Public Policy of Conservation
& Sustainable Development
Printable Syllabus here
Biology 6250 / Political Science 6452 Section G01
(Reference Biol #14701, PolSci #14604)
Thursday, 6:55PM - 9:25PM, SSB344A
Instructors:
John Trevathan; 544 Clark; ph 314-516-6240; email: trevathanjo@umsl.edu
Office hours: M, W 11-12:30 or by appointment
Dave Robertson, 347 SSB; ph: 314-516-5836; email daverobertson@umsl.edu
Office hours: M, 1-3 or by appointment
- Description. How do our societies govern the environment? Can they do better? In Public Policy of Conservation and Sustainable Development, we focus on the challenges, the uncertainties and the different standpoints that drive our response to environmental problems. This course aims to help students (1) master key facts, concepts, and relationships in the field of sustainable development; (2) develop tools and skills for analyzing sustainable development policy and (3) apply the knowledge, tools and skills to sustainable development policy building. In the first part of the course, we analyze the cultural, historical, and institutional roots of environmental policy. In the second part, we examine the concepts and approaches to environmental policy-building. In the third part, students will apply the background knowledge and approaches to current sustainable development issues of their choice. This course should be of interest to students in conservation biology, domestic and international public policy, political science, cultural anthropology and other social sciences, education, and public policy. A prior course in ecology can be helpful but is not required.
Catalogue course description: BIO 6450 & POL SCI 6452 Public Policy Of Conservation And Sustainable Development: 3 semester hours Prerequisites: Graduate standing in Political Science or Biology and consent of instructor. Prior course in ecology is recommended. This course will introduce the student to concepts and techniques for formulating, implementing, and analyzing public policy with an emphasis on environmental concerns, conservation, and sustainable development. The course will be team taught by a political scientist and a biologist. Course materials will include case studies that demonstrate the special problems of environmental policymaking in developing and developed economies.
- Objectives. This course aims to help
- Identify, illustrate, and state the importance of key concepts and relationships in public policy, conservation, and sustainable development
- Explain the cultural, historical, and institutional roots of sustainable development and environmental policy.
- Compare and contrast distinct standpoints of individuals and institutions on environmental priorities and policy. Explain why there are different standpoints on specific policy issues.
- Explain and hypothesize about the factors that shape policymaking and policy results
- Apply facts and concepts of public policy and sustainable development to writing a white paper on a specific environmental policy problem of the student’s choice
3. Grading
The grade for the course is allocated in the following way:
Participation: 30% of the final grade
Midterm Essays: 20% of the final grade
White Paper: 50% of the final grade
The value for each final letter grade is as follows:
B+ = 87-89% C+ =
77-79% D+ = 67-69%
A
= 93% B =
83-86% C = 73-76%
D = 63-66% F = 59% / less
A- = 90-92
% B- = 80-82%
C- = 70-72% D- =
60-Less
DL = Delayed EX = Excuse FN = Failure/Non Participation
4. Books
The following books are required reading in this course. They are available at the UM-St. Louis bookstore. Be sure to purchase the most recent edition of the books:
- Susan G. Clark (originally published under the name Timothy Clark). The Policy Process: A Practical Guide for Natural Resource Professionals. New Haven: Yale University Press. 2002. Paperback. ISBN978-0-300-09012-3
- R. McNeill. Something New Under the Sun: An Environmental History of the Twentieth-Century World. New York: WW Norton. 2001. Paperback. ISBN 978-0-393-32183-8
- Participation. You must participate in this course actively in order for it to work well. You must prepare for and attend
class, you must develop and use active listening skills, and you must
contribute thoughtfully to discussion. To ensure fairness in allocating
this portion of the grade, sign-up sheets will be circulated during
some of the classes. If we invite a guest speaker, you can be certain
that your absence will reduce your grade.
Your reading assignments are listed on the attached class schedule. You are expected to read the material before coming to class, and you are expected to be prepared to discuss the reading material in class. You may be asked to discuss a question regarding the reading during the class for which the reading is assigned.
We very strongly encourage you to ask questions.
- Essays on Course Readings and Seminar Sessions.
