J298 Clash: Contested Terrain, Conflicting Interests : Telling Environmental Stories that Matter

For this course, think of potential stories in the broadest sense—embracing all of the ways that humankind interacts with the natural world, including but not limited to ecosystem preservation, alteration, degradation, and restoration; urbanization and industrialization; climate change; genetic engineering; agriculture, resource extraction, the use of public lands, air and water pollution; overpopulation, extinction, the subjugation of other species; waste generation, disposal, and conversion; energy production and distribution; along with the effects any of these might have on human health, community vitality, and social justice. Whatever your story turns out to be, we will pay close attention to the role of cultural factors, by which I mean, ideas, attitudes, values, beliefs, financial interests, histories, habits, appetites, as well as how all of these evolve, clash, and conspire within the context of public institutions (city councils, courts, legislatures, regulatory agencies, etc.) and social organizations (from neighborhoods, communities, and societies to activist and education groups, labor unions, and corporations). Every environmental story can tell us something about who we are and where we’re going. Every big environmental story sheds light on the human condition.