Class #14, 4/29/13

Last Class!

**Final Exam next week (May 6), same time, same place.

For tonight:

**Hand in and briefly discuss your project papers.

**Brief overview of exam content and expectations, and questions.

**Return remaining weekly reflections.

**Dismiss.

Class #13, 4/22/13

**Exam date?

**Renewing the earth--see and discuss previous post.

**Due tonight:  from Chapter 9, "Race, Class and Gender"--Read:
------>Westra, "The Earth Charter," pp 606ff.

**Discussion of tonight's reading.

** For next week:
------>Due:  Nature observation project!  Questions?
------>General exam prep; hand back assignments.

Something worth discussing

Here is welcome news about some efforts that a group of individuals from Michigan is spearheading--to recover ancient strains of tree life and begin planting new groves of these either endangered or now-lost species.

Here's the news item.

Here's the website.

Like the famous Methuselah trees, these old redwoods and other species will also help reverse the narrowing of the number of tree species commonly seen around the country, planted at the hands of developers and municipal/park system planners with good intentions but little imagination and environmental sophistication.

Class #12, 4/15/13

Due tonight: **For next week: From Chapter 11, Economics, Sustainability and Response--
------>Rees, "Sustainable Development: Economic Myths and Global Realities," pp 661ff;
------>Pojman, "The Challenge of the Future...," pp 735ff
------>Foresman, "Strategic Monkeywrenching," pp 747ff
------>Martin, "Ecosabotage and Civil Disobedience," pp 751ff
Write a page: Summarize the main points in Martin's argument.

**Examination/discussion over the radical side of environmentalism.

**One more document to look at, on EcoAnarchism (handout).

**For next week: from Chapter 9, "Race, Class and Gender"--Read:
------>Westra, "The Earth Charter," pp 606ff.

Class #11, 4/8/13

**Due this week: From Chapter 8, Climate Change--
------>Pew Center, "Understanding the causes of Global Climate Change," pp 413ff
------>Gardiner, "Ethics and Global Climate Change," pp 437ff.
Writing: Go to Bjorn Lomborg's website, lomborg.com, and survey what he says about climate change and environmentalism in general. Compare his critique with that of Gardiner. Who's right?

**Some discussion on climate change positions today.

**Carbon Footprint quizzes and discussion.

**Group work on global priorities.

**For next week: From Chapter 11, Economics, Sustainability and Response--
------>Rees, "Sustainable Development: Economic Myths and Global Realities," pp 661ff;
------>Pojman, "The Challenge of the Future...," pp 735ff
------>Foresman, "Strategic Monkeywrenching," pp 747ff
------>Martin, "Ecosabotage and Civil Disobedience," pp 751ff
Write a page: Summarize the main points in Martin's argument.

Class #10, 4/1/13

**Due tonight:   From Chapter 9:  "Pollution:  Soil Air Water."  Read:

------>French, "You Are What You Breathe,"  pp 314ff

------>Bradford, "We All Live in Bhopal," pp 322ff

------>Baxter, "People or Penguins...," pp 327ff

Write:

------>The oil company British Petroleum and its partners have spent billions of dollars to clean up the effects of the Gulf of Mexico spill and to compensate both individuals and governmental bodies for their losses and expenses relating to the accident.  Do you feel that the punishments have been just and that enough has been done to prevent and deter further carelessness in the extraction of energy resources?  

**Discussion of readings and tonight's topic.

**Here are links to some of the videos related to tonight's lesson--
------>On the Bhopal tragedy:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TT4lz4hzPWQ
------>On the Pacific trash vortex,  #1:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xc6LvdsyJ4U
------>and #2:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5yiPZNsW8fI
------>On another type of pollution--from diet and medicine:  http://www.ted.com/talks/award_winning_teen_age_science_in_action.html
  

**Feedback/sharing on  progress with nature observation.

**For next week, 4/8/13:  From Chapter 8, Climate Change--

------>Pew Center, "Understanding the causes of Global Climate Change," pp 413ff

------>Gardiner, "Ethics and Global Climate Change," pp 437ff.

Writing:  Go to Bjorn Lomborg's website, lomborg.com, and survey what he says about climate change and environmentalism in general.  Compare his critique with that of Gardiner.  Who's right?  

Class #9, 3/25/13

**Due this week:   Still from Chapter 5:  "Population and Hunger."  Read:
------>Hardin, "Lifeboat Ethics," pp 296ff
------>Murdoch and Oates, "Population and Food...," pp 306ff
Writing: 
------>About a page:  Why do you think it's important to settle the question of whether there is actually enough food to prevent starvation in the world, or, if not, then is Hardin' solution the only just one? 

**Discussion of readings.

**Assessment of correlation between governmental corruption and hunger.  We'll use the index compiled on transparency.org.

**For next week:  From Chapter 9:  "Pollution:  Soil Air Water."  Read:

------>French, "You Are What You Breathe,"  pp 314ff

------>Bradford, "We All Live in Bhopal," pp 322ff

------>Baxter, "People or Penguins...," pp 327ff

Write:

------>The oil company British Petroleum and its partners have spent billions of dollars to clean up the effects of the Gulf of Mexico spill and to compensate both individuals and governmental bodies for their losses and expenses relating to the accident.  Do you feel that the punishments have been just and that enough has been done to prevent and deter further carelessness in the extraction of energy resources?