Sustainability and Culture
ANTH 353/SUSTN 353
Spring, 2013
ANTH 353: Schedule #20096
SUSTN 353: Schedule #30083
Tuesday - Thursday: 9:30 -10:45 a.m.
AL-101
Dr. Frederick J. Conway
Office: AL-484
Office Hours: Tues. 2:00-3:30, Wed. 10:30-11:30,
and by appointment
Office Telephone: (619) 594-5643
Anthropology Department: (619) 594-5527
E-mail: conway1@mail.sdsu.edu
SYLLABUS
There are few issues more important for human life than those concerned with
sustainability. This course is an anthropological exploration of sustainability in a variety
of contexts and scales, from local to global. The emphasis in the course is on exploration:
we will be looking at a lot of different perspectives and meanings of sustainability. What
can it mean to say that a culture is sustainable or not? What can sustainability be in the
context of a globalization? How can communities develop in ways that sustain their
ecosystems while maintaining equity and livelihoods? What actions can we take as
people in the United States, indeed as members of the SDSU community, to make our
own culture more sustainable?
The readings for the course range beyond the anthropological literature, but we
will always keep their implications for anthropology in mind. What does sustainability
mean in anthropological terms? How can anthropology contribute to creating a more
sustainable world? The course will reflect both theoretical and applied orientations of
anthropology, that is, both how to understand the world and how to act in it.
Among the topics we will discuss are
• How sustainability is defined in international debate as environmental, social and
economic
• Cultural diversity in consumption patterns and adaptation to the environment
• Whether it is possible to have both economic development and sustainability
• The role of indigenous peoples as models for sustainability
• How we can evaluate international and local efforts to increase sustainability
• What a sustainable San Diego-Tijuana region might look like
• Efforts to make SDSU a sustainable campus and what we as community members can
contribute.
General Education
Courses that fulfill the 9-unit requirement for Explorations in General Education take the
goals and skills of GE Foundations courses to a more advanced level. Your three upper
division courses in Explorations will provide greater interdisciplinary, more complex and
in-depth theory, deeper investigation of local problems, and wider awareness of global
challenges. More extensive reading, written analysis involving complex comparisons,
well-developed arguments, considerable bibliography, and use of technology are
appropriate in many Explorations courses.
This is an Explorations course in Social and Behavioral Sciences. Completing this course
will help you learn to do the following with greater depth: 1) explore and recognize basic
terms, concepts, and domains of the social and behavioral sciences; 2) comprehend
diverse theories and methods of the social and behavioral sciences; 3) Identify human
behavioral patterns across space and time and discuss their interrelatedness and
distinctiveness; 4) enhance your understanding of the social world through the
application of conceptual frameworks from the social and behavioral sciences to firsthand engagement with contemporary issues.
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Learning Outcomes
Define sustainability as a sociopolitical and as an ecological concept
Describe the uses of adaptation and resilience as concepts in anthropology
Relate the concept of scale to types of cultures and degrees of sustainability
Understand diverse relationships between consumption and production in different
cultures
Evaluate debates about the possibility of sustainable development
Develop appreciation for cultural diversity in approaches to adaptation and
sustainability
Identify the strengths and weaknesses of various actions for sustainability
Understand how to apply the concept of ecological footprint at different scales
Imagine a sustainable U.S. culture
Apply theory to determine the possibilities for sustainability in the San Diego-Tijuana
bioregion
Evaluate SDSU as a sustainable campus
Communicate effectively about the meanings of sustainability in your life.
Reading Materials
There is one textbook to buy for this class:
Bodley, John H. 2012 Anthropology and Contemporary Human Problems, 6th edition.
Walnut Creek, CA: Altamira Press.
Additional readings are available on-line through Blackboard or other websites.
The schedule of readings is listed on a separate course Schedule. The readings for each
date are to be completed before the start of class.
Course Requirements
Mid-term Tests and Final Exam
There will be two mid-term tests on Thursday, Feb. 21 and Tuesday, April 16, as well as
a final exam on Thursday, May 16 at 8 a.m. The final will not be cumulative. These
exams will use a variety of formats, including essays. Further information about the midterm and final exam will be given in class. The mid-term tests and final are each worth
100 points. If you are traveling for Summer Break, please make your travel plans for
after the final exam.
Reflections Paper
Each student will write an essay analyzing an aspect of sustainability and culture in the
context of the course material and expressing their reflections on its meaning for our
lives. The topic will be determined in consultation with the instructor. The paper will be
1,000-1,500 words in length and is worth 100 points. Proposed paper topics are due on
Tuesday, April 9. The paper itself is due on Thursday, May 2. Additional information on
this paper can be found on Blackboard and will be discussed in class.
