Boston University
ER-12: Sustainability Immersive Experience

The Ecuador Tropical Ecology Program offers biology and environmental science majors the opportunity to spend a semester studying the vast and diverse ecosystems of tropical Ecuador through intensive hands-on experiences. The program consists of four ecology courses based on field research in the montane, tropical rainforest, and coastal regions, as well as a Spanish language course. All ecology courses are taught in English by faculty from the Universidad San Francisco de Quito and Boston University’s Department of Biology. During the first nine weeks of the program, students complete three upper-level ecology courses on the various ecosystems of Ecuador. Lectures at the Universidad San Francisco de Quito are combined with studies lasting from several days to four weeks at different environments in Ecuador. The highlights of the field experience include a one-week guided scientific excursion to the Galápagos Islands, a ten-day coastal project at Los Piqueros, near Machalilla National Park on the Pacific coast, and a four-week stay in the Amazon rainforest at the Tiputini Biodiversity Station. Students complete the semester with a capstone course that requires them to analyze field data, prepare reports, and give oral presentations based on individual and group projects conducted in the field.

Other study abroad opportunities include the Quito language & Liberal Arts Program, Auckland University Studies Program, Washington, DC Internship Program, and the London College of General Studies Program in the Natural Sciences (Summer only). In addition to these, the School for Field Studies offers BU students five sustainability focused or related study abroad programs located around the globe.