University of St Andrews

Key information

SCOTCAT credits : 15

ECTS credits : 7

Level : SCQF level 10

Semester: 2

Availability restrictions: Not automatically available to General Degree students

Planned timetable: To be arranged.

Despite the beauty and drama of its landscapes, Scotland is a nature-depleted nation. This ecological impoverishment, internalised in our science, policy and culture is, in part, a consequence of shifting baseline syndrome, where each generation assumes the nature they experienced in their youth to be normal and unwittingly accepts previous declines. Rewilding is an evolving process of nature recovery that leads to restored ecosystem health, function and completeness. How can Scotland rewild and move beyond protecting past natural baselines to restoring new and healthy wild places? This course will investigate this new rewilding agenda including reviewing Scotland’s biodiversity, and discussing human-wildlife conflict and ecological restoration. We will consider the meaning of the word “wild”, and discuss the political, regulatory, economic, scientific, ecological and social opportunities and constraints that affect attempts to conserve biodiversity in our changing world.

Learning and teaching methods and delivery

Weekly contact: 2 x 1 hour lectures (x 3 weeks), 1 x 2 hour seminars (x 7 weeks), 1 x residential study tour

Scheduled learning hours: 44

Guided independent study hours: 106

Assessment pattern

As used by St Andrews: Coursework = 100%


Re-assessment: Coursework = 100%

Personnel

Module coordinator: Dr I M Matthews
Module teaching staff: Dr Iain Matthews
Module coordinator email imm7@st-andrews.ac.uk

Intended learning outcomes

• To be able to explain in detail the historical background to the conservation of, and threats to, biodiversity in Scotland.
• To understand the ecological, social, economic and political challenges associated with rewilding and conservation.
• To work with ecological stakeholders to discuss and understand the socio-ecology of rewilding.
• To communicate ideas effectively and professionally by written, oral, and visual means.