ENVIRONMENTAL SOCIOLOGY I – SOCY5562.01 (SPRING SEMESTER, 2016)
THURSDAYS, 4:30 – 7:00 PM, MCGUINN HALL, ROOM 415
INSTRUCTOR
Andrew Jorgenson, Professor of Sociology and Environmental Studies
Office: McGuinn Hall, Room 406; Phone: 617-552-1293; Email: jorgenan@bc.edu
Office Hours: Tuesdays, 2:00 – 5:00 PM
SUMMARY AND OBJECTIVES
This seminar provides an overview of theoretical and empirical work in environmental sociology. After a
brief introduction to the origins of the field, the seminar will cover substantive topics that are
representative of what is current in the area, especially work that has global and structural orientations.
This is a reading and discussion seminar designed for upper division undergraduates as well as graduate
students. It is NOT a lecture course. However, I recognize that on some occasions I will spend moderate
amounts of time giving an overview of employed research designs and methodologies that are used in the
studies that we read and discuss. If you are unfamiliar with the methods being used, that’s ok!
We will have distinguished guests join us on some weeks (in-person or via skype) to informally discuss
their research. Some guests will join us right at 4:30 PM, so it is imperative that you get to seminar on
time, and ideally a few minutes early!
REQUIREMENTS AND GRADING
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Students are required to submit weekly critical summaries of the assigned readings (1-2 pages in
length each). The weekly summaries are worth 10% of your final grade. The summaries are due in
hard copy at the beginning of each class (no exceptions!). Late papers will NOT be accepted.
Students are required to take turns in teams (of 3-4) facilitating weekly discussions. Each student is
required to do this twice during the semester. These facilitating exercises are worth 20% of your final
grade. We will schedule these group facilitations for the entire semester on the first day of seminar,
and I will provide you with more specific written instructions and expectations on week 2.
Attendance and general participation in seminar discussions is worth 20% of your final grade.
There will be two take-home exams, one at the mid-point of the term, and the other at the end of the
term. Each is worth 25% of your final grade. You will have a minimum of one week to finish each of
the two exams, and each will consist of a small number of questions that I will provide that are
largely based on the assigned readings and in-class discussions. I will provide you with additional
details on both exams ahead of time.
REQUIRED READINGS
For Weeks 1 – 8, all required readings will consist of journal articles and handbook chapters, each of
which are available in pdf via the course’s Canvas webpage. After Week 8, most required readings will be
from the following two books, both of which are available at the campus bookstore in paperback (I don’t
have extra copies to loan out):
1. Dunlap, Riley, and Robert Brulle (editors). 2015. Climate Change and Society: Sociological
Perspectives. Oxford University Press. (we will read this book weeks 12-14)
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2. Longo, Stefano, Rebecca Clausen, and Brett Clark. 2015. The Tragedy of the Commodity: Oceans,
Fisheries, and Aquaculture. Rutgers University Press. (we will read this book weeks 9-10)
DISABILITY STATEMENT
Boston College is committed to providing reasonable accommodations and integrated access for students
with disabilities to all available academic, social, and recreational programs and activities. Appropriate
support and referral services are provided by the Disability Services Office, which serves students with
hearing, visual, mobility, medical, and psychiatric disabilities. If you are a student with a documented
disability seeking reasonable accommodations in this course, please contact Kathy Duggan, (617) 5528093, dugganka@bc.edu, at the Connors Family Learning Center regarding learning disabilities and
ADHD, or Paulette Durrett, (617) 552-3470, paulette.durrett@bc.edu, in the Disability Services Office
regarding all other types of disabilities, including temporary disabilities. Advance notice and appropriate
documentation are required for accommodations. If you are unsure whether or not Disability Services are
appropriate for your needs, please make an appointment with Disability Services for a consultation.
BC STATEMENT ON ACADEMIC INTEGRITY
“The pursuit of knowledge can proceed only when scholars take responsibility and receive credit for their
work. Recognition of individual contributions to knowledge and of the intellectual property of others
builds trust within the university and encourages the sharing of ideas that is essential to scholarship.
Similarly, the educational process requires that individuals present their own ideas and insights for
evaluation, critique, and eventual reformulation. Presentation of others' work as one's own is not only
intellectual dishonesty, but also undermines the educational process.” Please review the standards on
academic integrity at the website: https://www.bc.edu/schools/cas/polisci/integrity.html
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TOPIC AND READING SCHEDULE
Week 1: Thursday, January 21
Course and People Introductions
Week 2: Thursday, January 28
Origins of and Reflections on the Field (Riley Dunlap MIGHT join us via Skype)
1. Catton, William, and Riley Dunlap. 1978. "Environmental Sociology: A New Paradigm." American
Sociologist 13:41-49.
2. Buttel, Frederick. 1987. "New Directions in Environmental Sociology." Annual Review of Sociology
13: 465-488.
3. Dunlap, Riley, and William Catton. 1994. “Struggling with Human Exceptionalism: The Rise,
Decline and Revitalization of Environmental Sociology” The American Sociologist 25:5-30.
