Environmental Policy Issues - Temple University

Participation Assessment

2008-12-12T08:39:00.000-08:00

Students who are enrolled in Environmental Policy Issues and Seminar in Environmental Policy during the Fall of 2008 are invited to complete the following survey related to your participation in group projects that were sponsored throughout the semester.

Click Here to take survey

Thank you for taking time to complete the survey.

Sincerely,
Michele Masucci
Instructor

Portfolio Assignment

2008-11-19T10:38:00.000-08:00

1. Identify and describe a problem of food security in a specific context of your choice. Your description of the context should include: (a) a characterization of the community or group affected, (b) the locale, institutional setting or scale of impact for that group, and (c) the category of impacts. The three categories of impacts that we have discussed in class include: (a) impacts derived from natural events that disrupt food production processes; (b) impacts that relate to contamination of food through either natural events, industrial accidents or security threats; and (c) disruptions in the distribution of food.

2. Complete an assessment of the food security based on the context described. The assessment should describe: (a)criteria that will be examined, (b) the tool, methods or approach for conducting the analysis, and (c) the outcomes or anticipated outcomes of implementing the assessment.

3. Describe a policy that would improve food security based on your assessment of the specific group or context described above. What procedures could be implemented to improve food security under different conditions? How would such procedures be adopted or implemented?

Required Portfolio elements:

2 page description of food security context
2 page description of food security assessment
2 page description of food security policy recommendation

Plus any five of the following:

Map of context plus 1 page description of what has been mapped and why it is relevant to food security
Food security assessment instrument, procedure, tool or methods
Data sets related to food security
Transcription (s) or descriptions of interviews conducted related to assessment
Field report (s) related to visits of sites related to assessment
Diagrams or model of food security concept used by project
Chart of different groups impacted and specific affects of different scenarios

We will keep adding to this list through end of the semester.

Portfolio is due at noon, Monday, December 15, 2008.

Assignment 2: Sustainable Development Practices

2008-10-29T06:25:00.000-07:00

Write a two page essay that discusses Sustainable Development practice. Your essay should address these four concerns:

1. Provide a definition of sustainable development. Explain the concept through describing a sustainable practice.

2. Who is responsible for the advancement of sustainable development practices?

3. What are the mechanisms for fostering sustained development?

4. Discuss the tension between development and environmental concerns inherent within the concept of sustainable development. How do those tensions affect policies? Provide an example to illustrate your argument.

Assignment 1: Policy Implications of Parking Day

2008-09-24T14:18:00.000-07:00

Write a two page essay that discusses the implications of Park(ing) Day on environmental policy formation and implementation. Your essay should address these four questions:

1. In what way does Parking Day serve as an impetus for the formation of environmental policy? Use Philadelphia as the context for your discussion.

2. What are the policy implications of Parking Day? Select an example to discuss in detail. Your example should be specific, but it can be one that is historic, theoretical, or actual - perhaps having been implemented in a different location than Philadelphia.

3. What would change in Philadelphia if the policy you described were to be implemented?

4. What are the best practices or lessons learned associated with the use of this policy derived from case studies, comparative studies, or demonstrations that have been described in the environmental scholarly literature?

Readings

2008-09-22T10:28:00.000-07:00

1. Chronology of Environmental Conservation Movement found at the Library of Congress

URL: http://lcweb2.loc.gov/ammem/amrvhtml/cnchron1.html

2. Mathura P. Shrestha and Indira Shrestha. 2004. Public Health Dimension of Food Security. Presented at the People’s Health Assembly in Kathmandu, October 6, 2000.

URL: http://www.phmovement.org/pdf/pubs/phm-pubs-shrestha3.pdf

3. John Pezzey and Michael Toman. 2003. Making Sense of “Sustainability.” Resources for the Future Issues Paper.

URL: http://www.rff.org/rff/Documents/RFF-IB-02-25.pdf

4. Mark Nord and Margaret Andrews. 2003. Putting Food on the Table:Household Food Security in the United States.

URL:http://www.ers.usda.gov/AmberWaves/Feb03/Features/PuttingFood.htm

5. Documents related to Food Security and Natural Hazards, Hazards Mitigation Strategies, and Global Climate Change and Hunger

Little, 2002. Building Assets for Sustainable Recovery and Food Security

Peter Schwarz and Doug Randall, 2003. An Abrupt Climate Change Scenario and its Implications for United States National Security.

Sara Scherr, 2000. A Downward Spiral? Research Evidence on the Relationship between Poverty and Natural Resource Degradation.

Dessai et al. 2003. Defining and Experiencing Dangerous Climate Change.

Obasi, 2003. Mitigation of Natural Disasters: WMO's Contributions to Societal Needs in the New Millenium.

Pratter and Linder, 2000. Politics of Hazards Mitigation.

