Directed Research – Croatia

The aim of this Directed Research (DR) course is to provide students with the opportunity to apply ecological, biological, and/or social scientific methods to a field research project that addresses an issue related to the local or regional marine or island environment. This course prepares students to distinguish hidden assumptions in scientific approaches. It also highlights how various methods and theories differentiate (or do not) fact from interpretation, cause from correlation, and advocacy from objectivity. Through DR projects, students will contribute to a body of scientific research that informs local conservation and resource management decisions and furthers the Center’s research agenda. Each student will join a faculty-led team that will carry out field research, data analysis, and communication of results in one or across several of the following disciplines: ecology, natural resource management, and social sciences.