Teaching Program
Recent Experience
Development and Underdevelopment: Survival Strategies and Sustainabilities (Sociology
167). In this class, we will create a dialogue that analyzes what development means for different
people in different places at specific moments in history. We will work collectively to explore
both mainstream and alternative approaches. After laying out basic conceptual approaches to
diversity, inequality, and the environment, we apply these concepts to a study of efforts to meet
several pressing basic human needs (food, water and energy), and conclude with a third section
addressing development alternatives in practice. (I was the instructor. I redesigned and taught
this course in winter of 2008)
Social Justice (Sociology 168). This course will foster an inclusive dialogue about different
approaches to social justice. The readings explore how we can use dialogue, political
philosophy, and collective organizing experiences to understand justice in issues of education,
health, and environmental sustainability (I was the instructor. I redesigned and taught this
course in 2008).
Action-Research for Social Change and Environmental Quality: Lessons Learned from
Latin America and the U.S.A.(Latin American and Latino Studies 164): This course will
introduce participatory action research, and draw on case studies from Latin America and the
U.S.A. We will work together to develop the research methods (interviews, focus groups,
surveys), critical reflections and the ability to synthesize different ways of knowing. This course
will be especially useful if you are already engaged with an advanced research project, planning
to study abroad and/or conduct a community-based internship (I was the instructor. I
redesigned and taught this course in fall of 2007)
Sustainability Engineering and Practice (Electrical Engineering 80). This course is a topical
introduction to principles and practices of sustainability engineering and ecological design
(SEED) defined here as the planning, development and deployment of technological and social
systems and institutions that can protect the earth’s ecological systems for this and future
generations. The course provides students with an understanding of basic scientific,
engineering and social principles in the design, deployment, and operation of resource-based
human systems, and how they can be maintained for this and future generations.(This course
was co-taught with five senior faculty members as part of the UCSC’s sustainability curriculum
initiative. I was the course manager. I designed interdisciplinary student sustainability project
guidelines, evaluation criteria, guest lectured, and
taught sections. Fall of 2007)
Renewable Energy Sources (Electrical Engineering 80J). This is an introduction to energy
conversion and storage with special emphasis on renewable sources. Fundamental energy
conversion limits based on physics and existing material properties will be discussed. Various
sources such as solar, wind, hydropower, geothermal and fuel cells will be described. An
analysis of different alternative sources will be performed and key scientific, economical and
social roadblocks for large scale implementation will be examined. Finally, the latest research
on solar cells and applications of nanotechnology on energy conversion and storage will be
introduced. (This course was primarily taught Professor Shakouri. I was a frequent lecturer &
the university-community sustainability partnership coordinator. This means that I
developed the assignments and processes for 40+ student teams doing interdisciplinary
sustainability projects. I met with clients (i.e. the Santa Cruz Redevelopment Agency, a local
biofuels company, and campus architecture and planning depts.) to develop projects for the
interdisciplinary student teams. I also conducted lectures and occasionally taught sections.
Spring of 2008)
International Shortcourses in Agroecology, California, Mexico, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, and
Spain, 2002-present
www.agroecology.org/shortcourse.htm2-present
International Shortcourse in Agroecology and Sustainable Rural Development, Nicaragua
(conducted in Spanish)
Instructor, Course Coordinator and Academic Lead, November 2005 to September
2006. http://www.agroecology.org/Shortcourse2006.html
The two week intensive course is a synthesis between the science of Agroecology, the
study of fair trade and other innovations towards more socially-just economies, and the
Participatory Action-Research approach. Our approach integrated experiential and
academic learning through a combination of fieldtrips, lectures, readings and
discussions. (I partnerships with Instituto Interamericano de Cooperación para la
Agricultura (IICA), Heifer International, National Nicaraguan Universities, and
sustainable agriculture NGOs, together we brought together 60 participants and over 30
instructors from 12 countries for this intensive course). After the course, the National
Agrarian University in Nicaragua launched a Masters Degree Program in Agroecology
and Sustainable Rural Development.
Lecturer and Co-Instructor, International Shortcouses in Agroecology, California,
Costa Rica and Mexico Developed lectures, student evaluation activities, on-farm field
research activities, and overall curriculum for each of the different courses conducted
from 2002 until the present.
Past Experience
Department of Environmental Studies, UC Santa Cruz. Specific courses from 1999- 2001:
Teaching assistant and lab instructor for the following courses:
 Ecology and Society—taught two sections, graded papers, designed simulation game
to study the Coastal Commission, CEQA and the politics local land use change and
local development.
 Political Economy of the Environment—taught two sections, advised students graded
exams.
 Agroecology and Sustainable Agriculture—taught labs taking ecological and
agricultural measurements in on-farm cropping experiments, supported data analysis
and report writing.
 Senior capstone class— taught sections, advised students and guided final group
projects and papers.