Syllabus

CDAE 195/ESCI 375
Applications of Sustainable Development

Spring, 2009
January 13-May 2, 2009

Last updated: April 25, 2008

Instructor: Jay Ashman
Office hours: Tuesday/Thursday 1-2:30 and by appointment
Telephone: 621-2093
e-mail: jay.ashman@uvm.edu
Service-Learning Teaching Assistants:

Location: Lecture Hall and onsite
Class Meeting Time: Tuesday/Thursday 2:30 - 4:00 and as necessary for projects

Course Summary
This course addresses the issues of sustainable development in a developing country using a problem-based learning approach. With the assistance of local partners, students will carry out projects that address pressing problems related to sustainable development. In bi-weekly classes during the first part of the semester, we will study important background information about Belize as well as introductory concepts of sustainable development. During that time we will also do preparatory work for our field projects, including meeting with prospective partners. The majority of the semester will be spent working on our projects.

Problem solving courses are different from traditional courses. While traditional academics in universities tend to study disciplines, people in the real world face real world problems. Problems do not respect the artificial boundaries of disciplines, and complex problems can rarely be understood from within the narrow framework of a single discipline. In addition to the skills of disciplinary analysis, this course will focus on the skills of interdisciplinary synthesis, and the communication of results to decision makers who can use them. We will follow a generic problem-solving process that includes four steps:

building the problem base--i.e., choosing, defining and structuring the problem
analysis--i.e., breaking down the problem into manageable components
synthesis--i.e., re-integrating the parts in a way that makes us better understand the whole
communication--i.e., translating the results into a form relevant to stakeholders

Another difference between problem solving courses and traditional courses is the role of the instructor. In a traditional lecture course the instructor has all the answers. Students are expected to learn what the professor already knows and spit it back in an exam.. In a problem solving course the instructor does not have all the answers--if he or she did, there wouldn't be a problem to solve! This approach is sometimes difficult for both students and faculty. Solving problems can be frustrating. Finding the right approach can be difficult, and information may be hard to find and facts may conflict. More than in most courses, you will have to show initiative and rely on your own resources. We will be there to guide you and encourage you, but not to give you the answers.

Course Objectives/Learning Goals
In a service learning course, the projects we select should be based on the "learning goals" the instructor has established for the course. So it is considered important to establish those goals clearly at the outset. However, it is also possible to allow students to establish their own learning goals and not unheard of to select projects first and build learning goals around those projects. So we're going to set forth a wide range of possible goals and plan to negotiate and revise these over the course of the semester.

Possible Learning Goals:
1. Understand the basic principles of sustainable development
2. Understand sustainable development in the specific context of Belize
3. Develop interdisciplinary problem solving skills
4. Develop effective communication skills to help translate research into action
5. Learn to work in groups
6. Develop understanding of problems of poverty in a developing country
7. Understand the dynamics of formal and informal community groups

Reading
The textbook for the course is Taking Stock: Belize at 25 Years on Independence. Edited by two Galen faculty members, with chapters written by the experts in their fields in Belize, it is is a very valuable source of information about Belize, and in particular the sustainable development issues facing Belize. The other reading assignments are online and linked from the Schedule, below.

Course Requirements
Attendance at the bi-weekly class is mandatory and failure to attend class will substantially impact your grade. Official Galen policy states that students will fail a course if they miss 20% of the classes.

Students will be responsible for initiating their projects under the guidance of the instructor. We will be there to assist but responsibility for moving your projects forward will be yours. Because the ultimate goal of this course is to contribute to solving real life problems, we expect students to be conscientiously devoted to this pursuit.

Weekly check-ins. Once you begin work on your projects we may not meet every class. However, your group will be required to submit weekly reports indicating progress on your project during the week.

Final Presentations
The last step in the four-step problem solving process, communication, is every bit as important as the first three steps. You are going to be making presentations to your project partners on the results of your work at the end of the semester. So it's important for you to have effective presentation skills. During the course of the semester we'll be working together on your speaking skills and your use of presentation software. Be prepared to make several presentations during the semester, beginning on the first day of class. We'll be starting small, with personal introductions, and building up to formal presentations using Powerpoint as the semester proceeds.

Papers and Presentations
All papers are due no later than 10:00 a.m. on the due date so that the instructor has time to read at least some of them before class. We prefer that you send it as an e-mail attachment using the course e-mail so that we can keep all the papers in one place. If you have technical limitations, you can print it out and bring it to class.

Your presentations, both preliminary and final, should include Powerpoint slides. You may either send them to the service learning TA, as an attachment, or give him/her a flash drive from which to copy the Powerpoint.