4. Pellow, David, and Hollie Brehm. 2013. “An Environmental Sociology for the Twenty-First
Century.” Annual Review of Sociology 39:229-250.
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Week 3: Thursday, February 4
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Discussion Facilitators:
Environmental Justice & Environmental Inequality Research in the US
1. Bullard, Robert. 1983. “Solid Waste Sites and the Black Houston Community.” Sociological
Inquiry 53:273-288.
2. Mohai, Paul, David Pellow, and Timmons Roberts. 2009. “Environmental Justice.” Annual Review of
Environmental Resources 34:404-430.
3. Crowder, Kyle and Liam Downey. 2010. “Inter-Neighborhood Migration, Race, and Environmental
Hazards: Modeling Microlevel Processes of Environmental Inequality.” The American Journal of
Sociology 115:1110-1149
4. Grant, Don, Mary Trautner, Liam Downey, and Lisa Thiebaud. 2010. “Bringing the Polluters Back
In: Environmental Inequality and the Organization of Chemical Production.” American Sociological
Review 75:479-504.
5. Elliott, James, and Scott Frickel. 2013. “The Historical Nature of Cities: A Study of Urbanization and
Hazardous Waste Accumulation.” American Sociological Review 78:521-543.
Week 4: Thursday, February 11
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Discussion Facilitators:
Gender and Environmental Sociology (Emily Huddart Kennedy will join us via Skype)
1. Kennedy, Emily Huddart, and Liz Dzialo. 2015. “Locating Gender in Environmental Sociology.”
Sociology Compass 9/10:920-929.
2. Bryson, L., K. McPhillips, and K. Robinson. 2001. “Turning Public Issues into Private Troubles:
Lead Contamination, Domestic Labor, and the Exploitation of Women’s Unpaid Labor in Australia.”
Gender and Society 15:754–772.
3. Norgaard, Kari, and Richard York. 2005. “Gender Equality and State Environmentalism.” Gender &
Society 19:506-522.
4. Cairns, K., J. Johnston, and N. MacKendrick. 2013. “Feeding the ‘Organic Child’: Mothering through
Ethical Consumption.” Journal of Consumer Culture 13:97–118.
5. McCright, A. and C. Xiao. 2014. Gender and Environmental Concern: Insights from Recent Work
and for Future Research. Society & Natural Resources 27: 1109–1113.
Week 5: Thursday, February 18
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Discussion Facilitators:
Environmental Values, Environmental Concern (Jennifer Givens will join us via Skype)
1. Dietz, Thomas, Amy Fitzgerald, and Rachael Schwom. 2005. “Environmental Values.” Annual
Review of Environment and Resources 30:335-372.
2. Dunlap, Riley, and Richard York. 2008. “The Globalization of Environmental Concern and the
Limits of the Postmaterialist Values Explanation: Evidence from Four Multinational Surveys. The
Sociological Quarterly 49:529-563.
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3. Givens, Jennifer, and Andrew Jorgenson. 2011. “The Effects of Affluence, Economic Development,
and Environmental Degradation on Environmental Concern: A Multilevel Analysis.” Organization &
Environment 24:74-91.
4. Marquart-Pyatt, Sandra. 2012. “Contextual Influences on Environmental Concern Cross-Nationally:
A Multilevel Investigation.” Social Science Research 41:1085-99.
5. McCright, Aaron, and Riley Dunlap. 2013. “Bringing Ideology In: The Conservative White Male
Effect on Worry about Environmental Problems in the USA.” Journal of Risk Research 16: 211-226.
Week 6: Thursday, February 25
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Discussion Facilitators:
Environment and Development Perspectives
1. Spaargaren, Gert, and Arthur Mol. 2009. “Sociology, Environment, and Modernity: Ecological
Modernization as a Theory of Social Change.” Pp. 56-79 in The Ecological Modernization Reader,
edited by Arthur Mol, David Sonnenfeld, and Gert Spaargaren. Routledge Press.
2. Mol, Arthur, Gert Spaargaren, and David Sonnenfeld. 2014. “Ecological Modernization Theory:
Taking Stock, Moving Forward.” Pp. 15-30 in Routledge International Handbook of Social and
Environmental Change, edited by Stuart Lockie, David Sonnenfeld, and Dana Fisher. Routledge
Press.
3. Gould, Kenneth, David Pellow, and Allan Schnaiberg. 2004. “Interrogating the Treadmill of
Production: Everything You Wanted to Know about the Treadmill but Were Afraid to Ask.”
Organization & Environment 17:296-316.
4. York, Richard. 2004. “The Treadmill of (Diversifying) Production. Organization & Environment
17:355-362.
