Urban and Environmental Policy Program
Professor
Martha Matsuoka
Office hours: Monday/Wednesday 2:00 – 3:00
(Room 201, UEPI) and by appointment
Phone: (323) 259-2971; (323) 293-1919
email: matsuoka@oxy.edu
Environment
and Society 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 about the nature of environmental problems and
their possible solutions; and class discussions, presentation sessions, and
short essays.
Students
will each select an issue area and work individually and in small groups to
focus on selected topic areas, their interrelatedness and the policy context in
which each exist. Class time will
be divided into different segments, including lectures, speakers and films, and
class discussions on the readings and assigned topical issues.
Most readings will accessible online through the electronic reserves in
the library.
The
course will cover four topic areas for the class that encompass different ways
to understand and frame environmental issues. These areas include:
For each topic area there will be specific
readings, lectures, speakers, and/or films.
As an introductory class, the materials covered will be broad and the
readings, discussions, and presentations are designed to introduce important
entry points for the broader discussion of environment and society.
Grades will be based on the following:
1.
Participation in class (25% of grade)
Participation and
active engagement in class discussions is core to the course and to your grade.
Students are expected to do the reading on time, participate in class
discussions and complete writing assignments on time.
Participation in class means of course, that you must attend and that you
must be on time.
2.
Reflection Essays (3)
Students will
write three 2-4 page essays. While
I will not grade these essays, they are required and students will receive
credit for them. These essays are due, emailed to me by class time on the date
indicated. Please make sure you
print out a copy for yourself as well.
1)
Reflection Essay #1: What
is the Environment and why is it Important?
Due:
Monday 1/30/06.
Students will write a 2-4 page (double
spaced) essay reflecting your current perspectives on the urban environment. Here’s
a few guiding questions that will help you think about your essay.
§
What key experiences/events/people have most shaped how you think about
the environment?
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What do you think are the key environmental conditions or issues today?
o
What do you think it would it take to address and solve these
environmental problems?
2)
Reflection Essay #2: Observations
and Insights from the Bus Tour/Field Trip.
Due Wednesday, 2/22
A 2-4 page paper that describes your
experience and thoughts about the Bus Tour.
3)
Reflection Essay #3: Earth
Day Activity
Students are required to identify/plan
and participate in a community event/action related to Earth Day (either on
campus or off) and its principles and submit a 2-4 page paper on the experience.
Students are free to choose their event/activity; I will also have a list of
suggestions and ideas.
§
Identify Earth Day activity/event to participate in: By
Monday, 4/3.
§
Participate in Earth Day event: Week of 4/17th (or event date)
§
Reflection Paper #3: Due
Monday, 4/24.
3.
Small Group Work (35% of grade)
By the end of Week 2, students will
sign up for one of the 4 topical areas to form small working groups. In
these small groups, students will:
§
Lead one 30 minute class
discussions on selected topic area (15% of grade). Each Working Group will meet together to
identify key issues and questions for class discussion and develop an outline
and necessary handouts for class discussion. Groups will review their outlines
with me before their scheduled class discussion (preferably a week before). Presentation
teams are encouraged to develop an imaginative and lively session to capture key
issues and arguments.
§
Group Presentation (20%
of grade)
Drawing on students’ individual research papers, students will work in their
small groups to develop and make a 30 minute presentation to the class.
Groups will receive a grade based on the presentation as well successful
completion of the following tasks:
1.
Meet together as a group to develop presentations
2.
Develop an outline for the group presentation. Due
4/10
3.
Develop a 30 minute presentation with relevant visuals and handout
materials. Each group will be required to submit these materials as well as
presentation outline/talking points.
4.
Research paper (40% of grade)
The paper
(approximately 10-12 pages in length, although it could be longer) focused on a
specific topic, issue or question within your topical area. Due
5/11 (finals week).
Key assignments and due dates:
·
Identify topic: By 2/22
·
Develop an annotated bibliography: By
3/8
·
Turn in draft outline of paper: By
4/5
·
Paper due: Thursday,
5/11 by 1:00 p.m. (Finals Week)
NOTE:
TO SENIOR STUDENTS
In lieu of the research paper, senior
students will conduct research and help plan for the class Landscape of LA Bus
Trip, scheduled for February 15th.
Seniors will pick a topic area of interest and work with the professor to
structure and plan the bus tour to cover the four topical areas.
