Learning to Save the Planet

 

Growing up in rural Kentucky, Berry Brosi saw firsthand the tension between nature’s majesty and its destruction. He witnessed beautiful outdoor areas but also remembers seeing mountaintop-removal coal mines and the Copper Basin in Tennessee, where acid rain from a huge copper mining operation defoliated dozens of square miles — an environmental disaster visible to astronauts from space. 

That early exposure sparked a lifelong interest in environmental problems and conservation. Today, as a professor in the University of Washington’s Department of Biology, Berry is channeling that passion into action. His mission: making conservation education accessible to everyone — regardless of background, location or major.

“We’re facing a biodiversity crisis. Many species are disappearing, and that loss threatens ecosystem services such as oxygen production, water purification and crop pollination that are crucial for human well-being,” Berry says. “People don’t know that we depend on nature for these key services, so it’s critical to increase awareness about what biodiversity is, why it's important and what we can do to reverse the damage.”

To bring his vision to life, Berry partnered with UW Summer Sessions to develop Introduction to Conservation Biology (BIOL 126), an online, asynchronous course. Each year, Summer Sessions invests in the development of new online offerings, and in 2025, BIOL 126 was one of four new courses supported through this initiative.

Although designed for summer delivery, these courses are available year-round, allowing departments to extend their reach beyond the summer months. It’s part of a broader effort to expand access — opening doors for students who might not otherwise have the opportunity to enroll in a UW course. And for topics like biodiversity and conservation, that wider reach means more learners can connect with the science, and the solutions, no matter where they are.

A Course for Changemakers

Now, through BIOL 126, Berry’s inspiring a new generation of learners to understand the value of biodiversity. With no prerequisites and a flexible format, it’s a welcoming entry point for students who care deeply about the planet but may never have considered stepping into a biology lecture hall.

“I come from a low-income background,” Berry shares. “I realize taking an asynchronous course makes it easier to get material to students with different work schedules or who may not live in Seattle. Being able to reach a broader audience was a major reason for setting the course up this way.”

The course targets non-science majors — for example, students in communications, public policy, the humanities and beyond. “I particularly wanted to reach students who are not UW Department of Biology or College of the Environment majors,” explains Berry. “I’d like to get students, say in law and policy, inspired to think about conservation law or to consider other potential avenues for making a difference that don’t necessarily involve science.”

Turning Passion Into Purpose

For Anne Sherwood, a writer and UW alum, the course was transformational. After working in marketing for most of her career, she took a break to raise her family. During that time, Anne found herself drawn to environmental storytelling and volunteering, which have become her passions and hobbies.

But when she considered rejoining the workforce for a second career in conservation or environmental science, she hit a roadblock: she needed 20 natural science credits to enroll in the UW Certificate in Wetland Science & Management program. That’s when she discovered BIOL 126.

“I had zero credits in natural science from my communications degree, so I thought, ‘This is the perfect class for me to start with’,” recalls Anne. “It’ll inform my writing, it’s in the summer, and it seemed like I’d be more likely to get into the class because there are no prerequisites.”

The course gave Anne more than knowledge. It reinforced and deepened her understanding of biodiversity loss, an issue close to her heart. “I ate up the course like it was my most important meal of the day,” she says. “It gave me the vocabulary to talk about conservation issues with more confidence — for instance, when I’m emailing city or state representatives about preserving our natural environment for both people and wildlife.”

Now working toward her certificate as a nonmatriculated student, Anne envisions a career that blends marketing, writing and environmental science. “If there’s more understanding about biodiversity loss, it might lead to more action. And stories are one of the best ways to learn about these things,” she explains. “But maybe I’ll be hip-deep in the wetlands, doing a restoration project, which would be a great way to do my part.”

A Curriculum Designed to Inspire Action

In a course designed to be accessible to a wide range of students, which was the impetus for turning BIOL 126 into an asynchronous online course for Summer Sessions, ensuring leaners could grasp concepts was key. Since it was Berry’s first experience developing an asynchronous online course, he turned to UW Continuum College’s Learning Experience team for help.

The LE team and Berry collaborated to create a meaningful experience, condensing lectures into bite-sized chunks with a focus on key concepts and using video, animations and graphics to underscore them. “It was an engaging process for me to take a lot of material that I've thought about quite a bit, and repackage it for this very non-specialist audience,” says Berry. “I couldn’t have put together a course of this quality without the structure and assistance from the LE team.”

Another essential element of the course is the theme of hope. It’s a deliberate choice to counter the despair that often accompanies the gravity of environmental challenges such as extinction, habitat loss and climate change. “There really are a lot of reasons for hope in conservation,” says Berry. “And when that message resonates with students, it's easier for them to get motivated to take action.”

That message is connecting. Students like Anne leave the course not just informed but empowered. While her future remains uncertain, she’s carrying forward a deeper understanding of the natural world and her role in protecting it.

“I wish that everyone had the opportunity to take this class, not only to understand the amount of environmental destruction that has occurred, but also to learn there are things we can do about it,” says Anne. “That we can save the beauty and the biodiversity we still have if we’re all involved. This course gave me hope in that; it provided a path forward.”