Homecoming - Classes Without Quizzes 3B "Trouble in the Tropics: Upsetting a Fragile Balance"

Human actions are reducing tropical forests by an estimated 12.5 million hectares annually, leading to the loss of biodiversity and the emergence of diseases like SARS, swine flu, Ebola, and HIV in human and wildlife populations. Tropical freshwater systems have also suffered from human interference: fish catches have declined drastically, the pollution of surface and ground water has become a serious threat, and introductions of exotic species have led to unprecedented changes in freshwater communities – most notably in Lake Victoria, the world’s largest tropical lake and Africa’s most important source of inland fisheries production.

Colin Chapman received his joint PhD in anthropology and zoology from the University of Alberta, then spent two years at McGill and three years at Harvard doing postdoctoral research. Since 1990, he has served as an honorary lecturer in the Department of Zoology at Makerere University in Uganda and since 1995 he has been an associate scientist with the Wildlife Conservation Society. Colin also served for 11 years as a faculty member in zoology at the University of Florida, and returned to McGill in 2004 to join the Department of Anthropology and the McGill School of Environment, where he holds a Canada Research Chair in Primate Ecology and Conservation.

Lauren Chapman, PhD’90, conducted three years of postdoctoral research at Harvard’s Museum of Comparative Zoology. She has served as an honorary lecturer in the Department of Zoology at Makerere University since 1990 and as an associate scientist with the Wildlife Conservation Society since 1995. Prior to returning to McGill in 2004, Lauren was a faculty member in zoology at the University of Florida for 11 years. She is now a professor of biology at McGill and holds a Canada Research Chair in Respiratory Ecology and Aquatic Conservation.

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