Our Class
While all of us are involved with the University of Vermont and the Rubenstein School of the Environment and Natural Resources or the Gund Institute for Ecological Economics, how we got here, our interests in this project, and our specific roles within the class are quite varied. Below is a little introduction to each of us and the part we played in our discovery of the Camisea pipeline.
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Our fearless leader, Saleem, is an Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies at the University of Vermont, and the Rubenstein School of Natural Resources and is on the adjunct faculty of the Watson Institute for International Studies at Brown University. Professor Ali received his doctorate in Environmental Planning from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), an M.E.S. in environmental law and policy from Yale University, and his Bachelors in Chemistry from Tufts University (summa cum laude). His research focuses on the causes of environmental conflicts between indigenous communities and mining companies and has authored a new book, Mining, the Environment and Indigenous Development Conflicts (published the University of Arizona Press, fall 2003). Dr. Ali led the class in the establishment of a conflict mediation matrix outlining the desired outcomes for all stakeholders in the Camisea Project with the hope of bringing these groups together for a mediation workshop at the conclusion of the course. |
Our co-leader, and equally as fearless, Roel is an Assistant professor at the Gund Institute For Ecological Economics, and the Rubenstein School of Natural Resources at the University of Vermont. Dr. Boumans received his doctorate degree in 1994 as an ecosystem ecologist at the Department of Oceanography and Coastal Systems at Louisiana State University and his BA in Biology and MA in Landscape Ecology at the Universiteit van Amsterdam. His research focuses on the valuation of ecosystem services, and prior research has included the development of a STELLA model that estimates the value of rainforest services in Brazil. Professor Boumans led the class in the adaptation of the inputs in this model to determine the value of the ecosystems surrounding the Camisea pipeline and its associated infrastructure in order to determine the value of the ecosystem impacts that the project will entail. |
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I am currently pursuing a docorate degree from the Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources at the University of Vermont. I am interested in looking at the role of ecological literacy and the use of media to increase people's understanding of environmental issues. I am also interested in looking at the role of ecological economics in mutli-criteria decision-making, and will use the Camisea Pipeline Project as a case study. I received my MA in Environmental Studies from Brown University in the Spring of 2004. I am the teaching assistant for this class, and will continue work on this project as part of my dissertation. |
I am a Masters student at the University of Vermont in the Aquatic Ecology and Watershed Science program. My work is focused on the effects of stormwater runoff on small urban streams. Prior to beginning graduate school in the fall of 2003, I held a variety of professional positions involving environmental policy, enforcement, assessment, and research. For the class I am working on developing the ecological valuation based on the projected impacts that the pipeline construction and associated infrastructure (as well as future migration impacts) will have on the surounding environments. |
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I am a junior Natural Resources Planning major in the Rubenstein School
of Environment and Natural Resources. My interests are in international human rights, primarily the rights of indigenous peoples. I am currently working on projects concerning the land rights of the Botswana San Peoples. I was attracted to this course because of its comprehensive and cross-disciplinary approach to understanding the conflict between large-scale energy development projects and indigenous peoples and the role of international financial institutions in these situations. My roles in the class were to collaborate on the ecological economics valuation assessment and complete a legal assessment of the rights of the indigenous peoples. When I am not working on natural resource related projects, I love to be out hiking in Vermont's gorgeous Green Mountains. |
I am a Masters student at the Rubenstein School of the Environment and Natural Resources. I recieved my Bachelors degree at Franklin Marshall College in environmental science. My current research is looking at alternative mechanisms for community decision making and consensus building on difficult water quality issues. My role in the Camisea project was to create this kickin' Web site and provide assistance to create the framework for the documentary. This class has allowed me to see environmental conflict from a global perspective. I hope to someday get to Peru to see the Amazon Basin in person. |
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I am a PHD student in Natural Resources program. I am from Beijing and got my Bachelor Degrees (Environmental Sciences and Economics) from Peking Univ. ( Beijing Univ.). My dissertation project focuses on the indigenous people and the development of mining industry and tourism in Yunnan province which is in southwest China. I am taking this class because it also deals with the relationship between local people and extractive industry as well as the benefit share among indigenous groups and broader public in the country. I am working in the mediation group for the class and trying to identify possible environmental impacts of the pipeline and relate them to the protesting groups’ priorities. Is the picture my home? No, it is an eco-resort I once visited. Anyway, it is a traditional house in northern China, which is rare in this modern age. |
I am a Masters student in Natural Resource Planning at the Rubenstein School of the Environment and Natural Resources. I recieved my Bachelors Degree in Biology and Geography from Colgate University in 1999. Prior to starting at the University of Vermont I worked as an environmental consultant in Washington, DC, focusing specifically on greenhouse gas emissions and stratospheric ozone issues. I took this class becuase I was interested in seeing ecological economics in action, especially in an international context. I am in the media group in this class, and thus am helping to shape the direction that the documentary is moving, as well as persuing other avenues of gaining media attention for this project, such as this Web site. I am pictured here with my adopted Australian Shepherd, Blaze. |
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I am a Masters Student in the Rubenstein School of the Environment and Natural Resources studying Natural Resources Planning. I have a Bachelors Degree in Business Management from Purdue University. My area of interest is in progressive or ecological economics and I am currently involved in the Burlington Currency Project, a project strengthening the local economy through the creation of a separate local currency. I am interested in sustainable energy and wanted to take this opportunity to explore the current oil and gas industry in detail. Within the class I am examining the financing of the Camisea project and the various influences that result from particular financing partnerships. |
I am a graduate student in the Natural Resources Planning program at the University of Vermont. I obtained a Bachelor of Science from Cornell University in 2000. My current studies at UVM focus on the intersection of natural resource conservation and sustainable community development. This class was especially interesting to me because it focused on the processes of ecosystem valuation and conflict mediation in the contexts of a developing nation and the oil and gas extractive industry; few of my classes up to this point have utilized a hands-on, real world approach to learning. My role in the class is to determine the stakeholders and conflicts of the Camisea pipeline and to develop a framework for conflict mediation. |
