助理教授乔纳森·威尔逊的“经济植物学”课程已经是一次独特的经历. Bringing together 100-level students 和 300-level biology majors, 本课程是对植物和人类共同进化和共同驯化的多学科探索. 迈克尔·波伦的 欲望的植物学 作为指导, the environmental biologist 和 his 18 students examine case studies of sugar, 巧克力, 香蕉, 茶, 柑橘类, 和咖啡, 等, as a way to appreciate the complex, 和纠缠在一起, histories of humankind 和 plants. 但对威尔逊的10名学生来说，“经济植物学”也让他们经历了一生的冒险.      

Thanks to a collaboration between the Center for Peace 和 Global Citizenship 和 the Koshl和 Integrated Natural Sciences Center, more than half of 威尔逊's 18-person class were selected, via a rigorous application process, to spend spring break in Trinidad 和 Tobago on a field study tour, 亲身体验他们在教室里学习的植物在自然栖息地茁壮成长.

“这门课程的主要学习目标是让学生了解植物学, 社会, 和 cultural history of the food 和 the plants they learn about,威尔逊说. "It’s looking at the history of humans domesticating plants, 但植物也驯化了人类，将自己传播到全球各地，因为它们对人类来说是有用的食物, 作为服装, 随着纤维. 但是有一个实际的, 亲身体验式的学习，从脚踝深的泥泞中穿过可可林的小路. 你从这种经历中获得的知识和洞察力是对你从讲座或读书中学到的知识的补充."

这次旅行是CPGC项目经理Stephanie Zukerman和威尔逊个人合作的结果，将Zukerman的跨文化专业知识和当地联系与威尔逊的热带植物学经验结合在一起. 威尔逊, 他的10个bico学生, 和 Zukerman departed from New York's JFK Airport on March 3, for a nine-day stay on the isl和s that included visits to the 圣安东尼奥绿色市场, a hummingbird sanctuary, renowned nature preserve 阿萨莱特自然中心, 和 two cacao cultivation facilities. 这群人白天和晚上都在热带雨林徒步旅行，享受着世界闻名的观鸟活动, 和 were overwhelmed with the biodiversity they got to view up close.

“在倾盆大雨中入睡，在热带鸟鸣声中醒来，这是一种神奇的感觉," said Gabriel Oppler '17, a biology major who is conducting his senior thesis reSearch in 威尔逊's lab. "Sure enough, my favorite part was waking up at 5:30 a.m., 日出之前, 看蝙蝠, 然后蜂鸟, then larger birds flocked to the ver和a at 阿萨莱特自然中心. I had my trusty camera around my neck 和咖啡 in my h和 和, 和我的同学一起, sat still 和 silent for two hours as nature woke up around us."

“在课堂上，我们广泛地讨论了可可和咖啡等作物的种植和加工, 亲自参观这些植物，并跟随生产的各个步骤，在很大程度上丰富了我们在课堂上学到的知识," said biology major Charles Hale '17. "It's one thing to read about how 巧克力 is made; it's an entirely different entity to go to a place like Brasso入股事宜 敲开树上的可可豆荚，在干豆上“跳舞”，然后再品尝成品."

CPGC的祖克曼说, whose family hails from Trinidad, 每年前往这些岛屿，目前正在为一篇欧洲杯买球app官网该地区民族关系的硕士论文进行研究. She spent a year planning the study trip with 威尔逊, 利用她在岛上的人脉，为学生们提供了无与伦比的当地导游和学者的机会，甚至在雨林中令人惊叹的生态度假胜地也有折扣. Because of her CPGC work 和 her history with the isl和s, 她的角色, 在她看来, was to make sure the students experienced the local culture, which dramatically impacted their underst和ing of the local plants.

"When you’re studying conservation 和 ecology [in a place], 你必须了解当地文化，了解他们的社会是如何理解这些事情的，以及权力动态是什么,祖克曼说. “几乎每个与我们交谈的当地人都是从特立尼达和多巴哥的历史开始的, including its history of slavery 和 indentured servitude. It’s a living history for them as a post-colonial society."

Through Zukerman 和 威尔逊’s collaboration on cultural 和 scientific topics, over the course of the field study trip, 学生们不仅获得了与热带动植物的亲身体验，还了解了岛屿的历史，以及这对植物和人类的影响.

"我们听过很多次的一个欧洲杯买球app官网是欧洲杯买球app官网甘蔗是如何推动进口的, first of slaves from Africa, 和 then of East Indian indentured laborers," said Alana Tartaro '17, a psychology major 和 environmental studies minor. "This story of the way a tropical plant, because it was desired by people who could not grow it in their climate, took over a country 和 forced people into slavery is a common narrative in our class."

因为威尔逊的课程包括来自各个学科的学生——包括比较文学专业的学生, 社会科学家, 和 fine artists—each person's takeaway was different. Though every student exp和ed their biology 和 botany knowledge, some were more affected by what they uncovered about the globalized food industry, the history of the isl和s, the local agricultural economy, or the sights 和 sounds of the diverse tropical ecosystem.

"The things I remember most vividly are tastes 和 textures," said Tartaro. "I remember the taste of the pulp of cacao fruit, 热带雨的感觉, 和 the smell of fresh nutmeg."

"The students were engaged the entire time,祖克曼说. "They were filling their journals with notes, sketching plants. It was a thrill to see how engaged 他们是 和 how much they learned."

对威尔逊, the trip reached its zenith during a pair of rainforest hikes, in less than perfect weather, 在旅行的最后一天. 这些徒步旅行不仅完美地说明了自1776年以来一直保存下来的未受破坏的“原始雨林”与曾经部分被砍伐的“次级雨林”之间的差异, 但他们也证明了学生们——甚至是非生物学专业的学生或科学家——已经综合了威尔逊所展示的所有课程信息，并以一种复杂的方式理解了它.

他说:“非专业学生开始和理科生一起提出高级问题。. "Having that moment on the hike was everything I hoped the trip would be. 学生们达到了非常先进的理解深度，这让我感到非常自豪. And the students were so tough 和 欧洲杯买球怎么投注ian about [the experience]. It was pouring rain that day, 但 他们是 smiling 和 laughing."

春假之旅为威尔逊的学生提供了一个体验式学习的机会——一个在现实世界中放大和强调他的课程内容的机会. 这10名学生进行了2000多英里的旅行，将欧洲杯买球app官网的一个教室带到了热带地区, 和, 更重要的是, 他们把在特立尼达和多巴哥学到的无数经验带回了校园, changing the course of their semester 和 perhaps even their futures.

“毫无疑问, the trip helped confirm that my life after graduation will involve, at least at some point 和 to some degree, work in tropical ecology 和 conservation,奥普勒说. “我有信心回到热带地区，继续学习和保护那里独特的生态系统."

"The most important thing I learned is how to see differently," said anthropology major 和 health studies minor Ellie Greenler '17. “我学会了如何看着我周围一大片绿色雨林，并挑选出植物的关键特征，帮助我获得有关它们的信息. Suddenly the wall stops being just a wall 和 starts being an array of lycophytes, 附生植物, 苔藓植物, 和蕨类植物. 我们在课堂上讨论过的观点在特立尼达和多巴哥再次被讨论, 但, 更重要的是, 他们是 见过."

丽贝卡Raber

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