"Global Studies in Plant Biology" home page

Global Studies in Plant Biology

Fall Quarter and Winter Intersession 2007:

Tropical Rainforest Ecology,
featuring Sarawak, in Southeast Asia!

Drs. Glenn Matlack and Christine Fahl

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About "Global Studies in Plant Biology"
What is the "Global Studies" program? "Global Studies in Plant Biology" is a new umbrella program consisting three separate courses heavily emphasizing organismal botany: a seminar introducing a particular geographic region chosen as the focus for the program during that period, an intensive international field course, and a lab research course focusing on one or more group projects. The geographic (and sometimes, topical) focus will typically change from year to year, roving about the world to spotlight different physiographic regions and their plant life. Although the focus of most upcoming "Global Studies" sequences will emphasize non-continental U.S. areas in order to internationalize the PBIO curriculum, certain future courses will target North American biomes, to acquaint students with regions outside of the contiguous United States (e.g., Island Biology in Hawaii in Summer 2003, and Ecology of High Latitudes in Alaska, tentatively in 2007). The program is open to all upper-level natural sciences undergraduates who have taken the introductory PBIO majors course sequence; graduate students may participate in the seminar and field courses.

Why a new program? The PBIO department's course offerings are strong in organismal botany, including systematics, ecology and evolution, and economic botany. The "Global Studies" program was developed to unite some of our greatest strengths into one course sequence.

How is the program structured? Seminar/intro courses and field courses comprising the "Global Studies" program are described in detail in the links to individual yearly programs, under "seminar" and "field course" (see "Where in the World are We Going", below).

Where do I go for more information? Visit the links below for details on the individual courses, on international travel issues and preparations, and on the upcoming Fall Quarter and Winter Intersession 2007 "Tropical Biology" field course in Sarawak, on the island of Borneo in Southeast Asia. For more details on the exciting Sarawak program, contact Glenn Matlack. For general questions on the "Global Studies in Plant Biology" program, contact Harvey Ballard (see "Contact Information", below.)

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Where In The World Are We Going?
PREVIOUS PROGRAMS [numbered gray dots]:
1. "Ecology of the Andes", northern Bolivia
(Fall/Winter 2000)--seminar, field course,
student reflections
2. "Island Biology", Hawaiian Islands I
(Summer 2001)--seminar, field course
3. "Neotropical Rainforest Ecology", southeastern
Brazil (Fall/Winter 2001)--seminar, field course,
student reflections
4. "Neotropical Rainforest Ecology", northern French
Guiana (Summer 2002)--seminar, field course
5. "Island Biology", Hawaiian Islands II
(Summer 2001)--seminar, field course
6. "Tropical Ecology", Thailand--field course
7. "Island Biology", New Zealand--field course

UPCOMING (FALL & WINTER INTERSESSION 2007) PROGRAM [red star]:
8. "Tropical Biology", Sarawak--field course

FUTURE PROGRAMS [unnumbered blue dots] may include Puerto Rico, Costa Rica, Ecuador, and Chile in the New World; Europe, the Canary Islands, Mozambique, Madagascar, China, and Australia in the Old World; and returns to previous destinations.

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Other Important "Global Studies" Links:

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Contact Information:
Sarawak, Fall quarter and Winter Intersession 2007--Dr. Glenn Matlack, Porter 405, (740) 593-1131, matlack@ohio.edu

General "Global Studies" questions--Dr. Harvey Ballard, Porter 406, (740) 593-4659, ballardh@ohio.edu

Prepared by Harvey Ballard; last revised 1 March 2007.

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