You will write a midterm essay in response to two questions we
will hand out in class. These essays aim to measure your command
of the readings in the course. These essays combined will be a
total of no more than 8 pages. These are due by email on or by Monday April 1.|
- White Papers. Half of your grade depends on the white papers you will complete by the end of the course. You will identify an agency and write a white paper for it. More details on this assignment will be provided in readings and in class. Table 7.1 in Susan Clark’s The Policy Process (page 141) provides an outline of a white paper. We copied the outline on the following table:
THERE ARE THREE SAMPLE WHITE PAPERS FROM A PREVIOUS CLASS AVAILABLE THROUGH CANVAS:
SAMPLE WHITE PAPER 1
SAMPLE WHITE PAPER 2
SAMPLE WHITE PAPER 3
You will submit drafts of sections of the white paper on these dates
February 7 - Draft of Introduction of the White Paper due
February 21 - Draft of Problem analysis & Preliminary Bibliography of White Paper due
March 21 - Draft of Analysis of the Policy Problem & 2nd Draft of Bibliography due
April 11 - Draft of Recommendations, Part A of the White Paper due
Apr 18-May 2 - Each student presents their project to the class
May 9 - FINAL COMPLETE WHITE PAPER DUE
- Plagiarism. Plagiarism means taking the written ideas of someone else and presenting them in your writing as if they were your ideas, without giving the author credit. Plagiarism (a word which comes from the Latin word for kidnapping) is deceitful and dishonest. Violations that have occurred frequently in the past include not using quotation marks for direct quotes and not giving citations when using someone else's ideas; using long strings of quotations, even when properly attributed, does not constitute a paper of your own. Plagiarism in written work for this class is unacceptable. The University's Student Conduct Code classifies plagiarism as a form of academic dishonesty. Depending on the severity of the plagiarism, punishment can include receiving no credit for the assignment, failing the course and referral for university disciplinary action.
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Course Schedule * indicates reading or video on Canvas, “Files”
January 24 Thursday
Introductions
Discussion: Taking Different Standpoints Seriously
Discussion 1: The Stockmann Brothers
Discussion 2: Why Farmers Object to the “Waters of the United States” rule
The Dominant Social Paradigm: Using Nature for Short-Term Economic Benefit
Example: Wilderness
January 31 Thursday
A. Comments and Discussion: Introduction to Sustainable Development
Read: * UN General Assembly, “A Life With Dignity for All”
* Hempel, Concepts of Sustainability
Questions: How do you know “sustainable development” when you see it?
How do you ensure that development is sustainable?
B. Comments & Discussion:
Environmental Thought: Preservation, Conservation, Environmentalism, Environmental Justice
Read: * Latour, “War and Peace in Age of Ecological Conflicts”
C. Comments & Discussion: The Big Picture
Read: McNeill, Something New Under the Sun, pp. 3-17
February 7 Thursday
- Draft of Introduction of the White Paper due
Comments and Discussion: Introduction to the Policy Process
Read: * Scott, selection from “Seeing Like a State”
Clark, The Policy Process, pp. ix-16, 140-145.
Discussion: Biodiversity
Read: McNeill, Something New Under the Sun, pp. 192-268
Comments and Discussion: Land & Cities
Read: McNeill, Something New Under the Sun, 21-49, 269-295
February 14 Thursday
Comments and discussion: Risk
Read: * Beck, “Living in the World Risk Society”
Comments and discussion: Air & Water
Read: McNeill, Something New Under the Sun, pp. 50-191
Comments and discussion: Energy and Technology
Read: McNeill, Something New Under the Sun, pp. 298-324
February 21 Thursday
- Draft of Problem analysis & Preliminary Bibliography of the White Paper due
Comments and Discussion: Culture & Social Process
Read: Clark, The Policy Process, pp. 17-55
Comments and Discussion: Big Ideas
Read: McNeill, Something New Under the Sun, pp. 325-362
Comments and Discussion: Public Opinion and Motivated Reasoning
* Watch: Motivated Reasoning video
* Read: Downs, “The Issue-Attention Cycle”
February 28 Thursday
Comments on Politics and Government
Read: * Mazmanian & Nijaki, Sustainable Development & Governance
Comments and Discussion: Institutional Standpoints, Bureaucracy, NGOs
Discussion: Case Studies
Read: * NOx Case Study
* Bighorn Sheep & Mountain Lion case study
* The Prestige oil spill: A scientific response
* Caballero & Soto-Oņate, "Environmental crime and judicial rectification
March 7 Thursday
The Decision Process and Problem Orientation
Read: Clark, The Policy Process, pp. 55-110
March 21 Thursday
- Draft of Analysis of the Policy Problem & 2nd Draft of Bibliography of White Paper due
Discussion on the Policy Process
Read: Clark, The Policy Process, pp. 111-172
Exercise on Clark, The Policy Process, pp. 32-110
March 28 Spring Break; class does not meet
April 1 Monday
- Essays on Course Readings and Seminar Sessions due.
April 4 Thursday
Individual meetings with students on white paper
April 11 Thursday Summary
- Draft of Recommendations, Part A of the White Paper due
April 18
Thursday
Comments
Project Presentations
April 25 Thursday
Comments
Project Presentations
May 2 Thursday
Comments
Project Presentations
May 9 Thursday
- FINAL FINISHED COMPLETE WHITE PAPER DUE
Read: * O'Neill, “Global Environmental Policy Making”
Course Summary
ReRead: * UN General Assembly, “A Life With Dignity for All”
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DETAILED COURSE OUTLINES & QUESTIONS
January 23
Introductions
Syllabus
Taking Different Standpoints Seriously
How to approach controversy
The Dominant Social Paradigm
Example: Wilderness
Ecological sovereignty & nature as a set of resources