5. Givens, Jennifer, Brett Clark, and Andrew K. Jorgenson. 2016 (forthcoming). “Strengthening the
Ties Between Environmental Sociology and the Sociology of Development.” In Sociology of
Development Handbook, edited by Paul Almeida, David Brown, Sam Cohn, Sara Curran, Rebecca
Emigh, Greg Hooks, Ho-fung Hung, Andrew Jorgenson, Richard Lachmann, Linda Lobao, and
Valentine Moghadam. University of California Press.
Week 7: Thursday, March 3
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Discussion Facilitators:
Environment and Development Empirical Approaches
1. Rudel, Thomas. 2009. “How Do People Transform Landscapes? A Sociological Perspective on
Suburban Sprawl and Tropical Deforestation.” American Journal of Sociology 115:129-154.
2. York, Richard, Eugene Rosa, and Thomas Dietz. 2003. “Footprints on the Earth: The Environmental
Consequences of Modernity.” American Sociological Review 68:279-300.
3. Jorgenson, Andrew, and Brett Clark. 2012. “Are the Economy and the Environment Decoupling? A
Comparative International Study, 1960-2005.” American Journal of Sociology 118:1-44.
4. Knight, Kyle, Eugene Rosa, and Juliet Schor. 2013. Could Working Less Reduce Pressures on the
Environment? A Cross-National Panel Analysis of OECD Countries, 1970-2007. Global
Environmental Change 23:691-700.
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5. Jorgenson, Andrew K. 2014. “Economic Development and the Carbon Intensity of Human WellBeing.” Nature Climate Change 4:186-189.
Week 8: Thursday, March 17
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Discussion Facilitators:
World Society and the Environment, World-Systems and the Environment (Brian Gareau will join us)
1. Frank, David John, Ann Hironaka, and Evan Schofer. 2000. “The Nation-State and the Natural
Environment over the Twentieth Century.” American Sociological Review 65:96-116.
2. Shorette, Kristen. 2012. "Outcomes of Global Environmentalism: Longitudinal and Cross-National
Trends in Chemical Fertilizer and Pesticide Use." Social Forces 91:299-325.
3. Burns, Tom, Ed Kick, and Byron Davis. 2003. “Theorizing and Rethinking Linkages between the
Natural Environment and the Modern World-System: Deforestation in the Late 20th Century.” Journal
of World-Systems Research 9:357–390.
4. Jorgenson, Andrew, Christopher Dick, and John Shandra. 2011. “World Economy, World Society,
and Environmental Harms in Less-Developed Countries.” Sociological Inquiry 81:53-87.
5. Gareau, Brian. 2012. “Theorizing Environmental Governance of the World System: Global Political
Economy Theory and Some Applications to Stratospheric Ozone Politics.” Journal of World-Systems
Research. 12:187-210
Week 9: Thursday, March 31
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Turn in Exam 1
Discussion Facilitators:
The Crisis of Marine Ecosystems
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Read Chapters 1-4 in The Tragedy of the Commodity: Oceans, Fisheries, and Aquaculture.
Week 10: Thursday, April 7
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No Discussion Facilitators this week!
The Crisis of Marine Ecosystems (all three authors will join us via Skype)
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Read Chapters 5-7 in The Tragedy of the Commodity: Oceans, Fisheries, and Aquaculture.
Week 11: Thursday, April 14
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Discussion Facilitators:
Ecologically Unequal Exchange, Militarization and the Environment
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1. Rice, James. 2007. “Ecological Unequal Exchange: International Trade and Uneven Utilization of
Environmental Space in the World System.” Social Forces 85:1369-1392.
2. Jorgenson, Andrew K. 2010. “World-Economic Integration, Supply Depots, and Environmental
Degradation: A Study of Ecologically Unequal Exchange, Foreign Investment Dependence, and
Deforestation in Less-Developed Countries.” Critical Sociology 36:453-477.
3. Sanderson, Matthew, and Scott Frey. 2015. “Structural Impediments to Sustainable Groundwater
Management in the High Plains Aquifer in Western Kansas.” Agriculture and Human Values 32:401417.
4. Hooks, Gregory and Chad Smith. 2004. “The Treadmill of Destruction: National Sacrifice Areas and
Native Americans.” American Sociological Review 69:558-575.
5. Jorgenson, Andrew, Brett Clark, and Jennifer Givens. 2012. “The Environmental Impacts of
Militarization in Comparative Perspective: An Overlooked Relationship.” Nature + Culture 7:314337.
Week 12: Thursday, April 21
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Discussion Facilitators:
Sociological Perspectives on Climate Change
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Read Chapters 1 ,11, 12, and 2 in Climate Change and Society: Sociological Perspectives.
Week 13: Thursday, April 28
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Discussion Facilitators:
Sociological Perspectives on Climate Change (Juliet Schor will join us)
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Read Chapters 3-6 in Climate Change and Society: Sociological Perspectives.
Week 14: Thursday, May 5
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Discussion Facilitators:
Sociological Perspectives on Climate Change (Rachael Shwom will join us via Skype)
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Read Chapters 7-10 in Climate Change and Society: Sociological Perspectives.
Week 15: Thursday, May 12
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Turn in Exam 2
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