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Welcome University Colloquium support site!

Consider a minor in Interdisciplinary Studies

What is FGCU's Colloquium?

Conceptual basis for University Colloquium

Adopted January 15, 1997:  Dean’s Council Meeting

We have made a commitment as a university to make environmental education an integral part of our identity.  One of our university-wide outcomes is that all students will develop “an ecological perspective.”  A way to accomplish this perspective is to devise a course, or group of experiences, with an environmental focus that all FGCU undergraduate students must complete, and in which faculty from all five colleges would be involved.  Because “ecology” applies to our total living space and interrelationships, human and natural, it is relevant to all our disciplines and professions.  Thus, an ecology course would touch on all nine of the university-wide goals and outcomes, and more.  Students would not be introduced to FGCU values, they would participate in them.

 

 

 

Welcome! The University Colloquium is one of my favorite courses to teach.  The class is a combination of field trips and sustained discussions. 

This public portal showcases this unique opportunity for our  students as presented by me, one of many faculty that teachers the University Colloquium course.  At FGCU there is a QEP office (created in 2005) that is redeveloping the course. 

 

Try these links to my home page to learn about my Philosophy and Activities.

 

Follow one of my favorite Southwest Florida Journalist Craig Pittman at the Tampa Bay Times

His 2006 Special series Vanishing Wetlands

 

Here is another great journalist:
Michael Grunwald (author of The Swamp)
with a 4-part series on the Everglades at the
Washington Post THE EVERGLADES resource

 

Nora2

 

Nora Egan Demers

Associate Professor of Biology and Interdisciplinary Studies

Florida Gulf Coast University

Telephone: (239) 590-7211 or (239) 246-4537 (cell)

Email: ndemers@fgcu.edu

Office location: Whitaker Hall, 218

Historical documents about FGCU's journey:

See a powerpoint about the 2004 Fire on FGCU Campus!

Check here for other Campus monitoring locations

Know your plants- FGCU virtual tours

WGCU's UNIVERSITY COLLOQUIUM STORY see it here!

Introduction to the Colloquium (WGCU production)- comments from former students

FGCU Mission, Vision and Guiding Principles

FGCU Student learning outcomes

The Arnold Committee Report from the ABM (see below)

Poster: Florida Gulf Coast University:  Founded and Established at the Crossroads of Science and Policy

Poinciana

Estero River - Poinciana was in Full bloom June 2010 (photo credit Sam Seitz)

Issues for sustability-

Subscribe to Environmental Health News for daily updates.

Plastic Pollution Coalition

Environmental Working Group

Should the EPA be exempting 'green power' facilities from legal requirements for Agency review?

BIG WETLANDS LOSSES PLOTTED FOR GREEN POWER — Corps Prepares Broad Exemptions for Solar, Wind, Geothermal & Tidal Facilities

Fracking for Natural Gas-- National Geographic Special report

Energy: The Pros and Cons of Shale Gas Drilling (60 minutes, Nov 14, 2010)

Gasland the movie

PCB's, BPA and other plastics as endocrine disruptors

Pesticides in food the Big Ag side of the story or the Environmental Working Group issue-- Foodnews.org

Assessing Children’s Dietary Pesticide Exposure – Direct Measurement of Pesticide Residues in 24-Hour Duplicate Food Samples

Drugs in our waterways

Now all Colloquium sections has a course-based service learning (SL) component.  Instructors may select projects, or have students select their own projects at EAGLES CONNECT, the Center for Civic Engagement at FGCU.

Click here to see the SL project on Habitat Restoration in San Carlos Park

Learn more about Rachel Carson and her impact

Fooducate (barcode app)

The story of Stuff project

The story of electronics

The story of cosmetics

Challenge Yourself:

Try this World Clock site to open your eyes on what is going on in the world!

Species Test

Take your ecological footprint

Take your water footprint

Global Footprint Network 2010

Atlas

Watch Fred Pearce about his 2008 book Confessions of an Eco-sinner  (90 minutes)

William McDonough: The wisdom of designing Cradle to Cradle

What is all this fuss about American consumption?  Have a look at this site called World Mappers for some amazing examples!

Looking for an environmental film?  Try this amazing resource- dozens of films released each year!

Course Artifacts:

Fall, 2012

Summer 2012

Spring, 2011

Summer 2010 resources

Summer 2008 student presentations, current issues, etc

Summer 2007 student presentations

Some of my favorite student presentations:

Summer 2010 Group 'Waitin' on the world to change at FGCU'

Recycle for Kids, By Kids a video produced with the Children's Theatre by Rachel Carden Summer 2007

A video for appreciating sense of place- through the University Colloquium lens- a view of  Miami-Dade County by Carlos Calante Summer 2007

University Colloquium Service Learning at Calusa Nature Center Christina Severo (Summer 2011)

Return to the Colloquium Portal

The views and opinions expressed in this page are strictly those of the author and in no way represent those of FGCU or the FGCU board of trustees

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