Undergraduate Courses

EarthSS 51 – Land Interaction

In this course, students explore the role of terrestrial processes in the Earth system. Lectures provide an introduction to soils, plants, and ecosystems, and the processes that regulate the cycling of energy, water, carbon, and nutrients. Discussion sections offer hands-on opportunities to learn about current methods in soil science and terrestrial ecology,  sample collection, and data analysis.
On half- and full-day field trips students explore California’s Mediterranean and montane ecosystems, and learn about their natural history, and the challenges they face with climate change and urbanization.

EarthSS 133 – Soils – It’s the good dirt

This course provides an introduction to the critical role soils play in sustaining land ecosystems and humans. The course covers how soils form and are described, how soils provide a habitat for billions of organisms and mitigate the flows of water, bio-elements and contaminants, and how human actions contribute to the pollution and loss but also the health and productivity of soils.

Graduate Courses

EarthSS 226 Land Surface Processes

This class offers students a mechanistic perspective of the structure and functioning of terrestrial ecosystems, and how it interacts with other components of the Earth System, such as the atmosphere. In lectures, student presentations, and a multi-day field trip, students explore how plants and soils modify the energy budget of the land surface, and contribute to the cycling of carbon, nutrients, and water.