I had to return and submit a clearer review, as now I have more experience with Coursera and have come across some suspicious reviews xD

1. I still believe this is, so far, one of the best courses because Zac and David have such a good engagement with the audience, it does feel like they're having a conversation directly with *you*. Each word is really clear, while the flow and ease of how they're speaking demonstrate their definite knowledge on the topic; while their personal inflections demonstrate their passion (and not like a robotic talking at you).

2. Production of the whole course is really high-quality with many intermissions; there is a British voice reading quotes, the practical tips with on-site demonstrations, on-site with relevant national bodies, interviews/snippets with other experts; not to mention all the vista shots with its location (and sometimes additional info). This makes it all feel like an in-person course, or as if you're travelling the global mountain landscape with Zac as your guide.

3. Fundamentally, the quizzes are completely relevant to the lecture info. The modules are clear and thoughtfully indicated of their relevance. The entire course reviews facets that may not be obvious to all (historical, ecological, social, cultural, technical).

4. At the end of it all, if not only as an expression of their passion and knowledge, but this is a really good reflection on UofA! Such excitement and engaged professors are so valuable to the learning outcome. If this was available way back when, perhaps I would've changed faculties xD

SUMMARY:

My only complaint is that there isn't a Mountains 102. Yet...? =D

Great diversity of topics. Awesome collaboration between professionals in the scientific community. Fully appreciate the knowledge and inspiration acquired throughout the course. Thank you!

So interesting! So well made, every lesson is thought out the interactive mountain map was a joy to complete each time! Incredibly thoughtful and sensitive to every aspect that touches the mountains.

Great fun, I really enjoyed this course. Sometimes the dialogue was somewhat repetitive but overall you can see a lot of effort went into finding experts and giving quality, accompanying video clips.

Incredibly well-produced set of videos that are highly educational, well-rounded, beautiful, and interesting. I hope it leaves you wanting to both visit and protect these places, as it did for me.

Excellent Course!

I've always liked the outdoors, and Mountains 101 provided me a lens with which to view and appreciate mountains. The course delves deep into everything to do with mountains globally, focusing on the Canadian Rockies as a home base. Topics cover the history of mountains in literature and society, biology and conservation, geology and the climate impact of mountains, and even tips on how to explore mountains safely and comfortably. The visuals are stunning and I appreciated the well-rounded approach of this course. Zak and David are articulate, engaging, and easy to understand, and the many on-location interviews with experts only added more to the course. I'm already planning a trip to the Canadian Rockies!

Absolutely loved every second of it! Reignited my love for geography and the outdoors with sleek, informative- documentary styled lectures. I found the course holistically enriching and fun!

This is a very comprehensive and interesting presentation of the place mountain occupy in our social, economical, and spiritual life. I definitely would enjoy visiting the Canadian Rockies.

Thoroughly enjoyed this course. I recommend it to anyone that has any interest in learning more about mountains. Every lesson is jam-packed with great information. Thank you!

amazing lectures with spectacular video classes which provide adequate knowledge with exact visualization !

Mountains 101 is an excellent introductory course.

This is the best online course I have taken. Interesting, well presented, great structure.

The videos are done extremely well with great narration, and the well-researched material is presented in a way that someone without previous knowledge could understand. The structure of the course was well thought out with 12 varying topics (excellently curated) from early geology to glaciers to animals to preservation laid out in a way that complemented each other. Each topic had videos that were summarized in thorough course notes, snippets from domain experts, an interactive map to mark places from the lesson, and tech tips for going into the mountains, which added to the cohesive and comprehensive nature of the whole course.

I am someone who loves going into the mountains but isn't in the fields of geology, ecology, environmental science, biology, or anything related. As someone without previous knowledge in the domain, I thought I would just watch a few tech tips and skip over the hard-core domain expert material. Instead, I found it so interesting and accessible that I watched every single video and completed the whole course.

This is a really well done and amazing course, with a wealth of knowledge gained about mountains, their ecosystems and people living in and using mountains. Thank you for the organizers and participants in making this wonderful course. I thought the information about biodiversity, geology, climate, people, etc., all related to mountains, were well intertwined and well organized. Excellent instructors, with a great connection to the mountains they work in. An excellent addition to the course were the guests that brought new perspective to the topic in question. I highly recommend this course. It is really fun, interesting and overall exceptional.

Many thanks to all the organisers of the course! It was an amaizing adventure, absolutely full of relevant information, quotes of famous explorers, spectular views, music! The approach of the authors covers all the necessary topics, related to mountains. It is truly spectacular, breathtaking, grasping and motivating!

Well organized and excellent presentations. It provided me with an excellent perspective on the reality of mountains and the importance of them to the world. Highly recommended for all Canadians.

Good intro course, I just hoped that the focus would have been more on the geological part and a bit less on the cultural part. But still, those parts enhanced the variety and completed the view one has on mountains, so I can live with it :-)

All in all quite a complete intro on mountains - recommended!

I really liked the course content, but I would have wished the course was more challenging in terms of difficulty. Also, I would have also like to have learned more about ways to utilized plants and resources from the mountains instead of solely being told the preserve mountain ecosystems. I love going into the mountains for days at a time while being self-sufficient, surely not an easy task so any information to become a better mountain man is surely Welcome!

