Professor of Biology and
Director, Gault Nature Reserve
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From year to year I am involved in a number of undergraduate courses, all connected in one way or another to questions of the functional ecology and conservation of plant species diversity. In the recent past I taught a Freshman Year Seminar (BIOL 199) on "Biodiversity" and "Canadian Flora" (BIOL 358). but no longer teach either course. I still teach a two week short course in July each year that emphasizes field recognition of the common plants in our region, "Monteregian Flora" (BIOL 240); this course is a quick way to lay a foundation for self study in plant identification, but it is not good preparation for advanced work in plant systematics. Each winter I team teach one of the four core courses in the McGill School of Environment, "The Evolving Earth" (ENVR 202); we won a national teaching award for this course
(see: http://www.mcmaster.ca/stlhe/awards/alan.blizzard.award.html).
Finally, I teach a course called "Trees: Ecology and Evolution" (BIOL 355) and its graduate level analog, "Functional Ecology of Trees" (BIOL 555). I also teach tutorial reading courses and occasional seminars on special topics at the graduate-level.