ANTH 179: Environmental Anthropology
Professor Luis Vivanco, Spring 2008
Course Format and Requirements
This course is first and foremost an ANTHROPOLOGY course. I expect every student to engage substantively with the theoretical and ethnographic content of this course, and I will assume a basic anthropological background. We will spend considerable time exploring what socio-cultural anthropologists have to say about human-nature relations and therefore your grade will depend on the extent to which you engage with anthropological concepts and material.
This course is largely participatory, and therefore carries with it certain opportunities and obligations. Although we will periodically have lectures, guests, and films the in-class portions of this course are organized primarily around interactive activities, discussion of the readings, and the broader themes raised by course materials. Therefore, it is essential that each of you comes to class prepared, which means having done the assigned readings before every class session and considered the issues you would like to contribute to discussion. Needless to say, attendance is mandatory at all course activities, and the only excused absences are for family or health emergencies (with proof).
You will be graded on the following:
Assignment |
% of grade |
Class Attendance and Participation |
10 |
Debate and Post-Debate Write-up |
20 |
Reading Quizzes |
20 |
Research Project |
40 |
Collaborative Poster |
10 |
Debate and Write-up
We will hold three in-class debates on controversial topics, including the status of traditional ecological knowledge in environmental management, the role of population growth in environmental degradation, and conflicts around biodiversity conservation. I will assign each of you to a debate topic during the first or second week of class. You will work in a small group to come up with a position and then your group will present that position formally to the class (each person must present a 3-minute statement). After your debate, you as an individual have one week to write a minimum 3-page memo articulating your position on this debate (it does not have to be the one I assigned you to represent in class). In this paper you must refer to at least two course readings that are relevant to the topic.
Reading Quizzes
It is essential that you keep up on the reading assignments because they provide crucial background on the issues we will cover in class. Toward the end of each problem unit (except Problem #1), we will have a brief (10 minute) open-note (but not open-book) multiple choice quiz on the readings assigned during that unit. Quizzes do not draw from recommended readings, only required readings. If you miss class and have not cleared it ahead of time with me, you cannot make up the quiz. If it is an excused absence, you can retake the quiz during my office hours.
Research Project
During the semester you will undertake research on a local environmental issue (*) and produce a 10-12 page essay on it. There will be several steps involved in producing this essay, each representing a percentage of the total assignment grade:
We will discuss the requirements and subtleties of each step throughout the semester.
* The geographic area of this assignment is Northern Vermont. You should choose from one of the following topical categories:
Your papers must:
Collaborative Poster
Building on your research paper, you will create a poster with somebody else in the class who is working on a similar topic. The two of you will present this collaborative poster to the rest of class on May 7. The goal of this assignment is for you to 1) share your findings with others in the class and 2) articulate your findings and draw comparisons and contrasts with a similar project.
Course Policies
There are no excuses for the two following problems: 1) late papers due to computer crashes, and 2) poor spelling and grammar. Regarding the former, claiming a “computer crash” is the essentially the same as telling me that your dog ate your homework. This is not a valid excuse if you are backing up your materials on hard drives or the UVM mainframe. If indeed this has happened, I expect you to provide a note from a computer specialist explaining the problem; otherwise your late paper will be evaluated in terms of my late paper policy. Regarding the latter problem, use your spellcheck option and proofread – I will mark you down for poor spelling and grammar.
My policy on late papers and other work is that I do not accept them, although I will make an exception if you are willing to receive a lower grade. Written work is due in class. Anything not turned in during class is late, and for every 24 hour period your paper is late, you drop a full grade from the grade I feel your paper would receive if it were not late. For example, if your 'A' paper is not turned in at class, you will receive a 'B' if it is turned in within the next 24 hours. The next day, your grade drops to a 'C.' The day after that, it is a 'D.' If you turn in a paper late and expect to receive a non-reduced grade, you must provide evidence of an emergency.
Policy on Religious Holidays
University policy states that if you plan to miss a class during the semester because of a religious holiday, you must submit to me in writing a religious holiday schedule for the semester by the end of the second full week of classes. Students who miss work for the purpose of religious observance are permitted to make up this work.