Seniors will conduct research for their topical area/bus stop, develop
talking points and handouts, prepare briefing packets for the rest of the class
(due Monday 2/13) and help with logistics for the bus trip.
Seniors will meet with me before class on
Wednesday, January 25th to go over tasks and timeline.
We will meet weekly as a team to review research and plan the bus trip.
The course relies heavily on articles posted
on e-reserve in the library. The
report below is available in hard copy are available for purchase in the library
as well as downloadable in a PDF file. NOTE: There are a number of class sessions that will be held
jointly with POLS 204. For these
sessions, we will meet 4-5:30 at a classroom TBD.
Date
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Introduction
to the Course: Environment and Society: Making the Connections
How
environmental and social issues intersect; the nature and scale of
environmental problems; the range of environmental actors and
institutions; the role of policy and politics. |
Assignments/
Tasks
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Mon 1/23 |
Course
Introductions |
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Wed 1/25 |
Environment
and Society: Framing the Course “The Urban Environment,” Excerpt
from Chapter 4 of The Next Los Angeles: The Struggle for a Livable City,
Robert Gottlieb, Mark Vallianatos, Regina Freer, Peter Dreier “A World of Wounds,” and “Ten
Drivers of Environmental Education,” James Gustave Speth, Chapters 1 and
6 in Red Sky at Morning: America and the Crisis of the Global Environment,
pp. 13-22 and 119-139 “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 “Ecological
Footprint Per Person in Selected Nations, 1995,” Table 1-2, p. 11 in Vanishing
Borders: Protecting the Planet in the Age of Globalization, Hilary
French, 2000 Personal Ecological Footprint
Evaluation, Redefining Progress, at www.myfootprint.org
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Seniors students meet to discuss Bus
Tour project. |
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Topical
Area #1: Transportation, the
Built Environment, Sprawl and Freeways: Are We Forever Auto-Dependent?
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Mon 1/30 |
Development
and Sprawl “Sprawl:
The Automobile and Affording the American Dream,” Hank Dittmar, in
Sustainable Planet: Solutions for the Twenty-First Century, edited by
Juliet Schor and Betsy Taylor, pp. 109-127 “Mobility and Sprawl,” Robert
Putnam, Chapter 12 in Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American
Community, 2000, pp. 204-215 “‘Thirsty for Justice: A
People’s Blueprint for California Water. The Environmental Justice Coalition for Water.
June 2005. Chapter 1. (pp. 13-43) |
Reflections Paper #1 Sign up for Topic Area of interest. |
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Wed 2/1 |
Freeways L.A. Freeway, David Brodsly, pp. 1-59;
96-109 (in four parts) |
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Mon 2/6
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Cars
and SUVs Invited
Speaker: Malcolm Carson, Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles;
Transportation Commissioner, City of Los Angeles “The Joys of Automobility,” Melvin
Webber, in The Car and the City, edited by Martin Wachs, pp. 274-284 “Honk If You Love Quiet,” Ralph
Vartabedian, Los Angeles Times, April 22, 2004 “At $2 a Gallon, Gas is Still Worth
Guzzling,” Danny Hakim, New York Times, May 16, 2004 “Government Should Steer Clear of
the Fuel Economy Issue,” William Niskanen and Peter Van Doren, Los
Angeles Times, March 1, 2002 “Growing More Oil Dependent, One
Vehicle at a Time,” Dylan Loeb McClain, New York Times, June 20, 2004 Doonesbury on SUVs, November 2002 “Did My Car Join Al Qaeda,” Woody
Hochswender, New York Times, February 16, 2003 |
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Wed 2/8 |
Are
there alternatives? “The
People’s Freeway,” Marcus Renner, Orion, May-June 2004 “Grudging
