Christopher Hassall
I am an Associate Professor of Biology at the University of Leeds, specialising in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology.
Location Leeds, UK
Activity
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My job is in "animal biology", but I work across several disciplines. For example, I am interested in how to design sustainable cities. A part of that requires an understanding of biology but there is an important human dimension which requires an understanding of economics, psychology, and design. I think that I feel a sense of belonging within my discipline...
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Christopher Hassall made a comment
There are some great discussions going on here. Some of the first comments discussed the ways in which learners' views had moved from...
...an innate sense of the morality of environmental protection (often as children we want to protect animals and plants)...
...through a sense that the economic argument might be more convincing and that we need to get... -
Hi Dishaly,
Welcome to the course. I spent three years in Ottawa (at Carleton University), so I have fond memories of Ontario! We'll be introducing you to some cutting edge conservation biology that should give you an idea of what you would be learning in an ecology and conservation biology degree. I hope you enjoy the course.
Chris
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Hi Marguerite,
Thanks for joining the course - you're absolutely right that the key to successful conservation is understanding the competing demands on the planet. We'll be talking a lot about those kinds of "conflicts" through the course. I hope you enjoy it.
Best wishes,
Chris
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Christopher Hassall replied to Helen Ansell
Hi Helen,
Thanks for joining the course. We'll be covering some exotic examples of conservation, but there'll still be plenty closer to home. Keep an eye out for the National Pollination Monitoring Scheme in week 2, where there are some resources for you to use to get involved in pollinator monitoring.
Best wishes,
Chris
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Hi Jasmin
Willkommen! We'll be covering lots of marine and coastal ecology across the two weeks. The seas are some of the most impacted but least studied ecosystems on earth and Maria and Keith's work that we'll discuss is helping us to understand what problems we are causing and how we can help. I hope you enjoy the course.
Chris
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Christopher Hassall replied to Terry Wearn
Hi Terry
Welcome to the course. You're in luck: Keith Hamer's work on seabird conservation is really interesting and we'll be covering that this week.
Chris
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Hi Trevor,
It sounds like you will probably have an interesting perspective on the material, given your background. Please do chip in with your views when we get to the energy and marine components.
Best wishes,
Chris
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Christopher Hassall replied to Sue Himycz
Hi Sue,
I lived in Liverpool for seven years (on Smithdown Road and in Toxteth) so I remember the wildlife well! Mostly I tried to get to Sefton Park as often as possible! You're right that there are some great local initiatives to help biodiversity, and I'm hoping that some of the learners on this course will be inspired to join in as a result of taking...
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Christopher Hassall replied to Sandy Ling
Hi Sandy
Welcome to the course - you'll hear from an interesting set of conservation biologists who are working in quite different areas of the world and tackling quite different projects. I hope you find it interesting!
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@TanKengLeng Hi Tan
One of my main research interests is how to manage urban landscapes for people and nature. We'll cover this a little bit in the section on pollinators in Week 2. We're running a variety of projects at the University of Leeds with MSc students as principal researchers that are looking at urban biodiversity and human health. Some of these...
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Hi Georgie
Thanks for signing up for the course and I'm delighted you're interested in studying ecology and conservation at university. I hope you find the course interesting!
Chris -
Hi Charles - I'm pleased that you enjoyed my contribution. There is always a tension between scientists discussing their research and other stakeholders adding their needs/interpretations to the discussion. I found the debate fascinating for the diversity of ideas that were put across by Pam and Ruth (and the discussion continued off-camera after!). I hope...
