Course Descriptions

ENV_POL 211: Food and Society: An Introduction

Overview of past and present food systems from a sociological perspective,
examining the role of culture, government policy, and social movements in shaping such systems and future alternatives.

Taught with SOC 211; students may not receive credit for both courses.

ENV_POL 212: Environment and Society

Overview of the interactions between societies and the natural environment. Examines both key environmental problems, like climate change and oil spills, and possible solutions, and the roles played by different social structures and groups in shaping both issues.

Taught with SOC 212; students may not receive credit for both courses.

ENV_POL 261: American Religion, Ecology and Culture

The historical rise of environmentalism in American culture and its impact on religious thought and practice.

Taught with REL 261; students may not receive credit for both courses.

ENV_POL 309: American Environmental History

This course will survey American history from the colonial era to the present with two premises in mind: that the natural world is not simply a passive background to human history but rather an active participant, and that human attitudes toward nature are both shaped by and in turn shape social, political, and economic behavior. The course will cover formal schools of thought about the natural world - from transcendentalism to the conservation and environmental movements - but also discuss the many informal intersections of human activity and natural systems, from European colonialism to property regimes, migration and transportation, industry, consumer practices, war, technological innovation, political ideology, and food production.

Taught with History 309; students may not receive credit for both courses.

ENV_POL 311: Food, Politics and Society

This course looks closely at how different social groups, institutions and policies shape the ways food is produced, distributed and consumed in different parts of the world, especially the United States, and the social and environmental consequences of such a process. We look at the dramatic growth of factory farming and the social and political factors lying behind such rise, and alternatives such as sustainable farming, Farmers' Markets, and local food aspects of the food systems we examine, and the social actors and policies giving rise to such alternatives.

Taught with SOC 311; students may not receive credit for both courses. 

ENV_POL 332: Native American and Environmental Politics

Focus on Native Americans, culture and cultural processes, and environmental decision making. Emphasis on contemporary Native American cultures and relevant research. Prerequisite: PSYCH 110.

Taught with PYSC 332; students may not receive credit for both courses.

ENVR_POL 336: Climate Change, Policy and Society

Examination of main impacts of climate change and of different perspectives toward mitigation and adaptation: market based, institutionalist, bio-environmentalist, social movement, and climate justice.

Taught with SOCIOL 336; may not receive credit for both courses.

ENVR_POL 340: Global Environments and World History

An introductory course exploring the recent histories of environmental problems around the world, including urbanization, industrialization, population growth, commodification, empire-building, intercontinental warfare, energy extraction, and new technologies.

Taught with History 376-0; students may not receive credit for both courses.

ENVR_POL 390: Special Topics in Environmental Policy and Culture

Lecture course on environmental issues of current interest to students and faculty. May be repeated for credit with different topic. Recent examples follow.

US Environmental Law and Policy

This course provides an introduction to central aspects of U.S. environmental law and policy. It covers a wide range of environmental topics including water, air pollution, and bio-diversity. We will focus on national environmental policy as implemented through major federal environmental statutes. In order to cover a variety of topics, the course will include lectures, skill sharing sessions, discussions and case studies. The course is designed for students with a personal or professional interest in the environment, policy development, law, business, science and/or engineering. This course counts toward the Weinberg College social and behavioral sciences distribution requirement, Area III.

Environmental Justice

This topic is titled "Environmental Justice: Environmental Protection and Social Equity". This course will begin by examining evidence that there is not equal environmental protection in this country and by analyzing why this inequality exists. Course participants will then review initiatives by activists, regulators and regulated polluters to respond to evidence of environmental injustice, with special attention to the perspectives of grassroots organizations, the U.S. EPA and its state counterparts, and businesses that operate where the problems are most severe. The course will conclude by reviewing the most effective environmental justice strategies to achieve a safe and healthful environment for all, including initiatives emerging from the Obama Administration. 

Cultural Resource Management and Environmental Politics

Why is it important that we save significant cultural places, landscapes, practices, and artifacts? This will be the focal question of this class. Through the next 10 weeks we will explore this question and gain a better understanding of what makes something culturally significant and the laws and policies that govern cultural resources such as architecture, historical personages, local history, landscapes and ecosystems, and language and cultural knowledge.

This course will explore cultural aspects of environmental resource policy, covering the history of cultural resource management in the United States including the National Historic Preservation Act, language and cultural preservation, Native American sovereignty, mitigating natural resources, cultural patrimony, and Traditional Cultural Properties. We will also discuss ethical issues that arise from multiple perspectives of culturally significant landscapes, places, beliefs and practices. The course will examine the main debates around protecting and preserving cultural and natural resources. Selected case studies will be utilized as both a focus for, and to facilitate, class discussions. Readings will include four books and selected articles relevant to the course.

Dr. Eli Suzukovich III is an anthropologist and lecturer in EPC.

Wilderness in American History

This seminar will review the history of wilderness in America, both in the broad sense of wilderness as a general term meaning “pristine” or “uninhabited” nature and in the specific sense of wilderness as the highest level of protection for public lands managed by the federal government. We will consider the role that the concept of wilderness has played in the conservation and environmental movements, and the ways that it both grounds those movements and pushes them in problematic directions. Finally, we will consider the abstract issues of wilderness in terms of specific wilderness areas in the late-twentieth-century United States.

ENVR POL 394 Professional Linkage Seminars

Seminar courses led by practitioners in the Environmental Policy and Culture fields. May be repeated for credit with different topic.

International Environmental Organizations: Agents of Change

This seminar will explore the provenance, legitimacy, and influence of environmental non-governmental organizations (ENGOs) that have emerged as important international players over the last half century. ENGOs educate the public, pioneer innovative solutions to environmental problems, participate in public dialogues, and advocate environmentally sound decisions in courts, governmental policy forums and legislatures.

How do they influence international and domestic environmental policy, undertake important conservation efforts, and promote responsible behavior by governments, multilateral entities, corporations and populations? What are their specific activities, missions, funding sources and governance? How do governments oversee and regulate their activities? Through iterative dialogue, student research and presentations, we will evaluate the effectiveness of these important players as measured by their own goals, and compared to the other major players — sovereign states, multilateral organizations, and transnational corporations.

 

ENV_POL 395: Special Topics Seminars

Seminar on current environmental issues and problems. Topics vary. May be repeated for credit with different topic.

 

ENVR POL 399: Independent Study

Independent project in student’s area of interest. Readings and conferences.

Comprehensive term paper required. Prerequisite: consent of program director.