Tentative Grading Scheme

Papers 1-4	10%
Reflections	10%
Project Proposal	10%
Literature Review	10%
Final Project Report	30%
Final Project Presentation	30%

Note: Grades for the Project Proposal, Literature Review, Final Project Report and Final Project Presentation are assigned to the entire group. However, an individual's grade may vary based on evaluation of his or her work by other members of the group as indicated on the Group Project Evaluation that each group member will complete at the end of the semester.

Service Learning Projects

Local Partners
There is a wide variety of potential partners in the Cayo area and elsewhere in Belize. Prospective partners may include: Galen University and faculty, local, national and international NGOs, schools, the Peace Corps, local and national government officials, individual businesses and business organizations, and communities.

The following is a list of projects carried out by the 2007 and 2008 Belize Program students. Some or all of these projects may be suitable for continued work. We will discuss them in an early class (see links in Schedule, below). They are also a good indicator of the wide variety of potential partners.

Good Governance
Environmental Education
AIDS Media study
Energy Conservation
Fostering Community Entrepreneurship
Traditional Medicine
Sustainable Community Agriculture
Public Awareness of HIV/AIDS, Domestic Abuse and Environment
Recycling in Schools

Operating Funds
Each of the project groups will have a budget for expenses. The amount will be determined based on the number of projects, the size of the group, and the nature and needs of the project. Project funds will be available for expenses such as travel to meetings and field work, photocopying, blank CDs, and possibly a small contribution to non-profits that we work with. Part of your assignment will be to develop a budget for your project.

2008 Projects

Project teams as of 2-18-08

Nature of Project	Partner	Possible Projects	Project Status
Community Development Outreach Program	Stand Center	-Soil building -Work with residents of Arizona (near Belmopan--Spanish speakers wanted!) on planting individual or community fruit (e.g., avocado, breadfruit, mangos, etc.)
Environmental Education	ProBelize (Michael Martin) St. Barnabas School (Ashley Howard, PCV)	Build on 2007 project at St. Barnabas by developing curriculum for other grades: Standard 1-2 and Standard 6 (?)
Education	Tumul K'in Education Center (Jeff Frank, PCV)	Research and write scripts to air in four languages (English, Spanish, Kekchi' and Mopan) on radio station that reaches 5 villages in Blue Creek; topics include: environmental responsibility, HIV/AIDS, animal treatment, domestic abuse
Reuse, Recycle, Compost/Education	Luis Garcea of Enviro Systems	Develop pilot project in three primary (?) schools in San Ignacio to teach students how to minimize the amount of waste going into landfills.
Traditional medicine	?	Preservation of knowledge of medicinal plants

Schedule of Classes/Assignments

Problem solving courses are by their nature flexible. We may change this schedule significantly as the course proceeds. We will try to provide detailed outlines of what to expect at least a week ahead of schedule, so you know what to expect.