Nod to Hybrid SUVs,” Ariana Huffington, Los Angeles Times, January 9,
2003 Eco-Economy:
Building an Economy for the Earth, Lester Brown, Chapter 9, “Redesigning
Cities for People,” pp. 187-208 City
Routes, City Rights: Building Livable Neighborhoods and Environmental
Justice by Fixing Transportation, Conservation Law Foundation, pp. 3-17 “Lots
of Hot Air About Hydrogen,” Joseph Romm, Los Angeles Times, March 28,
2004 |
Students lead topic discussion |
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Date
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Topical
Area #2:
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Assignments/ Tasks
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Mon 2/13
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Air,
Water and Climate: Pollution Management or Prevention? “Pollution
and Climate Change in a Full World,” Chapter 3 in Red Sky at Morning,
pp. 43-73 “Smog:
The Urban Syndrome”, in Richard Turco, Earth Under Siege, pp. 139-156 “Diesel:
Heavy Use and Heavy Exposures” Chapter 1; “Human Health Impacts”
Chapter 2; and “Who’s Most at Risk” Chapter 3, in Exhausted by
Diesel, Natural Resources Defense Council and the Coalition for Clean Air,
pp. 1-12 “Diesel’s
Stranglehold on Economy is Hard to Break,” Marla Cone, Los Angeles
Times, May 31, 2000 |
Seniors distribute briefing packets for
the tour |
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Wed
2/15 |
FIELD
TRIP: 10a.m. – 3:00 p.m. beginning and
ending at the Oxy fountain |
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Mon 2/20 |
HOLIDAY |
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Wed 2/22 |
Solid
Waste/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 “Voters
Seek to Block Sludge.” Patrick McGreevy. Los Angeles Times. January 2,
2006 |
Reflections Paper #2 Research paper topics identified |
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Mon 2/27 |
Meet
in Topic Groups to begin discussion of group project |
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Wed 3/1 |
Chemicals “Chemicals
in Home a Big Smog Source,” Gary Polakovic, Los Angeles Times, March 9,
2003 “Phasing
out Persistent Organic Pollutants,” Anne Platt McGinn, in State of the
World 2000, the Worldwatch Institute, pp. 79-100 “Precaution
is for Europeans,” Samuel Loewenberg, New York Times, May 18, 2003 “Toxic
Trespass,” Sharyle Patton, in One Planet,
pp. 24-26. UN Environment Programme (UNEP), Report on Women, Health
and the Environment. Vol 15,
No. 2, |
Students lead topic discussion |
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Topic
3: Nature in the City
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Mon 3/6 |
Water
and Urban Ecosystems “Los
Angeles’ Lost River,” Hilary Kaplan, The
Next American City, Issue #2, 2003 “Rediscovering
the River,” Robert Gottlieb, Orion
Afield, Spring 2002, pp. 30-33 ‘Thirsty for Justice” . Chapter 3
(pp. 71-95) |
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Wed 3/8 |
Open
and Green Space, Parks “Environmental
Costs,” Chapter 4 in Redesigning the American Lawn: A Search for
Environmental Harmony, F. Herbert Bormann, Diana Balmori, and Gordon
Geballe, 2001, pp. 66-89 “Reclaiming
the Sacred Commons,” Karl Linn, New Village Journal, Issue
1: Community Revitalization. I1999 “Anatomy of the Urban Parks Movement:
Equal Justice, Democracy, and Livability in Los Angeles,” Robert García
and Erica S. Flores. Chapter
7 in The Quest for Environmental Justice: Human Rights and the Politics
of Pollution. Robert D. Bullard, editor.
2005, pp. 145-167 |
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Mon 3/13 Wed 3/15 |
SPRING
BREAK |
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Mon 3/20 |
Reinventing
Urban and Nature: Sustainable Approaches “The
Greening of the City,” Jane Jacobs,
New York Times Magazine, May 16, 2004 “He Measures Oakland’s Beat, and
Parks Bloom in Return,” Patricia Leigh Brown, New York Times, March 21,
2004 “Energy and Smart Growth: It’s
about How and Where We Build” Funders
Network for Smart Growth and Livable Communities.
