EVB102 Ecosystems and the Environment
To view more information for this unit, select Unit Outline from the list below. Please note the teaching period for which the Unit Outline is relevant.
| Unit code: | EVB102 |
|---|---|
| Credit points: | 12 |
| Timetable | Details in HiQ, if available |
| Availabilities |
|
| CSP student contribution | $1,164 |
| Domestic tuition unit fee | $4,968 |
| International unit fee | $5,664 |
Unit Outline: Semester 1 2025, Gardens Point, Internal
| Unit code: | EVB102 |
|---|---|
| Credit points: | 12 |
| Coordinator: | Andrew Baker | am.baker@qut.edu.au |
Overview
Like all other species on the planet, humans extract energy and materials from their surrounding environment and as a result of that activity, modify ecosystems. We are part of the earth's ecological systems, and our ability to understand and manage our impact on the environment must be based on a sound knowledge of ecosystems ecology. This first year unit provides an introduction to ecosystems science through a series of lectures, workshops and field work. The unit focuses on broad-scale factors that shape ecosystems, such as energy transfer, materials cycling, climate and soils and examines the ecological patterns that emerge as a result. This knowledge is then used to assess ecosystem change and human impact on the environment. This foundational unit is relevant to environmental science and biology students and those with an interest in understanding the natural science components of sustainability.
Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of this unit you will be able to:
- Collaborate in teams to source and evaluate information and understand issues relating to fundamental ecological processes;
- Collect and record field data accurately, and synthesise and report findings using standard scientific methods.
- Apply knowledge of major processes shaping ecological systems and the patterns of biological diversity that emerge;
- Apply knowledge of the dynamics of ecosystems and the role of human impact including First Nations Peoples of Australia in short- and long-term environmental change.
Content
This unit provides an introduction to ecosystems science, focussing on the broad-scale factors that shape ecosystems. This knowledge is then used to assess ecosystem change and human impact on the environment. Content includes:
- The key factors that influence the structure, function and responses of ecological systems: trophic relationships, biomes, energy transfer and materials cycling, climate, weather and soils, succession, disturbance and resilience.
- Emergent patterns of ecological diversity examined at local, landscape and global scales.
- Natural changes in the structure of ecological systems at ecological and geological time scales.
- The nature and variability of human impacts on different ecosystems (sustainability, renewable resources and pollution).
- Implications of ecological processes for understanding and managing human impacts.
Learning Approaches
This unit utilises face-to-face learning activities including lectures, a series of workshops, and field-based exercises to develop your knowledge of ecosystems science. Lectures provide the scientific background for a series of problem-solving workshops, and the background required to conduct field studies.
Learning and teaching approaches applied in this unit follow an inquiry-based investigation of real-world phenomena through hands-on workshops and field trips. This unit will assist you in discovering ecosystems and developing your problem-solving skills. This will be achieved through a series of interactive lectures providing scientific background knowledge, hands-on workshops allowing you to collaboratively solve problems and field-based exercises.
Problems addressed in workshops and practical exercises will be drawn from the exploration of issues relating to energy transfer, food webs and broad ecological patterns, and conducted in a range of teaching environments from interactive teaching spaces to field sites in the greater Brisbane region.
The problems will be then explored in detail by working in groups to collect, evaluate, analyse and synthesise information.
A range of physical and digital resources will be made available to enhance your learning and provide you with blended learning experiences.
Feedback on Learning and Assessment
In this unit, multiple opportunities for feedback are provided in the ongoing workshop and field activities and related assessments, including:
- Formative peer review of solutions to workshop problems
- Individual/group feedback on practical and field reports
Assessment
Overview
Assessment includes a range of problem solving tasks including field reports and an examination. The written examination will be based around topics and themes available at the start of semester and also those extended during workshops.
Unit Grading Scheme
7- point scale
Assessment Tasks
Assessment: Field Reports
Field Reports. Structured and guided exercises will be conducted throughout the semester. Reporting parameters will be provided to guide your report structure, analytic approaches and interpretive methods. Reports are assessed individually but guided discussion may be undertaken in groups.
This assignment is eligible for the 48-hour late submission period and assignment extensions.
Assessment: Examination (written)
The examination assesses your understanding of the big picture of ecosystems science. You will be required to demonstrate an appropriate level of understanding of the connections and interdependencies between key concepts covered in lectures, workshops and field activities, and the over-arching themes of the unit. Short essay topics will be provided at the start of semester; multiple choice / short answer material will be sourced from lectures and workshop activities. The examination will assess your level of understanding of the major processes, patterns and dynamics of ecosystems, and skills in solving global environmental problems.
