Fungi for Human Health and the Environment

Quarters
Fall Open
Location
Olympia
Class Standing
Freshman
Sophomore
Junior
Senior
Prita Lal
Aziz Turkoglu

Mushrooms and other fungi play many important, fascinating roles in both ecology and human history. In the first half of this interdisciplinary program, students will learn the fundamentals of fungal biology and ecology and diversity, with an emphasis on fruiting mushrooms of Pacific Northwest. Mushroom identification labs and self-guided field study of mushrooms will serve as a foundation for learning to identify common species and to develop fluency in mushroom identification terminology. Students will have hands-on opportunities to learn the basics of mushroom cultivation and textile-dyeing with mushroom pigments. At the end of the first half of the quarter, students will have the skills to safely identify local mushrooms including edible, medicinal, and poisonous species.

In the second half of the quarter, students will explore connections between fungi, humans, society, and the environment with an emphasis on the intersections of fungi and food justice; topics will include traditional ecological knowledge systems as well as history, political economy, and equity issues within the fungal food system. Guiding questions will include: What are the social and ecological impacts of commodifying mushrooms and other fungi, especially ones that have major significance to Native communities across the Americas and beyond? Who benefits, who gets excluded, and who gets burdened with the costs? Learning modalities will involve weekly asynchronous modules that include video presentations, films, and readings as well as synchronous class meetings. Assignments in the second half of the quarter will include discussion board posts, collective seminar annotations, and a final integrative reflection.

The program is a hybrid-remote offering. To be successful in this program, students will need access to reliable high-speed internet and a computer. Students can expect our teaching to be a blend of 3-6 hours a week of synchronous (scheduled) class both in-person and on Zoom, plus an additional 16-20 hours a week of asynchronous work including completing assignments and studying fungi in the local environment. 

This is one of four courses that comprise the Mycology Certificate. Students in the certificate program with less experience in mycology are encouraged to take this course to complete their required elective credits, as it provides a broad foundation in mycological topics. Courses can be taken in any order.

Anticipated Credit Equivalencies:

4 - Introduction to Mycology

4 - Fungal Food Justice

Registration

Course Reference Numbers

(8): 10098

Academic Details

This offering is connected to the Mycology Certificate at Evergreen. For more information visit: https://www.evergreen.edu/academics/professional-continuing-education/m…

This program serves as preparation for careers in botany and natural resource management as well as careers in the mushroom industry (i.e., mushroom cultivation and mushroom-based supplement production).

8
25
Freshman
Sophomore
Junior
Senior

$125 fee: $75 for cultivation and textile dye supplies, $50 for required lab fee

Schedule

Fall
2024
Open
Hybrid (F)

See definition of Hybrid, Remote, and In-Person instruction

Evening and Weekend
Schedule Details
Remote/Online
Olympia