Some of it was interesting, but it was mostly really boring, not sure why I decided to do this one

Having recently completed the "Mountain 101" course offered by Alberta University on Coursera, I, a Glaciology aspirant from Gilgit-Baltistan, found the experience incredibly valuable. This course provided a comprehensive introduction to mountain environments, perfectly suited for someone like me who is eager to delve deeper into the world of glaciers. Positive Learning Experience for a Glaciology Aspirant: Solid Foundation: The course covered a wide range of topics relevant to glaciology, including mountain formation, types of glaciers, glacial processes, and the impacts of climate change. This knowledge serves as a strong foundation for further studies in glaciology. Local Context: While the course offered a global perspective, it also explored the unique challenges and opportunities faced by mountain communities. This resonated with me being from Gilgit-Baltistan, a region heavily influenced by glaciers. Enhanced Understanding: The course deepened my understanding of the intricate relationship between mountain communities and their environment. Learning about sustainable practices and the importance of preserving these fragile ecosystems is crucial for the future of Gilgit-Baltistan. Highlights Regarding Mountain Communities and Environment: Community Dependence: The course emphasized the dependence of mountain communities on the resources provided by glaciers, such as water for irrigation and hydropower. This knowledge is essential for understanding the challenges these communities face due to glacial retreat. Environmental Issues: The course explored environmental issues specific to mountain regions, such as slope instability, avalanches, and flooding. This knowledge is particularly relevant to Gilgit-Baltistan, prone to natural disasters. Sustainable Practices: The course discussed sustainable practices for mountain development, such as ecotourism and renewable energy sources. This knowledge can help me contribute to a sustainable future for Gilgit-Baltistan. Overall, "Mountain 101" was an enriching experience that solidified my passion for glaciology and provided valuable insights into mountain communities and environmental issues. I highly recommend this course to anyone interested in learning about these magnificent mountain environments.

This 12-week course rekindled my fascination for mountains. With the mounting anxiety brought by pandemic, I revisited my previous interests on the things and activities I dearly enjoyed. During my childhood, I developed fears for mountains or any huge and towering land masses. As I grow, I found myself collecting memorable moments of climbing Philippine mountains wherein I vigorously nourished the serene feeling upon reaching the summit. It heightened my awareness on how mountains have extraordinary cultural significance to different countries across the world. But for me, mountains will remain a sanctuary, place of consolation and divine connection to the Creator and its creations.

Special mention is the eruption of our very own Mt. Pinatubo which I am completely surprised because it caused significant of how it lowered the Earth’s temperature due to expulsion of Sulfur Dioxide in stratosphere. I was also astounded by how leading countries put priority in protecting and preserving their mountain ecosystems and natural resources. I am hopeful that it could also be done to our country.

My heartfelt gratitude to Coursera, professors David and Zac, and to entire team of University of Alberta for pulling off this course and delivering it in the most enjoyable and effective way. The practical and smart tricks from Tech tips portions are equally useful to safely enjoy future hikes.

Thank you, kindly, for an outstanding interdisciplinary introduction to mountain environments. I am a senior citizen so, obviously, participated out of interest versus a grade or credit. My husband's curiosity got the best of him as he was looking over my shoulder for every lesson! The course content was excellent and well balanced with outstanding presentation by both Zac and David. Appreciated the presenters' objectives of focusing on key concepts rather than every miniscule detail for this introductory course. Of particular interest were the numerous on location interviews with field experts relating to the many aspects of mountain geology, landscape, biodiversity, climate, populations etc. I very much enjoyed the scenic backdrops from all over the world and highly recommend this course in order for each new learner to, in some small way, contribute as a steward of the fabulous world in which we are privileged to live. We have a road trip planned for the Canadian Rockies for summer 2017, making this a very timely course presentation for us. The end of lesson tech tips will come in handy for our adventure this summer...and a real plus given that Parcs Canada's Discovery Pass offers free admission to Canada's Sign up and enjoy the course!

I really enjoyed this course. I have learned a lot from this course. I am starting Intro to Physical geography at Wilfrid Laurier in Sept 2017 and surface of the Earth - geology course in Jan 2018, though a program called Access to University, with the faculty of Arts and The working Centre for non traditional students to pay for 5 courses and books. I will be 53 this year and most courses I took were medical courses, biology, anatomy... some engineering and electronics. I took this course to prepare myself as I go into an area completely unfamiliar to me. Who knows perhaps I will develop a new passion and continue on in Geography and possibly do the geomatics option. I think this course is a wonderful course to help prepare a student, everyone was very knowledgeable and all looked excited to share their knowledge. I think the only complaint I would have is that after 12 weeks I was getting tired of the opening music and wished for something different; therefore if that is the only complaint I have you know that you will enjoy this course. I have never been out west and now I more then ever want to travel there.

It is an interesting course full of the best proffesional about each aim or them. I apreciate a lot the tips section because all the people who want to explore the mountains by themselves must to know everything which was explain in that section.

I would like to tell you one advice (from my point of view): I only want to highlight some questions about the final lesson quizs because I think you have chosen good questions but they could be even better. I want to mean questions more focus on mountains science and not in what was the date of some event or something like that.

Congratulation to all the groups what have been working so hard to do such a good job and refresh-teach society how important are those colosals and georgeous parts of the Earth Mother The final comment is that I could understand so well the English even being Spanish talker.

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It was a wonderful lerning experience for me. The content was great, the videos and lessessons were very enjoyable and enlightening. Bravo to the teams who created this couse, well done and thank you.