Copes badly in this place, where life is (9)
I believe the answer is:
ecosphere
'where life is' is the definition.
The definition suggests a singular noun which matches the answer.
'copes badly in this place' is the wordplay.
'badly' is an anagram indicator (letters in the wrong order).
'in this place' becomes 'here' (synonyms).
'copes' with letters rearranged gives 'ecosp'.
'ecosp'+'here'='ECOSPHERE'
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for ecosphere that I've seen before include "Region where life is possible" , "Core sheep (anag.)" , "Parts of the earth where life can exist" , "Region of planet where life exists" .)