Ethnobotany (EBOT)
EBOT F100 Introduction to Ethnobotany (an)
3 Credits
Offered Summer
This blended online and hands-on course surveys concepts of botany and ethnobotany in the context of Alaska Native cultures, including: plant biology and taxonomy, scientific and ethnobotanic plant collection methods, traditional plant uses (working with Alaska Native Elders), and how the resulting ethical awareness contributes to other fields of study.
Cross-listed with ANTH F102.
Lecture + Lab + Other: 2 + 3 + 0
Grading System: Letter Grades with option of Plus/Minus
EBOT F200 Seminar in Ethnobotany
2 Credits
Offered Spring
This course surveys basic concepts of the interdisciplinary academic field of ethnobotany. Through readings, integration of Indigenous/Alaska Native plant knowledge, interactive exploration, and discussions of case studies of human-plant relationships, students will learn and reflect on the role and importance of ethnobotany in light of contemporary societal and environmental issues.
Lecture + Lab + Other: 2 + 0 + 0
Grading System: Letter Grades with option of Plus/Minus
EBOT F210 Ethical Wildcrafting
1 Credit
Offered Fall
Students will gain the knowledge and skills necessary to make informed and responsible decisions about ethical harvesting of plants in Alaska and beyond. Based on an interdisciplinary approach inclusive of Indigenous Knowledge, students will learn about the cultural and spiritual aspects, and the ecological, economic and legal dimensions of wildcrafting.
Lecture + Lab + Other: 1 + 0 + 0
Grading System: Letter Grades with option of Plus/Minus
EBOT F220 Research Methods for Ethnobotanists
2 Credits
Offered Fall
Provides skills and knowledge for conducting research about human–plant relationships; focuses on interviewing Elders about plant use and introduces to qualitative and quantitative research methods in ethnobotanical research and documentation of knowledge and practices, e.g. plant collection, participant observation and data analysis; addresses decolonizing methodology and Indigenous knowledge revitalization.
Cross-listed with ANTH F220.
Lecture + Lab + Other: 1.5 + 0 + 1.5
Grading System: Letter Grades with option of Plus/Minus
EBOT F230 Ethnobotanical Chemistry
3 Credits
Offered Fall
Basic understanding of chemical structure and functions of medicinally active plant compounds including Alaskan medicinal flora. How and why plants produce primary and secondary compounds and methods used to isolate and deliver plant-derived compounds used by humans. How drugs are derived from plants and the ethics of bioprospecting.
Prerequisites: EBOT F100; CHEM F103X or CHEM F105X.
Lecture + Lab + Other: 3 + 0 + 0
Grading System: Letter Grades with option of Plus/Minus
EBOT F250 Applied Ethnobotany Fall
2 Credits
Offered Fall
This is the fall section of a year-round course cycle consisting of two non-sequential courses that explore the seasonally appropriate cultural uses of plants. Students will deepen their understanding of human-plant relationships through individual hands-on projects, which will guide them into further studies in ethnobotany and related disciplines.
Cross-listed with ANTH F254.
Lecture + Lab + Other: 2 + 0 + 0
Grading System: Letter Grades with option of Plus/Minus
EBOT F251 Applied Ethnobotany Spring
2 Credits
Offered Spring
This is the spring section of a year-round course cycle consisting of two non-sequential courses that explore the seasonally appropriate cultural uses of plants. Students will deepen their understanding of human-plant relationships through individual hands-on projects, which will guide them into further studies in ethnobotany and related disciplines.
Cross-listed with ANTH F255.
Lecture + Lab + Other: 2 + 0 + 0
Grading System: Letter Grades with option of Plus/Minus
EBOT F336 Ethnomycology (s)
3 Credits
Offered Spring
An integrated perspective of humanities and social sciences on human-fungi relationships, with concentration on the role of mushrooms in food, medicine, art, commerce, spirituality, and recreation in societies around the world, past and present. Mushroom harvesting in communities around Alaska is one of the extensively covered topics.
Prerequisites: EBOT F100 or ANTH F100X.
Cross-listed with ANTH F336.
Lecture + Lab + Other: 3 + 0 + 0
Grading System: Letter Grades with option of Plus/Minus