Course Grade
The requirements for the course are weighted as follows:
Test #1
100 points
Test #2
100 points
Reflections paper
100 points
Final exam
100 points
Total
400 points
Grades in the A range will be 400-370 points
Grades in the A- range will be 369-359 points
Grades in the B+ range will be 358-351 points
Grades in the B range will be 350-331 points
Grades in the B- range will be 330-319 points
Grades in the C+ range will be 318-311 points
Grades in the C range will be 310-291 points
Grades in the C- range will be 290-279 points
Grades in the D+ range will be 278-271 points
Grades in the D range will be 270-251 points
Grades in the D- range will be 250-240 points
Grades in the F range will be below 240 points
Students with Disabilities
Students who need accommodation for their disabilities should contact me privately to
discuss specific accommodations for which they have received authorization. If you have
a disability, but have not contacted Student Disability Services at 619-594-6473 (Calpulli
Center, Suite 3101), please do so before making an appointment to see me.
Student Rights and Responsibilities
Students are expected to follow the University’s policies regarding academic conduct.
Please refer to the information in the University catalog and website, especially
www.sa.sdsu.edu/srr. Studying with other students is encouraged, but all written work,
including tests and papers, must be the work of the individual student. The Reflections
Paper will be submitted through the Turnitin program on Blackboard, which compares
the text with already written materials. Any case of academic dishonesty will at a
minimum result in a grade of zero for the assignment or exam and the filing of an
Academic Dishonesty Incident Report. Please ask me if you have any questions about
how University policies relate to this class.
Blackboard
This course uses Blackboard, a web-based course aid that can be accessed from any
terminal. Information and materials about the course will be posted on Blackboard, as
well as announcements. Blackboard uses the same password as WebPortal.
If you have any questions or are having difficulty in class, please feel free to contact me. I
am easily available by e-mail at conway1@mail.sdsu.edu
My office is in the Arts & Letters Building, AL 484. My telephone number is 594-5643.
Office Hours:
Tues. 2:00- 3:30, Wed. 10:30-11:30, and by appointment.
ANTH 353/SUSTN 353
Spring, 2013
Reflections paper
In this assignment you will write an essay analyzing an aspect of sustainability and
culture in the context of the course material and expressing your reflections on its
meaning for our lives.
In the paper you will research the topic of your choice in consultation with me. This
portion of your paper will include the kind of research you would do for any research
paper and should include full citations. You should use American Anthropological
Association style or another consistent style for your citations. You should have at least
three references; the number will depend on your topic. Your references should be
professional references, preferably from peer-reviewed journals, but not from secondhand websites or blogs. You may refer to websites, but these citations are in addition to
the three professional references.
In addition to reporting on the topic, your paper should analyze the topic in the light of
our readings and discussions in this course. You should reflect on the meaning of topic
for our lives and present your reflections in the paper. In this way the paper is more than
a research project. It should also be an expression of your understandings of sustainability
as they have developed over the semester and of your views about the topic as an issue
that in one way or another touches our lives.
The paper will be 1,000-1,500 words in length. You should be able to determine the
number of words through your word processing program. (The number of pages will
depend on your font and line spacing. Line-spacing at 1.5 or 2 and 12-point font are
recommended.)
Proposed topics are due on April 9.
The paper itself is due on Thursday, May 2.
The paper is worth 100 points. Please submit the paper in two formats: in hardcopy and
through the Turnitin program on Blackboard. (If you wish, your hardcopy may be printed
on both sides or submitted on reused paper – i.e. already printed on one side.)
This assignment will be discussed in class, with plenty of opportunity for questions.
ANTH/SUSTN 353 Sustainability and Culture
Spring, 2013
Schedule
Note: “Bodley” refers to: Bodley, John H. 2012 Anthropology and Contemporary Human
Problems, 6th edition. All the other readings are available on Blackboard or online.
I. Adaptation, Sustainability and Resilience
Week 1
1/17
Introduction to the course
Week 2
1/22 Bodley Ch. 1: pp. 1-6, 9-21.
1/24
Bodley Ch. 2: pp. 35-43, 58-60, 66-70.
Week 3
1/29 Bodley Ch. 2: pp. 75-85.
1/31 Hill, Jennifer and Wendy Woodland 2003 Contrasting Water Management
Techniques in Tunisia: Towards Sustainable Agricultural Use. The Geographical Journal
169 (4): 342-357. On Blackboard
Note: January 31 last day to drop classes. February 4 last day to add classes.
Week 4
2/5
Rees, William E. 1997 Ecological Footprints: The Biophysical Factor in Urban
Sustainability. Ekistics 64: 385-387. On Blackboard
Bodley, Ch. 2: 85-90.