Date	Topics	Class Activity	Reading/Assignment Due
Jan. 15	(1) Introduction to the course -Syllabus -timelines -expectations -Grading -Introductions -Reflections/Critical Analysis (2) Introduction to Service Learning	Individual introductions (by randomly assigned partners) Power point: Introduction to Service Learning	What is Service Learning?
Jan. 17	(1) International Service Learning (2) Sustainable Development I: The 3-legged-stool model -economic vitality -environmental integrity -social well-being "ecologically sound, economically feasible, socially just" (3) 2008 Project Topics Discussion	Discussion: International Service Learning-- Discussion: Sustainable Development Selection of 13 groups of 2-3 students for Jan. 22 and 24 presentations	Read Ver Beek, International Service Learning: A Call to Caution. (Note: I assigned this reading despite--and not because of--the references to "the Christian perspective." You should ignore those brief sections for purposes of your paper and discussion.) Paper #1 Write a short paper (1-2 pages) in which you indicate: -one point on which you agree with Ver Beek -one point on which you disagree with Ver Beek -one point he makes that is important for students in this course to take to heart Be prepared to present your thoughts in class discussion. Note: All papers are due no later than 10 a.m. on the due date. What is Sustainable Development? The Faulty Three-Legged-Stool Model of Sustainable Development
Jan. 22	(1) Review of 2007 Projects (2) 2008 Project Topics Discussion	Overview of the Problem-Solving Process Presentation #1(a) 5 groups present summary of 2007 projects (10 mins. each) -What was the project? -What did you like about it? -What didn't you like about it? -Would you recommend we continue it?	2007 Project Papers
Jan. 24	Sustainable Development II: The UN Millennium Development Goals	Discussion of Project Proposal Form Presentation #1(b) 8 groups present on UN Millennium Development Goals (10 mins. each) -What is the goal? -How does it relate to sustainable development? -What is the Belize situation? -What types of projects might we do?	Indicators of Sustainable Development UN Millennium Development Goals 2007 Millennium Development Goals Report First MDG Report/Belize 2005 Poverty Map (2005)
Jan. 29	Social Issues in Belize	Guest Lecture: Dr. Filiberto Penedas (Galen University)	Read the following chapters from "Taking Stock": -Ch. 8 Twenty-five Years of Human Rights in Belize: From Theory to Practice, a Work in Progress -Ch. 10-Emigration from Belize since 1981 Paper #2 Write a short paper (1-2 pages) in which you identify and briefly describe one issue raised in each of the two chapters that relates to sustainable development (based on the UN MDGs).
Jan. 31	Economic Issues in Belize	Guest Lecture: Dr. Julie Mueller (Galen University) Nominal group process to begin to narrow list of proposed projects	Read the following chapters from "Taking Stock": -Ch. 1 Economic Development in Belize -Ch. 2 Belize Foreign Trade Performance Paper #3 Same assignment as Paper #2.
Feb. 5	Environmental Issues in Belize	Guest Lecture: Dr. Colin Young (Galen University) More mominal group process to narrow eliminate proposed projects	Read the following chapters from "Taking Stock": -Ch. 4 The Environment of Belize--Reserve, Preserve and Plunder -Ch. 5 History of Protected Area Management, Co-management and Community Participation in Belize (Focus on co-managment rather than history) -Ch. 6 Our Reef in Peril--Can We Use It Without Abusing It? and read -The State of Forests and Ecotourism in Belize http://news.mongabay.com/2007/1116-interview_young_belize.html Paper #4 Same assignment as Paper #2, except note that there are three chapters.
Feb. 12	Literature Review/Background Research	Discussion of Literature Review/Background Research Update on status of projects Andrea Acker from STAND Center will speak with class about potential projects.	Unless your project involves conducting research, your literature search will be different from a typical literature review. However, the material you find and read will be similar. For those of you doing education-related projects (e.g., environmental education, ESL), you will be looking primarily for curriculum that has been used elsewhere. Your first reading should be the following, from Farley, Erickson and Daly's Workbook for Ecological Economics: "Project Step 3: Background Research and Preliminary Literature Review" (handout) There are numerous online sources for information on how to prepare a literature review. You can start with this one: -University of North Carolina Your literature review should follow the following format: 1. begin with a heading that identifies what you are covering in that section (e.g., "Consensu Planning" or "Nutrition and Fruit Trees." 2. Summarize your findings under the topic, including citations where appropriate 3. Follow the summary with "Works Cited" in which you indicate (using proper citation) each work you used to write your summar. For a model, see the 2008 Project Report from the Sustainable Community Agriculture group (link) *Preliminary Deadline for selecting projects and groups*
Feb. 14	Project work	Groups will meet to discuss the next steps in their projects.	Project teams as of 2-18-08
Feb. 19	Project work	Groups will meet during class time	Groups will continue to meet. *Submit completed Project Proposal Form * The form linked above is an electronic copy in Word. Please complete the form and send it to me as an electronic copy so that you can make changes as your project progresses;
Feb. 21	Project work	Discussion of project contract	[Need to draft and insert contract]
Feb. 26	Project work		*Submit completed Literature Review Electronically*
Feb. 28	Project work		Meetings with individual groups to go over literature review
Mar. 4	Project work		Project contract due
Mar. 6	Effective Presentations	Powerpoint: Visual Aids	Farley, Erickson and Daley, Workbook for Problem-Based Learning, Ch. 8, "Communication" (reserve) *Revised Literature Review Due* -Submit both electronic and hard copies by start of class -At end of paper, indicate who was responsible for -writing each section -reviewing each section -re-writing each section -At end of paper each person must sign indicating he or she read and approved the final draft. -Guidelines for final draft -Grammar and content need to be correct -Format needs to be consistent throughout -Differences in style between sections are acceptable
Mar. 11	Presentations	Presentation #3 Each project group will present to Profs. Ashman (10 mins.) on -Project Proposal/Problem Statement -Literature Review -Progress to Date -Future activities
Apr. ?	Draft final reports due
Apr. ?	Practice presentation ("dress rehearsal") Final reports due		-Submit both electronic and hard copies by start of class -At end of paper, indicate who was responsible for -writing each section -reviewing each section -re-writing each section -At end of paper each person must sign indicating he or she read and approved the final draft. -Guidelines for final draft -Grammar and content need to be correct -Format needs to be consistent throughout -Differences in style between sections are acceptable
Apr. ?	Presentation of final reports to stakeholders, partners and Galen faculty and administration