Academic Integrity
Academic integrity is a commitment to undertaking academic work and assessment in a manner that is ethical, fair, honest, respectful and accountable.
The Academic Integrity Policy sets out the range of conduct that can be a failure to maintain the standards of academic integrity. This includes, cheating in exams, plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion and contract cheating. It also includes providing fraudulent or altered documentation in support of an academic concession application, for example an assignment extension or a deferred exam.
You are encouraged to make use of QUT’s learning support services, resources and tools to assure the academic integrity of your assessment. This includes the use of text matching software that may be available to assist with self-assessing your academic integrity as part of the assessment submission process.
Breaching QUT’s Academic Integrity Policy or engaging in conduct that may defeat or compromise the purpose of assessment can lead to a finding of student misconduct (Code of Conduct – Student) and result in the imposition of penalties under the Management of Student Misconduct Policy, ranging from a grade reduction to exclusion from QUT.
Requirements to Study
Costs
There are no out of the ordinary costs associated with studying this unit.
Resources
Learning materials to support your learning in this unit will be available in your Canvas unit site. This will include a range of texts and book chapters as background reading. The details of a recommended textbook have been provided below.
Resource Materials
Recommended text(s)
Environmental Science: Toward a Sustainable Future, 13th Edition, 2017. Richard T. Wright and Dorothy F. Boorse. Benjamin Cummings, 589 pp. ISBN-10: 0-134-01127-9; ISBN-13: 978-0-134-01127-1
Risk Assessment Statement
The unit consists of classroom-based lectures, workshops, and short field exercises, all of which are low risk activities. You will be made aware of evacuation procedures and assembly areas in the first few lectures. In the event of a fire alarm sounding, or on a lecturer's instruction, you should leave the room and assemble in the designated area which will be indicated to you. Risk assessments for field trips identify several low impact risks, including: travel; slips and trips; animal bites, and animal and plant stings. Students are provided with health and safety inductions relating to field activities. Students are required to read, understand and put into practice all safety guidelines. Safety considerations associated with field trips will be discussed in pre-trip briefings with printed notes related to safety issues being distributed where appropriate. You should be conscious of your health and safety at all times whilst on campus or in the field.
Course Learning Outcomes
This unit is designed to support your development of the following course/study area learning outcomes.ST01 Bachelor of Science
- Develop a broad, multidisciplinary understanding of science and a specialised, in-depth knowledge of at least one discipline.
Relates to: ULO1, ULO3, ULO4, Field Reports, Examination (written) - Recognise First Nations Peoples of Australia as the nation’s first scientists, whose knowledge and contributions are valued.
Relates to: ULO4, Field Reports, Examination (written) - Use higher order thinking skills to design, plan, and conduct investigations and evaluate data to address scientific questions and challenges.
Relates to: ULO2, Field Reports - Develop and demonstrate key competencies in scientific practices and relevant technologies.
Relates to: ULO2, Field Reports - Practice science in a safe, culturally appropriate, ethical, sustainable, and socially conscious way with a knowledge of relevant concepts, regulatory frameworks and protocols.
Relates to: ULO2, Field Reports - Communicate scientific findings, concepts and evidence-based reasoning to diverse audiences using a variety of methods.
Relates to: ULO2, Field Reports - Work autonomously and collaboratively with others in an inclusive and professional manner and use critical reflection for personal and professional growth.
Relates to: ULO1, Field Reports
SV02 Bachelor of Science
- Develop a broad, multidisciplinary understanding of science and a specialised, in-depth knowledge of at least one discipline.
Relates to: ULO1, ULO3, ULO4, Field Reports, Examination (written) - Recognise First Nations Peoples of Australia as the nation’s first scientists, whose knowledge and contributions are valued.
Relates to: ULO4, Field Reports, Examination (written) - Use higher order thinking skills to design, plan, and conduct investigations and evaluate data to address scientific questions and challenges.
Relates to: ULO2, Field Reports - Develop and demonstrate key competencies in scientific practices and relevant technologies.
Relates to: ULO2, Field Reports - Practice science in a safe, culturally appropriate, ethical, sustainable, and socially conscious way with a knowledge of relevant concepts, regulatory frameworks and protocols.
Relates to: ULO2, Field Reports - Communicate scientific findings, concepts and evidence-based reasoning to diverse audiences using a variety of methods.
