Ecosystem-Based Adaptation

Catalog description

This course focuses on the role of ecosystem services in climate regulation and resilience, and the potential for widespread use of Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA)—a specific type of Nature-based Solution (NbS). Students will explore how EbA strategies conserve, restore, and sustainably manage ecosystems to help communities adapt to climate change. Topics include key services—carbon sequestration, water filtration, biodiversity conservation—and how they contribute to reducing vulnerability and building climate resilience. EVSP440 will emphasize the design and application of climate-resilient ecosystems, examining terrestrial, freshwater aquatic, and marine environments. Students will also be introduced to concepts such as risk reduction, ecosystem-based planning, and the multiple benefits EbA offers from cost-effective climate solutions to enhanced protection from extreme weather events. (Prerequisite: EVSP350)