The concept of “ecosystem functioning” has over the last two decades stimulated research focused on what ecosystems do, as opposed to what they are composed of, and is increasingly important in policy and management because of its strong linkages with ecosystem services. Focusing on ecosystem functioning in inland waters (lakes and streams) and terrestrial ecosystems (soils, riparian habitats, agricultural and forest landscapes), this course will cover basic definitions, the relationship between ecosystem functioning and ecosystem services, and several currently topical themes in ecosystem functioning research. These include the roles of functional traits and calculation of functional diversity (including practical exercises in R), underpinnings in metabolic theory, and an overview of biodiversity-ecosystem functioning research. Throughout, a range of practical methods for quantifying ecosystem functioning will be covered, as will the application of these methods in research, biomonitoring and environmental assessment.

Intended learning outcomes

After the course, students should be able to:

Discuss and evaluate different definitions of ecosystem functioning
Link biodiversity with ecosystem functioning and through to ecosystem services
Apply the key theoretical underpinnings of ecosystem functioning research in developing or extending a functional perspective on their own research topics
Identify methods for quantifying ecosystem functioning that are appropriate for their own research topic
Assess the value of applying ecosystem functioning in bioassessment, particularly in relation to their own research topic, and discuss advantages and possible pitfalls of these approaches

More information available at:

https://www.slu.se/globalassets/ew/org/fsk/fosw/activities/2021/2021-preliminary-course-description_ecosystem-functioning.pdf

Course evaluation (link to survey)

Lectures with pdfs and videos (sometimes)

Intended learning outcomes