Urban and Environmental Policy Program
ENV
101
ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIETY
Fall
2003
Monday and Wednesday 3:30-4:55 PM
Environment and
Society (ENV.
101) is an
introductory course on the environment. It
is designed for students with an interest in environmental issues who might want
to pursue further studies in Urban and Environmental Policy as well as for those
interested in the topic even though they may be pursuing another major.
The course will include lectures and presentations in different topical
areas; films and speakers that provide insight into the nature of environmental
problems and their possible solutions; and class discussions, presentation
sessions, and short essays on the readings and topics.
Class time will be
divided into different segments, including lectures, speakers and films, and
class discussions on the readings and assigned topical issues.
The readings will consist of a few texts available in the bookstore as
well as an Environment 101 reader to be accessed on line.
There will be one
introductory session on background issues to the Environment and Society theme
and four topical areas for the class that broadly encompass ways to understand
and conceptualize environmental issues, while providing different kinds of
perspectives on the environment. These topical areas include:
ENVIRONMENT AND SOCIETY
(Introductory session: How environmental and social issues intersect;
identifying your ecological footprint)
TRANSPORTATION AND
FREEWAYS (freeways in our lives – and possible alternatives of how to get
where you want to go)
FOOD (where our food
comes from and how it is manufactured and sold)
NATURE IN THE CITY (the
urban environment)
MATERIALS, WASTES AND
HAZARDS (sources and impacts of pollution)
For each area there will
be specific readings, and one or more lectures, speakers, and/or films. There
will also be four presentation teams for each of the topical areas (there
won’t be a presentation tem for the introductory session). Since there are
several different topical areas, the readings, discussions, and presentations
are designed to introduce important entry points for the broader discussion of
environment and society. Presentation teams are encouraged to develop an
imaginative and lively session to capture key issues and arguments. (All
students will undertake an “ecological footprint” analysis for the first
session in lieu of a presentation team for Session #1). Field trips are also an
option for the presentation team (for example, experiencing – and evaluating
-- a ride on the new Gold Line light rail from downtown Los Angeles to
Pasadena). For the food team, I’m exploring the possibility of having the
presentation team meet with students from Eagle Rock High School to discuss,
debate, and come up with recommendations about the upcoming Los Angeles school
district’s “soda ban” and how Eagle Rock High School could respond. The
Eagle Rock students will also be reading and discussing Fast
Food Nation that’s also on our reading list. Other presentation teams are
welcome to identify similar kinds of collaborations, field trips, or interactive
type sessions for their presentations.
By
November 5, students will need to decide which of the two options they would
like to select for their major assignment of the semester.
Options include 1) a take home, full length (10-12 pages) written final
examination on a particular topical area; or 2) a research paper (approximately
10-12 pages in length, although it could be longer) involving specific issues or
questions associated with one of the five topical areas. A memo will be due on
that day identifying which of the two options the student has selected, the
topical area and/or research topic for the paper, and a bit of background
regarding the choice. Depending on the size of the class, students will also
have an opportunity to present their findings and conclusions for their major
assignment. There will also be four essay assignments on the readings, one for
each of the topic areas. Grades will be evaluated in terms of participation in
the class discussions and presentation sessions (33%), and the written
assignments, including the research paper or final exam (which includes the
ability to meet deadlines as well as extra credits for a presentation) and the
essays related to the readings (67%).
Introductory
Session: Environment and Society: How Are
They Connected
September 3-September 15
Readings
“Ecological
Footprint Accounts: Moving Sustainability from Concept to Measurable Goal,”
Ecological Footprint Evaluation, Redefining Progress, at www.myfootprint.org
“Green
Living in a Toxic World: The Pitfalls and Promises of Everyday
Environmentalism,” Marcy Darnovsky, Chapter 12 in Reclaiming the
Environmental Debate, edited by Richard Hofrichter, pp. 219-237
“Environmental
Crisis in the City: The Relationship Between Industrialization and Urban
Pollution,” chapter 2 in Effluent America: Cities, Industry, Energy, and
the Environment, Martin Melosi, pp. 23-48
“Environmentalism
Unbound: Joining the Social and the Ecological and the Role of the New
Environmental History,” Robert Gottlieb, Paper Presented to the American
Society for Environmental History, March 21, 2002
Topic
#1: Transportation and Land Use: Are We Forever Auto-Dependent?
September 17-October 1
Readings
Cars and SUVs
“The
Joys of Automobility,” Melvin Webber, in The Car and the City, edited
by Martin Wachs, pp. 274-284
Car
Free Day, September, 22, 2003, http://www.carbusters.org/wcfd/EUpaper.php;
plus “Europe relishes car-free day,” “Montgomery to go car-free,” “18
localities take part in car-free day.”
