Natural Resource Management in Wilderness
These courses are hosted by the Arthur Carhart National Wilderness Training Center.
Fundamentals
This is the first in a series of twelve courses in the Natural Resource Management course of study. This course presents the legal foundation for managing natural resources in wilderness and relevant natural resource management concepts.
There is one strongly recommended prerequisite for this course, The Wilderness Act of 1964. It is also recommended that you take the Writing a Minimum Requirements Analysis course.
Register for Natural Resource Management in Wilderness: Fundamentals course.
Challenges in Natural Resource Restoration
Managing natural resources is a challenging task given the pressures of legal mandates to keep wilderness natural yet untrammeled. This course discusses these qualities of wilderness character and the dilemma of managing them equally.
There is one strongly recommended prerequisite for this course, The Wilderness Act of 1964. It is also recommended that you take the Writing a Minimum Requirements Analysis and the Natural Resource Management in Wilderness: Fundamentals course.
Monitoring
Wilderness management often involves monitoring in order to adapt quickly to threats. This course addresses the types of monitoring goals and methods used and why managers must weigh the costs associated with gathering precise and accurate data from monitoring efforts.
There is one strongly recommended prerequisite for this course, The Wilderness Act of 1964. It is also recommended that you take the Writing a Minimum Requirements Analysis course and the Natural Resource Management in Wilderness: Fundamentals course.
Register for Natural Resource Management in Wilderness: Monitoring course.
Evaluating Proposals for Scientific Activity
This course discusses the process to evaluate proposals for conducting scientific activity in wilderness and the decisions wilderness managers must make in order to preserve wilderness character with such activity.
There is one strongly recommended prerequisite for this course, The Wilderness Act of 1964. It is also recommended that you take the Writing a Minimum Requirements Analysis course and the Natural Resource Management in Wilderness: Fundamentals course.
Fish & Wildlife
This course explains the basis for fish and wildlife management in wilderness. It presents law, policy and other legal requirements for addressing various threats and issues involving fish and wildlife. This course also presents guidelines, principles and case studies that demonstrate a variety of management options.
There is one strongly recommended prerequisite for this course, The Wilderness Act of 1964. It is also recommended that you take the Writing a Minimum Requirements Analysis course and the Natural Resource Management in Wilderness: Fundamentals course.
Register for Natural Resource Management in Wilderness: Fish And Wildlife course.
Fish and Wildlife Inventory and Monitoring
This course explains the importance of monitoring fish and wildlife and demonstrates application of the basic concepts of survey sampling for fish and wildlife in wilderness. This information corresponds to Step 1 and Step 4, respectively, of the 8-Step Process for Developing a Monitoring Program outlined in the Natural Resource Management in Wilderness: Monitoring course.
There is one strongly recommended prerequisite for this course, The Wilderness Act of 1964. It is also recommended that you take the Writing a Minimum Requirements Analysis course and the Natural Resource Management in Wilderness: Fundamentals; Monitoring; and Fish and Wildlife courses.
Threatened and Endangered Species
This course presents guidelines managers can follow to satisfy requirements of the Wilderness Act, the Endangered Species Act, and agency policies when managing threatened and endangered species in wilderness.
There is one strongly recommended prerequisite for this course, The Wilderness Act of 1964. It is also recommended that you take the Writing a Minimum Requirements Analysis course and the Natural Resource Management in Wilderness: Fundamentals course.
Register for Natural Resource Management in Wilderness: Threatened & Endangered Species course.
Air Quality
This course explains the legal basis for managing air quality in wilderness and the various issues involved for management. This course isn't intended to qualify you as an air specialist, but to acquaint you—as a wilderness manager—with the laws and processes available to manage air quality in wilderness. Every agency has an air resource section with air specialists who are available to assist you with any air quality management issues you may have in your wilderness.
There is one strongly recommended prerequisite for this course, The Wilderness Act of 1964. It is also recommended that you take the Writing a Minimum Requirements Analysis course and the Natural Resource Management in Wilderness: Fundamentals course.
Register for Natural Resource Management in Wilderness: Air Quality course.
Soil and Water
This course discusses the importance of management and monitoring soil and water resources—inside and outside wilderness; the various laws relating to management; and identifies strategies for prevention, mitigation, and restoration of impacts on soil and water resources in wilderness.
There is one strongly recommended prerequisite for this course, The Wilderness Act of 1964. It is also recommended that you take the Writing a Minimum Requirements Analysis course and the Natural Resource Management in Wilderness: Fundamentals course.
Register for Natural Resource Management in Wilderness: Soil and Water course.
Vegetation
This course defines the vegetation component of the wilderness resource, its value to wilderness, and mandated management policies, including threats and strategies for managing vegetation in wilderness.
There is one strongly recommended prerequisite for this course, The Wilderness Act of 1964. It is also recommended that you take the Writing a Minimum Requirements Analysis course and the Natural Resource Management in Wilderness: Fundamentals course.
Register for Natural Resource Management in Wilderness: Vegetation course.
Soundscapes
This course differentiates natural sound from noise in the acoustical environments that make up soundscapes in wilderness. It identifies threats and strategies for managing soundscapes in wilderness.
There is one strongly recommended prerequisite for this course, The Wilderness Act of 1964. It is also recommended that you take the Writing a Minimum Requirements Analysis course and the Natural Resource Management in Wilderness: Fundamentals course.
Register for Natural Resource Management in Wilderness: Soundscapes course.
Night Sky
This course discusses the basis of night sky resource management, including the threats and principles for managing night sky in wilderness.
There is one strongly recommended prerequisite for this course, The Wilderness Act of 1964. It is also recommended that you take the Writing a Minimum Requirements Analysis course and the Natural Resource Management in Wilderness: Fundamentals course.
Register for Natural Resource Management in Wilderness: Night Sky course.
Registration
Register for any or all of these courses by visiting the Eppley Institute for Parks and Public Lands at Indiana University (using the links provided above). Add courses to your cart (no cost) then proceed to checkout to create an account. You will use this account to log in to access course materials (now and later), to access your completion certificate, and to take any additional wilderness courses you choose.