2/7
Holden, Erling 2004 Ecological Footprints and Sustainable Urban Form. Journal
of Housing and the Built Environment 19 (1): 91-108. On Blackboard
Week 5
2/12 Brian Walker and David Salt 2006 Crossing the Threshold: Be Careful about the
Path You Choose – You May Not Be Able to Return. In Resilience Thinking: Sustaining
Ecosystems and People in a Changing World. Washington, DC: Island Press. On
Blackboard
2/14 Brian Walker, C.S. Holling, S.R. Carpenter and A.P. Kinzig, A.P. 2004
Resilience, adaptability and transformability in Social – ecological Systems. Ecology and
Society 9 (2): 5 pp. http://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol9/iss2/art5/
Week 6
2/19 Paulson, Susan 2003 Gendered Practices and Landscapes in the Andes: The
Shape of Asymmetrical Exchanges. Human Organization 62 (3): 242-254. On
Blackboard
2/21
Test #1
II. Sustainable Development: An Oxymoron?
Week 7
2/26 Beaton, Russ and Chris Maser 1999 Origins of Sustainability. In Reuniting
Economy and Ecology in Sustainable Development. Boca Raton, FL: Lewis Publishers.
On Blackboard
Bodley, Ch. 2: 52-58; Ch. 3: 133-138.
2/28 Sachs, Wolfgang 1999 Sustainable Development: On the Political Anatomy of
an Oxymoron. In Planet Dialectics: Explorations in Environment and Development. New
York: Zed Books. On Blackboard
Week 8
3/5
Barkin, David 2000 Overcoming the Neoliberal Paradigm: Sustainable Popular
Development. Perspectives on Global Development and Technology 16 (1): 163-180. On
Blackboard
3/7
Walsh, Catherine 2010 Development as Buen Vivir: Institutional Arrangements
and (De)colonial Entanglements. Development 53(1):15-21. On Blackboard
Week 9
3/12 De Angelis, Massimo 2011 Climate Change, Mother Earth and the Commons:
reflections on El Cumbre. Development 54(2):183-189. On Blackboard
Bodley, Ch. 8: 305-313.
III. Fair Trade and Certification
3/14 Raynolds: Re-embedding Global Agriculture: The International Organic and Fair
Trade Movements. Agriculture and Human Values 17: 297-309. On Blackboard
Week 10
3/19 Conway: 2013 Firewood Certification in Chile: Equity in an Innovative Form of
Alternative Trade. Human Organization 72(1):55-64. On Blackboard
IV. Sustainable Livelihoods
3/21 McCabe: 2993 Sustainability and Livelihood Diversification among the Maasai of
Northern Tanzania. Human Organization 62(2):100-111. On Blackboard
Week 11
3/26 Gaillard, et al.: 2009 Sustainable Livelihoods and People’s Vulnerability in the
Face of Coastal Hazards. Coastal Conservation 13(2-3):119-129. On Blackboard.
V. Sustainability, Consumption and Food Production
3/28
Bodley Ch. 3: pp. 103-119, 122-128
Bodley Ch. 4
April 1-5 Spring recess
Week 12
4/9
Topic for Reflections paper due
Pollan, Michael 2006 Chapter 2: The Farm. In The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A
History of Four Meals. New York: Penguin. On Blackboard
4/11
Natural
Pollan, Michael 2006 Chapter 5: The Processing Plant and
Pollan Chapter 6: The Consumer, A Republic of Fat. In The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A
Natural History of Four Meals. New York: Penguin. On Blackboard
Week 13
4/16 Test #2
4/18
Bodley Ch. 5: pp. 179-185, 186-192, 201-208.
Week 14
4/23 Thrupp, Lori Ann 2000 Linking Agricultural Diversity and Food Security: The
Valuable Role of Sustainable Agriculture. International Affairs 76 (2): 265-281. On
Blackboard
4/25 Cleveland, David A., Daniela Soleri and Stephen E. Smith 1994 Do Folk Crop
Varieties Have a Role in Sustainable Agriculture? BioScience 44 (11): 740-751. On
Blackboard
VI. Sustainability in the California/Baja California Bioregion
Week 15
4/30 Bell, Jim n.d. Achieving Economic Security: The San Diego Region: A Case
Study. In Achieving Economic Security on Spaceship Earth. San Diego: (Electronic
Book) Online at: http://www.jimbell.com/Book/book_ch12.php#s5
Equinox Center 2012 San Diego Regional Quality of Life Dashboard. On Blackboard
and at:
http://namtramedia.com/clients/equinox/equinoxcenter-2012dashboard-lr.pdf
5/2
Reflections paper due
Sustainability at SDSU readings on Blackboard :
SDSU Senate 2007 Resolution on Sustainability at SDSU.
SDSU Associated Students 2008 Resolution in support of LEED Platinum
Certification for the Modern Space Student Union.
SDSU Websites:
Sustainable SDSU: sustainable.sdsu.edu
Green Love: as.sdsu.edu/greenlove/index.html
Center for Regional Sustainability: crs.sdsu.edu
Enviro-Business Society (E3): http://www.clube3.org
Week 16
5/7
Bodley, Ch 8: The Future, pp. 289-296, 316-332.
5/16
Final Exam, 8 a.m.