Applied Biodiversity Science

Applied Biodiversity Science

"Bridging Ecology, Culture, and Governance for effective conservation"  
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Certificate Program

Requirements for ABS Certification

The Applied Biodiversity Sciences program offers a certification program to recognize the achievements of our associated students. To obtain a certificate, there are two requirements:

1.  Have an ABS Learning Plan

The ABS Learning Plan is a document that students develop throughout their time as an ABS scholar. It should be updated annually and should reflect how the student’s graduate program encompasses the main pillars of the ABS program (scientific disciplines, institutions and actors, and broader impacts). Workshops will be regularly held to help students complete Learning Plans!    [Download Learning Plan Template]

2.  Complete Our Affiliated Course ABS I

Course Description: Efforts to halt the loss of biodiversity must be based on integration between science and practice. Linking theory with real-world conservation requires the engagement of many different kinds of actors, including biologists and social scientists, universities and museums, governments and nongovernmental organizations, industries, interest groups, and communities. Such collaboration is critical for establishing conservation priorities, developing ecologically and socially acceptable management plans, building local capacity for stewardship, and guiding effective policy. Currently, a great deal of conservation research is based in universities with few linkages between scientists and practitioners, or between theory and practical strategies for conservation. Moreover, research on patterns and processes that underlie the loss of biodiversity are often conceptual and discipline specific, with few lessons shared among researchers from diverse disciplines.

Our goal in this course is to build cross-disciplinary understanding of biodiversity science. We ask:

    1. What is biodiversity? How is it perceived, valued, measured, monitored, and protected?

    2. What are various strategies for protecting biodiversity while also meeting human needs?

    3. What are current perspectives from evolutionary and community ecology, conservation biology, environmental anthropology, political ecology, and ecological economics?

    4. What can we learn from case studies, and what is the role of science for building more effective on-the-ground strategies?

We also highly recommend attending ABS Hour, ABS Seminars, and other affiliated events!

Updated January 2024