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Unit of study_
WILD4004: Taronga Conservation Project: Human Dimensions
2025 unit information
Across the world, in the age of the Anthropocene, species are under threat from habitat destruction and human population growth, in which some have called the 6th wave of extinction. From Orangutans in Borneo threatened by habitat alternations to the native forests ecosystems of Europe threatened from the introduced and invasive Sika deer. Wildlife conservation depends not only on a rigorous scientific approach but also encompasses social-cultural, economic, and political contexts. Taronga advanced coursework projects serve as a capstone experience for students in the Taronga Wildlife Conservation Stream. These projects are the culmination of four years of theoretical and practical learnings. Students in this unit will focus on the social, economic and political contexts of real-life conservation challenges gaining skills in writing conservation strategies and undertaking community conservation and engagement ensuring the involvement of multiple stakeholders. You will work in groups, together with academic advisors from Taronga Zoo and the University, to select a research question based on a relevant contemporary wildlife conservation issue. You will draw on your understandings throughout the degree to propose wildlife conservation solutions in the contemporary 21st century communicating your strategy and findings through written, multi-media and oral presentation assessments. In this unit you will build your personal Wildlife Conservation Portfolio. This portfolio provides documented evidence of your skills in wildlife conservation, illustrating highly desirable competencies to show potential employers. By the end of this unit you will understand the positions of stakeholders and have improved your communication skills to negotiate and advocate for wildlife conservation.
Unit details and rules
Managing faculty or University school:
Science
| Study level | Undergraduate |
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| Academic unit | Life and Environmental Sciences Academic Operations |
| Credit points | 12 |
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Prerequisites:
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144 credit points of units including WILD3001 |
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Corequisites:
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None |
| Prohibitions:
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None |
| Assumed knowledge:
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None |
At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:
- LO1. Collaborate with diverse groups and across cultural and disciplinary boundaries to develop solution(s) to wildlife conservation challenges.
- LO2. Source and critically evaluate research and evidence from diverse range of sources and identify knowledge gaps in wildlife conservation challenges.
- LO3. Develop research questions within the social, political and economic contexts of wildlife conservation and wildlife management.
- LO4. Apply wildlife conservation and wildlife management principles to propose wildlife conservation solutions.
- LO5. Communicate in written, oral and multi-modal methods to target audiences.
- LO6. Demonstrate integrity, confidence, personal resilience and the capacity to manage challenges, both individually and in teams.
Unit availability
This section lists the session, attendance modes and locations the unit is available in. There is a unit outline for each of the unit availabilities, which gives you information about the unit including assessment details and a schedule of weekly activities.
The outline is published 2 weeks before the first day of teaching. You can look at previous outlines for a guide to the details of a unit.
| Session | MoA ? | Location | Outline ? |
|---|---|---|---|
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Semester 2 2025
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Supervision | Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney |
Outline unavailable
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Modes of attendance (MoA)
This refers to the Mode of attendance (MoA) for the unit as it appears when you’re selecting your units in Sydney Student. Find more information about modes of attendance on our website.
Important enrolment information
Additional advice
Students undertaking the BSc/BAdvStudies (Taronga Wildlife Conservation) degree must take both of these advanced coursework project units unless they are undertaking Honours Research. Some of this unit will be taught by and at Taronga.
