Terrestrial Ecosystem Ecology Lab: Dr. Paul Grogan

Ecosystem ecology is the study of species’ interactions with each other, and with their physical environment, all as parts of an integrated system.  It is a new and rapidly advancing branch of science that stresses the interconnected nature of our world.  Humans and human activities are an inherent part of ecosystems, and therefore ecosystem-level ecological perspectives and methodologies are at the heart of much of the global change research agenda.  Researchers in ecosystem ecology are contributing fundamental science inputs into a wide range of current environmental issues including effects of changing land use and management practices, impacts of climate change and mitigation strategies, the functional significance of biodiversity, and assessments of sustainable resource use from both environmental and socio-economic perspectives.

Dr. Paul Grogan is Professor of Plant and Terrestrial Ecosystem Ecology in the Department of Biology at Queen's University, and was awarded a Canada Research Chair (Tier II) in the ecology of arctic ecosystems and their sensitivity to climate change (2003-2013).

Features

• A reading of my favourite sustainability-related texts (contribution to the Queen's Society of Conservation Biology Sustainability week, March 2021); Video ~32 minutes; Podcast (audio only)
• A mind-calming exercise ('This too shall pass'); Podcast (18 minutes)
• What can biology tell us about our future? How ought we to live?  Final synthesis lecture BIOL 411 2021 (If I were ever asked to give a grand overview 'Last Lecture', this would probably be the best I could offer) Video ~66 minutes
• Maybe some real good will come out of COVID-19. Free Inquiry, Oct/Nov 2020, pages 47-49 (article PDF). 
• The sustainability crisis: Maybe some real good will come out of COVID (my talk as part of MacDonald Institute's Astronomy on Tap science outreach to the public series hosted by Mark Richardson on June 5th 2020 that included talks by Drs. Troy Day and Tony Noble (video - mine is the final talk and begins at 1:28, and is ~37 minutes long)   
• The Possible Learning and Teaching Benefits of Short Mind-Calming Exercises in Undergraduate Courses. Presentation at the Queen’s 2019 Showcase on Teaching and Learning (video; ~10 minutes) 
• Kindness and Interconnectivity. Queen's library Fireside Discussion with Jackie Davies, Paul Grogan, Laura Cameron, and audience (14th February 2019) (Website; Podcast ~80 minutes)
• Mindfulness and Sustainability. Final class video (course synthesis) for BIOL510 course in 2016 (video; ~4 minutes)
• Moments - A personal film on our relationship with nature (video; ~50 minutes) 

Last Updated: 17 June, 2021