Translation Paper #15. Additional
Optional Reading: “Design with City Nature: An Overview
of Some Issues,” Michael Hough, in The Ecological City: Preserving and
Restoring Urban Biodiversity, Edited by Rutherford Platt, Rowan Rountree,
and Pamela Muick, pp. 40-48 |
Students Lead Topic Discussion. |
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Wed 3/22
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SPECIAL
SESSION: 4:00 – 5:30 p.m. Guest
Speaker: Mary Nichols,
Institute of the Environment, UCLA; President, City of Los Angeles Board
of Water and Power Commission “Thirsty for Justice”. Chapter 2 pp
45-69 |
Annotated
bibliography due |
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Topic 4:
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Mon 3/27 |
Food
Systems Invited
Speaker: Urban and Environmental Institute “Hamburger
and French Fries: The Secret Lives of Everyday Things,” John Ryan and
Alan Thien Durning, Race, Poverty
and the Environment, Winter 2000, pp. 42-44 “Calling
Fries Fresh Veggies Half-Baked, Critics Argue,” Andrew Martin, Chicago
Tribune, June 15, 2004 “The
Tomato as Agricultural Metaphor”, Lucille Salitan, Why
Magazine, Winter 1996 “Food Miles: A Simple Metaphor to Contrast Local and Global Food Systems,” Rich Pirog, Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture, Summer 2004 “Thinking Outside the Big Box: Food Access, Labor, Landuse and the Wal-Mart Way. Urban and Environmental Policy Institute. October 2004 |
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Wed 3/29 |
Organics
and Pesticides “To
Feed World’s People, Modern Practices Must Supplant Organic Fads,” Jim
Wells, Los Angeles Times, June 4, 2002 “Can an Organic Twinkie be Certified?” Joan Dye Gussow, in For All Generations: Making World Agriculture More Sustainable, edited by J. Patrick Madden & Scott Chaplowe, pp. 143-153 “Uncle
Ben: Goin’ Organic Just Like We Used to,” Jim Hightower, in Fatal
Harvest, pp. 337-339 “Big-Brand
Logos Pop Up in Organic Aisle,” Wall Street Journal, July 29, 2003 “Low
Weight of Babies is Linked to Pesticides,” Richard Perez-Pena, New
York Times, March 22, 2004 “Farmworkers
in organic agriculture: Toward a broader notion of sustainability” Sustainable
Agriculture. University
of California, Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program.
Winter-Spring 2005 (v17n1) |
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Mon 4/3 |
Alternative
Food Strategies: Conditions and Challenges “The
Soul of Agriculture,” Chapter 10, in The Fate of Family Farming:
Variations of an American Idea, Ronald Jager, pp. 220-240 Home
Grown: The Case for Local Food in a Global Market,
Brian Halwell, Worldwatch Paper No. 163, 2002 “Growers Struggle as Trade Barriers
Fall,” Los Angeles Times.
12/4/05. |
Students
lead topic discussion Sign up for Earth Day activity |
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Tying
It Together: Focus Areas
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Wed 4/5 |
Economic
Justice and the Environment SPECIAL SESSION:
4:00 – 5:30 p.m. Invited
Speaker: SCOPE and APOLLO Alliance |
Research paper outline due |
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Mon 4/10 |
Global
Trends and the Regional Environment SPECIAL SESSION:
4:00 – 5:30 p.m. Invited Speaker:
Jerilyn López Mendoza, Environmental Defense; Vice President, Harbor
Commission, City of Los Angeles. “The Greening of Ships: Can
California Stop Air Pollution Out At Sea?” Judith Lewis.
LA Weekly. December
16-22, 2005 “Ports of Cough,” William J.
Kelly. LA Weekly. September
23 – 20, 2005 “Smog Sick,” LA Weekly.
September 23 – 20, 2005 “Gov.’s Growth, Clean Air Plans
Said to Clash” Jeffrey Rabin and Deborah Schoch.
Los Angeles Times. January
7, 2006 |
Group
presentation outline draft due |
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Wed 4/12 |
Health and
the Environment SPECIAL SESSION 4-5:30 p.m. Guest Speaker:
Romel Pascual, Assistant Director of Environment, Office of the
Mayor |
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Mon 4/17 |
The Military
and the Environment SPECIAL SESSION 4-5:30 Guest Speaker: Gwyn Kirk, Women for Genuine Security “Environmental Effects of U.S.
Military ‘Security’: Gendered Experiences from the Philippines, South
Korea and Japan,” Gwyn Kirk. Forthcoming. 2006 |
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Wed 4/19 |
Tying it
Together: Class Themes
Class discussion to integrate course
themes across topic areas Meet
in small groups to prepare Group Presentations |
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Final
Group Presentations
Depending
on the class size and number of groups, presentations will last 30 minutes
with 15 minutes for class question/answer and discussion.
Each group will turn in final outlines, talking points, any
visuals, presentation slides, and handouts on the date of their
presentation. |
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Mon 4/24 |
Group Presentations |
Reflection Paper #3: Earth Day; |
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Wed 4/26
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Group Presentation |
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Mon 5/1
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Group Presentation |
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Wed 5/3
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Conclusion/Wrap
Up |
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Thurs 5/11 (Finals Week) |
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Individual research papers due. |
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