Relates to: ULO2, Field Reports - Work autonomously and collaboratively with others in an inclusive and professional manner and use critical reflection for personal and professional growth.
Relates to: ULO1, Field Reports
Unit Outline: Semester 2 2025, Gardens Point, Internal
| Unit code: | EVB102 |
|---|---|
| Credit points: | 12 |
Overview
Like all other species on the planet, humans extract energy and materials from their surrounding environment and as a result of that activity, modify ecosystems. We are part of the earth's ecological systems, and our ability to understand and manage our impact on the environment must be based on a sound knowledge of ecosystems ecology. This first year unit provides an introduction to ecosystems science through a series of lectures, workshops and field work. The unit focuses on broad-scale factors that shape ecosystems, such as energy transfer, materials cycling, climate and soils and examines the ecological patterns that emerge as a result. This knowledge is then used to assess ecosystem change and human impact on the environment. This foundational unit is relevant to environmental science and biology students and those with an interest in understanding the natural science components of sustainability.
Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of this unit you will be able to:
- Collaborate in teams to source and evaluate information and understand issues relating to fundamental ecological processes;
- Collect and record field data accurately, and synthesise and report findings using standard scientific methods.
- Apply knowledge of major processes shaping ecological systems and the patterns of biological diversity that emerge;
- Apply knowledge of the dynamics of ecosystems and the role of human impact including First Nations Peoples of Australia in short- and long-term environmental change.
Content
This unit provides an introduction to ecosystems science, focussing on the broad-scale factors that shape ecosystems. This knowledge is then used to assess ecosystem change and human impact on the environment. Content includes:
- The key factors that influence the structure, function and responses of ecological systems: trophic relationships, biomes, energy transfer and materials cycling, climate, weather and soils, succession, disturbance and resilience.
- Emergent patterns of ecological diversity examined at local, landscape and global scales.
- Natural changes in the structure of ecological systems at ecological and geological time scales.
- The nature and variability of human impacts on different ecosystems (sustainability, renewable resources and pollution).
- Implications of ecological processes for understanding and managing human impacts.
Learning Approaches
This unit utilises face-to-face learning activities including lectures, a series of workshops, and field-based exercises to develop your knowledge of ecosystems science. Lectures provide the scientific background for a series of problem-solving workshops, and the background required to conduct field studies.
Learning and teaching approaches applied in this unit follow an inquiry-based investigation of real-world phenomena through hands-on workshops and field trips. This unit will assist you in discovering ecosystems and developing your problem-solving skills. This will be achieved through a series of interactive lectures providing scientific background knowledge, hands-on workshops allowing you to collaboratively solve problems and field-based exercises.
Problems addressed in workshops and practical exercises will be drawn from the exploration of issues relating to energy transfer, food webs and broad ecological patterns, and conducted in a range of teaching environments from interactive teaching spaces to field sites in the greater Brisbane region.
The problems will be then explored in detail by working in groups to collect, evaluate, analyse and synthesise information.
A range of physical and digital resources will be made available to enhance your learning and provide you with blended learning experiences.
Feedback on Learning and Assessment
In this unit, multiple opportunities for feedback are provided in the ongoing workshop and field activities and related assessments, including:
- Formative peer review of solutions to workshop problems
- Individual/group feedback on practical and field reports
Assessment
Overview
Assessment includes a range of problem solving tasks including field reports and an examination. The written examination will be based around topics and themes available at the start of semester and also those extended during workshops.
Unit Grading Scheme
7- point scale
Assessment Tasks
Assessment: Field Reports
Field Reports. Structured and guided exercises will be conducted throughout the semester. Reporting parameters will be provided to guide your report structure, analytic approaches and interpretive methods. Reports are assessed individually but guided discussion may be undertaken in groups.
This assignment is eligible for the 48-hour late submission period and assignment extensions.
Assessment: Examination (written)
The examination assesses your understanding of the big picture of ecosystems science. You will be required to demonstrate an appropriate level of understanding of the connections and interdependencies between key concepts covered in lectures, workshops and field activities, and the over-arching themes of the unit. Short essay topics will be provided at the start of semester; multiple choice / short answer material will be sourced from lectures and workshop activities. The examination will assess your level of understanding of the major processes, patterns and dynamics of ecosystems, and skills in solving global environmental problems.
Academic Integrity
Academic integrity is a commitment to undertaking academic work and assessment in a manner that is ethical, fair, honest, respectful and accountable.
