Overall objectives of Module 2.1 are to enhance students’ knowledge and comprehension of forest ecosystems at multiple spatial scales, and to establish an understanding of the relationships that exist between stand-level, forest-level, and landscape-level structure and function with an emphasis on the interaction of biophysical elements such as tree composition, size, and age distributions and the ecosystem services that they provide. Participants are encouraged to undertake complimentary field training (Module 2.5)

Specific objectives are to enable students to: Describe living and non-living components; Identify and describe major ecosystem conditions, cycles, and processes within forests and landscapes; Explain how ecosystem conditions can be characterized across a variety of scales; Discuss ecosystem dynamics and ecological sustainability; and Explain forest productivity and how it is determined.