberia, Journal of Climate 20:15, 3713--3729
Igor Krupnik Arctic Adaptations. Native Whalers and Herders in Northern Eurasia. 2nd Revised
Edition. The University Press of New England. Hanover NH. 355 pp. Paperback edition, 2002.
Piers Vitebsky, Reindeer People: Living With Animals and Spirits in Siberia. Houghton Mifflin,
2006.
Tatyana Saiko, Environmental crises: geographical case studies in post-socialist Eurasia
Case Study Topic: The methane cycle: From microorganisms to global warming
(Andreas Teske)
Lecture 1
What is methane, and what are its properties?
Methane production and consumption in nature by microorganisms
Identification of biogenic methane by 13C-stable isotope ratio
Methane hydrates, the most abundant fossil carbon compound
Lecture 2
Methane-producing ecosystems:
--- Terrestrial: Soil - swamps - insect guts - ruminants
--- Marine: methane seeps, hydrothermal vents, mud volcanoes
Methane hydrate sequestration in deep marine and terrestrial sediments
Lecture 3
The great escape: methane outgassing into the atmosphere in Earth history
Methane-linked global heat wave: The Late Paleocene thermal maximum
(LPTM) and its biological consequences
Recent cases of methane hydrate instability: The Storegga collapse
Lecture 4
Methane and climate variability during the ice ages:
Evidence from deep ice cores
Current evidence for methane outgassing from Siberian Permafrost
Methane doomsday scenarios: fact and fiction
----------------------- Required Readings and background material ----------------------Lecture 1:
Introduction into the carbon cycle and microbial methane production from
“Brock's Biology of Microorganisms”, 9th edition.
--- Chapter 14.3: Methane-producing Archaea
--- Chapter 16.13: The Carbon cycle
--- DeLong, E.F. 2000. Resolving a methane mystery. Nature 407:577-579.
Lecture 2:
Sections methane production in the cow rumen from “ Brock's Biology of Microorganisms”, 9th
edition ff. :
--- Chapter 16.14. Ecology of Syntrophy and Methanogenesis
--- Chapter 16.15: The Rumen microbial ecosystem
--- Jørgensen, B.B. and A. Boetius. 2007. Feast and famine - microbial life in the deep-sea bed.
Nature Microbiology Reviews 5:770-781
--- Haq, B.U. 1999. Methane in the Deep Blue Sea. Science 285:543-544
--- Kvenfolden, K.A., and T. D. Lorenson. 2000. A global inventory of gas hydrate occurrence.
USGS Poster
Lecture 3
--- Dickens, G.R., J.R. O'Neil, D.K. Rea.and R.M. Owen. 1995. Dissociation of oceanic methane
hydrate as a cause of the carbon isotope excursion at the end of the Paleocene.
Paleoceanography10:965-971.
--- Dickens, G. 1999. The blast in the past. Nature 401:752-754.
--- Dickens, G. 2004. Hydrocarbon-driven warming. Nature 429:513-515.
--- Nisbet, E.G. and D. J.W. Piper. 1998. Giant submarine landslides. Nature 392:329-330.
Lecture 4
--- Walker, G. 2007. Climate Change 2007: A world melting from the top down. Nature 446:718
- 221.
--- Walter, M., S.A. Zimov, J.P. Chanton, D. Verbyla and F.S. Chapin III. 2006. Methane
bubbling from Siberian thaw lakes as a positive feedback to climate warming. Nature 443:71-75.
Case Study Topic: The Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC)
(Harvey Seim/John Bane)
Lecture 1
E. Basic Ocean Properties - stratification and its variability, air/sea interaction, general
circulation
F. Wind-driven circulation pattern
G. Thermohaline circulation
Lecture 2:
B. AMOC basic description
C. AMOC modern depiction with existing observations
Lecture 3:
D. AMOC historical record - reconstructions (Lynch_Steiglitz et al.)
E. Modern measurement records (Longworth and Bryden)
Lecture 4:
F. AMOC predictions - modeling the response to changing climate.
Required module readings
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2003/nov/13/comment.research (newspaper article)
Detlef Quadfasel, Oceanography: The Atlantic heat conveyor slows, Nature 438, 565-566 (1
December 2005) | doi:10.1038/438565a; Published online 30 November 2005
Quirin Schiermeier, Climate change: A sea change, Nature 439, 256-260 (19 January 2006) |
doi:10.1038/439256a; Published online 18 January 2006
Harry L. Bryden, Hannah R. Longworth and Stuart A. Cunningham. Slowing of the Atlantic
meridional overturning circulation at 25° N, Nature 438, 655-657 (1 December 2005) |
doi:10.1038/nature04385
Longworth, H.R. and Bryden, H.L. (2007) Discovery and quantification of the Atlantic
Meridional Overturning Circulation: the importance of 25N. In, Schmittner, A., Chiang,
J.C.H. and Hemming, S.R. (eds.) Ocean circulation: mechanisms and impacts - past and
future changes of meridional overturning. Washington DC, USA, American Geophysical
Union, 5-18. (AGU Geophysical Monograph 173).
http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/48853/
Jean Lynch-Stieglitz, Jess F. Adkins, William B. Curry, Trond Dokken, Ian R. Hall, Juan
Carlos Herguera, Jo;l J.-M. Hirschi, Elena V. Ivanova, Catherine Kissel, Olivier Marchal,
Thomas M. Marchitto, I. Nicholas McCave, Jerry F. McManus, Stefan Mulitza, Ulysses
Ninnemann, Frank Peeters, Ein-Fen Yu, Rainer Zahn, Atlantic Meridional Overturning
Circulation During the Last Glacial Maximum, Science 6 April 2007:Vol. 316. no. 5821, pp.
66 - 69, DOI: 10.1126/science.1137127
Other background readings
http://www.bodc.ac.uk/rapidmoc/
Stuart A. Cunningham, Torsten Kanzow, Darren Rayner, Molly O. Baringer, William E.
Johns, Jochem Marotzke, Hannah R. Longworth, Elizabeth M. Grant, Jo;l J.-M. Hirschi,
Lisa M. Beal, Christopher S. Meinen, Harry L. Bryden, Temporal Variability of the Atlantic
Meridional Overturning Circulation at 26.5°N, Science 17 August 2007:
Vol. 317. no. 5840, pp. 935 - 938, DOI: 10.1126/science.1141304
Yvonne Searl, Helene T. Banks, Sheila Stark, Richard A. Wood, Slowing of the Atlantic
meridional overturning circulation: A climate model perspective, GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH
LETTERS, VOL. 34, L03610, doi:10.1029/2006GL028504, 2007
T. Kuhlbrodt, A. Griesel, M. Montoya. A. Levermann, M. Hofmann, S. Rahmstorf, On the
driving processes of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation, REVIEWS OF
GEOPHYSICS, VOL. 45, RG2001, doi:10.1029/2004RG000166, 2007