The Academic Integrity Policy sets out the range of conduct that can be a failure to maintain the standards of academic integrity. This includes, cheating in exams, plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion and contract cheating. It also includes providing fraudulent or altered documentation in support of an academic concession application, for example an assignment extension or a deferred exam.
You are encouraged to make use of QUT’s learning support services, resources and tools to assure the academic integrity of your assessment. This includes the use of text matching software that may be available to assist with self-assessing your academic integrity as part of the assessment submission process.
Breaching QUT’s Academic Integrity Policy or engaging in conduct that may defeat or compromise the purpose of assessment can lead to a finding of student misconduct (Code of Conduct – Student) and result in the imposition of penalties under the Management of Student Misconduct Policy, ranging from a grade reduction to exclusion from QUT.
Requirements to Study
Costs
There are no out of the ordinary costs associated with studying this unit.
Resources
Learning materials to support your learning in this unit will be available in your Canvas unit site. This will include a range of texts and book chapters as background reading. The details of a recommended textbook have been provided below.
Resource Materials
Recommended text(s)
Environmental Science: Toward a Sustainable Future, 13th Edition, 2017. Richard T. Wright and Dorothy F. Boorse. Benjamin Cummings, 589 pp. ISBN-10: 0-134-01127-9; ISBN-13: 978-0-134-01127-1
Risk Assessment Statement
The unit consists of classroom-based lectures, workshops, and short field exercises, all of which are low risk activities. You will be made aware of evacuation procedures and assembly areas in the first few lectures. In the event of a fire alarm sounding, or on a lecturer's instruction, you should leave the room and assemble in the designated area which will be indicated to you. Risk assessments for field trips identify several low impact risks, including: travel; slips and trips; animal bites, and animal and plant stings. Students are provided with health and safety inductions relating to field activities. Students are required to read, understand and put into practice all safety guidelines. Safety considerations associated with field trips will be discussed in pre-trip briefings with printed notes related to safety issues being distributed where appropriate. You should be conscious of your health and safety at all times whilst on campus or in the field.
Course Learning Outcomes
This unit is designed to support your development of the following course/study area learning outcomes.ST01 Bachelor of Science
- Develop a broad, multidisciplinary understanding of science and a specialised, in-depth knowledge of at least one discipline.
Relates to: ULO1, ULO3, ULO4, Field Reports, Examination (written) - Recognise First Nations Peoples of Australia as the nation’s first scientists, whose knowledge and contributions are valued.
Relates to: ULO4, Field Reports, Examination (written) - Use higher order thinking skills to design, plan, and conduct investigations and evaluate data to address scientific questions and challenges.
Relates to: ULO2, Field Reports - Develop and demonstrate key competencies in scientific practices and relevant technologies.
Relates to: ULO2, Field Reports - Practice science in a safe, culturally appropriate, ethical, sustainable, and socially conscious way with a knowledge of relevant concepts, regulatory frameworks and protocols.
Relates to: ULO2, Field Reports - Communicate scientific findings, concepts and evidence-based reasoning to diverse audiences using a variety of methods.
Relates to: ULO2, Field Reports - Work autonomously and collaboratively with others in an inclusive and professional manner and use critical reflection for personal and professional growth.
Relates to: ULO1, Field Reports
SV02 Bachelor of Science
- Develop a broad, multidisciplinary understanding of science and a specialised, in-depth knowledge of at least one discipline.
Relates to: ULO1, ULO3, ULO4, Field Reports, Examination (written) - Recognise First Nations Peoples of Australia as the nation’s first scientists, whose knowledge and contributions are valued.
Relates to: ULO4, Field Reports, Examination (written) - Use higher order thinking skills to design, plan, and conduct investigations and evaluate data to address scientific questions and challenges.
Relates to: ULO2, Field Reports - Develop and demonstrate key competencies in scientific practices and relevant technologies.
Relates to: ULO2, Field Reports - Practice science in a safe, culturally appropriate, ethical, sustainable, and socially conscious way with a knowledge of relevant concepts, regulatory frameworks and protocols.
Relates to: ULO2, Field Reports - Communicate scientific findings, concepts and evidence-based reasoning to diverse audiences using a variety of methods.
Relates to: ULO2, Field Reports - Work autonomously and collaboratively with others in an inclusive and professional manner and use critical reflection for personal and professional growth.
Relates to: ULO1, Field Reports