“Traffic
at a Crawl? Some are Saying that’s Good News,” Caitlin Liu, Los
Angeles Times, July 31, 2003
“A
Regulator Takes Aim at Hazards of S.U.V.s,” Danny Hakim, New
York Times, December 22, 2002
“In
the Debate on S.U.V.s, There’s a New Casualty Count,” Danny Hakim, New
York Times, March 2, 2003
“Study
Questions Safety of SUVs,” Myron Levin, Los
Angeles Times, February 18, 2003
“Grudging Nod to Hybrid SUVs,” Ariana Huffington, Los Angeles Times, January 9, 2003
“Did
My Car Join Al Qaeda,” Woody Hochswender, New
York Times, February 16, 2003
“SUV Surge Driving Out Small Parking
Lots,” Hugo Martin, May 21, 2002
“Buyers
Seeing Less Utility in Big SUVs,” John O’Dell, Los
Angeles Times, April 1, 2003
Urban Design, Urban Revival, and Sprawl
Eco-Economy:
Building an Economy for the Earth, Lester Brown, Chapter 9, “Redesigning Cities for People,” pp.
187-208
“The
Crossings: Mountain View, California,” in Solving Sprawl: Models of Smart
Growth in Communities Across America, F. Kaid Benfield, Jutka Terris, Nancy
Vorsanger, pp. 96-99
“Creating a Healthy Environment: The Impact of the Built
Environment on Public Health,” Richard Jackson and Chris Kochtitsky, Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention, Sprawl Watch Clearinghouse Monograph Series
City
Routes, City Rights: Building Livable Neighborhoods and Environmental Justice by
Fixing Transportation, Conservation Law Foundation, pp. 3-17
“Hopes
for Urban Revival Ride on L.A.-Pasadena Line,” Kurt Streeter and Tina Daunt, Los
Angeles Times, July 26, 2003
Emission
Standards and Alternative Fuel Vehicles
“Government
Should Steer Clear of the Fuel Economy Issue,” William Niskanen and Peter Van
Doren, Los Angeles Times, March 1,
2002
“Detroit
and California Rev Their Engines Over Emissions,” Danny Hakim, New
York Times, July 28, 2002
“Fuel
Economy Hit 22-Year Low in 2002,” Danny Hakim, New
York Times, May 3, 2003
“Mileage
is Job No. 1,” Daniel Becker, Los
Angeles Times, June 13, 2003
“GM
Jolts Electric Vehicle Market,” John O’Dell, Los
Angeles Times, July 5, 2002
“Peter
Buys an Electric Car,” Peter Horton, Los
Angeles Times Magazine, June 8, 2003
“Solo
in the Carpool Lane but Stuck at the Pump,” Hugo Martin, Los
Angeles Times, December 24, 2003
“A
First Step to Cutting Reliance on Oil,” Tom Redburn, New
York Times, December 15, 2002
“A
Bad Element,” Robert Kennedy Jr., New
York Times, February 16, 2003
Topic
#2: Materials, Wastes and Hazards:
Sources and Impacts of Pollution
Readings:
Materials
Materials
Matter: Toward a Sustainable Materials Policy, Kenneth Geiser, (Chapter 1, “Material
Incompatibilities”), pp. 1-15
The
U.S. Paper Industry and Sustainable Production, Maureen Smith (“Nonwood Fiber Resources for Paper”), pp. 89-105
“Designing
a New Materials Economy,” Lester Brown in Eco-Economy: Building an Economy
for the Earth, pp. 121-143
Air Pollution
“Of
Polar Bears and Pollution,” Marla Cone, Los
Angeles Times, June 19, 2003
“Smog:
The Urban Syndrome”, in Richard Turco, Earth Under Siege, pp. 139-156
“Air
Pollution Harmful to Babies, Fetuses, Studies Say,” Gary Polakovic, Los Angeles Times, December 16, 2001
“Research
Links Air Pollution to Lung Cancer,” Gary Polakovic, Los
Angeles Times, March 6, 2002
“Studies
Link Heart Attacks to Moderate Air Pollution,” Marla Cone,
Los Angeles Times,
June 5, 2000
“Smog
Woes Back on Horizon,” and “Smog Fighters out of Weapons,” Gary Polakovic,
Los Angeles Times, July 15 and 16, 2003
“Californians
Are Willing to Pay for Cleaner Air, Poll Finds,” Miguel Bustillo, Los Angeles Times, July 10, 2003
Diesel