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This field program will provide a cross cultural and scientific experience as participants, over a three week period of time, traverse and explore unique ecological zones along the Equator. The course combines the study of cultural geography and earth science including the historical role of Indigenous, Hispanic, and Afro-Ecuadorians from the colonial period to the present time. Participants will study the volcanic and hydrologic landscape forming processes of the region and observe the impacts of these processes on topography, soils, transportation, land-use, flora, fauna, and settlement patterns. Various forms of agriculture from subsistence to plantation systems are observed as are the associated problems of erosion. Human and land interactions are examined in the tropical rainforest of the Ecuadorian Amazon, in the Andes Mountains, and on the Galapagos Islands located 600 miles off the coast of South America. Students learn through personal experience and observation. The course is a combination of lecture, written activities, and guided observation in the field. While in Ecuador, students participate in lectures and discussions where the events and observations of the day are reviewed and issues debated.
This video was a joint project between Tempestas et Caelum Productions and the Department of Geology/Geography at Eastern Illinois University
Copyright 2010 by Cameron Douglas Craig and Betty E. Smith