6. Community Food Security Assessment Kit

URL: http://www.ers.usda.gov/publications/efan02013/

Course Syllabus

2008-09-22T10:20:00.000-07:00

Course Syllabus

GUS/ES 3051 Environmental Policy Issues
GUS 8055 Seminar in Environmental Studies

Instructor: M. Masucci, Ph.D., Associate Professor – Geography and Urban Studies
Email: masucci@temple.edu
Phone: 215-204-3596
Office Hours: Thursday 10 am- 2 pm or TBA
Office Location: USB 111

UNDERGRADUATE AND GRADUATE BULLITIN DESCRIPTIONS

Environmental Policy Issues (3 s.h.) Environmental Studies/GUS 1051 (C050) or 1951 (H090) or X050 or permission of instructor.

How are environmental policies formulated and implemented in the U.S.? Topics include the role of citizen participation in decision-making, the place of environmental impact assessment, environmental justice and equity, intergovernmental relations, and environmental obligations of the US toward less developed countries.

Seminar in Environmental Studies. Consideration of geography of critical environmental problems.

COURSE OVERVIEW

This course is designed as a seminar to examine contemporary policy issues impacting the environment. We will begin with a discussion the relationship between environmental values and ethics and the establishment of environmental policies. We will examine policy across geographic scales. This course will introduce the problem of food security and focus the analysis of environmental policy on addressing problems associated with food security across global, national and local scales, with an emphasis on the global-local processes that intersect which impact on food security.

This is a combined graduate and undergraduate class. Graduate students will be expected to take leadership roles in group projects, and class exercises and discussions. Also, requirements for some assignments will differ, and graduate students will be expected to complete a research paper in addition to other course assignments.

COURSE POLICIES

Plagiarism

Plagiarism is the use of other people's words or ideas without acknowledging that you have used them. It is unacceptable and will lead to failure in this course. Temple University’s policy student rights and responsibilities including plagiarism are found at:

http://www.temple.edu/bulletin/Responsibilities_rights/responsibilities/responsibilities.shtm.

Please review the policy carefully.

Dates of Importance

• Last day to Drop: Monday, September 15, 2008
• Last day to Withdraw: Monday, November 3, 2008
• Last day of Class: Wednesday, December 10, 2008
• Final Projects Due: Monday, December 15, 2008

Attendance

Class attendance and participation is mandatory. Your grade will be lowered solely on the basis of missed classes. Please adjust your schedule to prioritize attendance and preparation for this course. Late assignments will not be accepted. This policy will be strictly enforced.

Electronic Communication and Access

Email communications related to the course need to be signed by the student and include the course title in the subject heading.

A course website with relevant readings posted online and associated course blog has been established. All posts must be signed. You are responsible for all Internet-based readings assigned in class.

If you do not have adequate access to the Internet at home to support the heavy use of the Internet required in this course, please arrange your schedule to use university facilities such as the Tech Center. In addition to the Tech Center, there are a number of high-speed accessible labs located on campus. Please consult the Computer Services website for more information:

http://www.temple.edu/cs/students/index.htm.

Required Readings

Readings and interactive discussion will be posted online weekly at:

http://environmentalpolicyissues.blogspot.com/

Evaluation of Student Work and Grading

Short Papers – average of all grades is worth 25% of final grade
Class Participation and Assignments – 25% of final grade
Portfolio Presentation – 25% of final grade
Final Portfolio Project –25% of final grade
Final Grade – The final letter grade you receive will be calculated as follows:

A = 93-100%
A - = 90-92 %
B+ = 87-89 %
B = 83-86 %
B- = 80-82 %
C+ = 77-79 %
C = 73-76 %
C- = 70-72%
D = 60-69%
F = 0-59%

Attendance Impact on Final Grade

Final grades will be adjusted according to attendance in this class. Your final grade will be lowered one letter grade for the second week missed and one additional letter grade per each week missed thereafter.

COURSE TOPICS SCHEDULE

Week 1 Course Introduction

• What are environmental values and ethics?
• How are ethics related to environmental policies?
• National Parking Day project

Week 2 Environmental Policy Overview

• What is environmental policy?
• Sustainability, Social Action, and Policy Making

Week 3 National Parking Day Project Implementation

• Project implementation
• Project assessment
• Project documentation

Week 4 Introduction to Food Security Issues and Policies

• Food security as an environmental policy issue
• Multiple perspectives on defining a food security agenda

Week 5 Global-Local Food Security Issues and Policy Approaches

• Global dimensions of food distribution and access
• Local effects and mitigation strategies for accessing food

Week 6 Health and Food Security

• Hunger and poverty
• Hunger and public health
• Food security and nutrition

Week 7 Strategies for mitigating the local impacts of global climate change

• Approaches to support sustainable agricultural production
• Water use and conservation practices
• Mitigation strategies – Famine Early Warning Network

Week 8 Food Security Policy Approaches for Local Settings

• Community action strategies
• Community organizing strategies
• Local-global connections

Week 9 Food Access Simulation Exercise Introduction and Discussion

• Food security assessment toolkit
• How to implement assessments in Philadelphia

Week 10 Community Food Security Assessment Project

Week 11 Food Security Assessment Outcomes Discussion and Review

Weeks 12 – 14 Portfolio Project Workshop and Presentations

Final Portfolio Projects Due – Monday December 15, 2008