SFS-Australia
Tropical Rainforest Studies
This program is offered during the fall and spring semesters.
Rainforests are at great risk all over the globe due to human impact, which is especially true along the eastern seaboard of northern Australia. By understanding the dynamics of the rainforest, students search for strategies to benefit the ecosystems and local communities.
This 14-week program utilizes professional field research techniques to gather data on potential environment responses to climate change, habitat use and animal behaviors, impacts of weather-related events, and land use. Students are also encouraged to participate in extra community involvement, from meeting with local tribes and hosting community dinners to planting seedlings and playing the didgeridoo.
In addition to the Directed Research, students take Rainforest Ecology, Principles of Forest Management, and Environmental Policy and Socioeconomic Values. Students share eight-person cabins at the end of the Atherton Tablelands. The site includes a computer lab, science library, student common room, shower and bathroom, and kitchen.
Participants must have completed at least one college-level ecology or biology course.