ENVIRONMENT & SOCIETY
Sociology 2077-002
MWF 1:00-1:50PM
BESC 185
Fall 2011
Tracy Kirkland
Office: Ketchum 414
Office Hours: Tuesday 10:30-12:30pm & by appointment
Email: Tracy.Kirkland@colorado.edu
COURSE DESCRIPTION: This survey course introduces and integrates sociological basics and environmental
topics. The guiding theme is that environmental issues are social issues as much as they are material and
ecological. The course integrates ecological/environmental concepts such as conservation, sustainability,
wilderness, ecological footprint, environmental justice, with sociological fundamentals such as inequality,
social construction, gender, race, globalization, power, commodification, and capitalism.
This is first and foremost a Sociology course and is built on the following premises, which will frame our
class discussions:
* Class, Gender and Racial inequality exists in society;
* Human behavior is influenced by macro-level social forces;
* Capitalism is not “natural” and has significant negative environmental impacts;
* Environmental problems are the product of both the natural and social environments;
As such, we will not be discussing scientific facts and figures. Instead we will strive to understand how
power, inequality, social structure, norms, cultural values, and political and economic systems shape our
understanding of, attitude toward, and behaviors regarding environmental problems. If you are not in
agreement with the above premises you will likely have difficulty in this class.
READINGS: We will work primarily from scholarly journal articles and chapters from Environmental
Sociology: From Analysis to Action, which can be purchased at the CU Bookstore. Course material not in the
required text will be provided through CULearn. Readings should be done prior to class!
Required Text: King, Leslie & Deborah McCarthy. 2009. Environmental Sociology: From Analysis to
Action. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc., Boulder CO.
EVALUATION: There are five components to course evaluation, as outlined below.
Percentage of final grade
Two Papers…………………………………………………......40%
Homework/News & Views……………………….………20%
In-class writing….……………………………………….……10%
Video questions……………………………………………….10%
Final Exam………………………………………………………20%
Final Exam:
Tuesday, Dec. 13th
1:30PM-4:00PM
1
PAPERS: You will sign-up to write two papers that incorporate information presented in lecture, course
readings and documentaries. These papers are NOT a summary of what you have learned. Instead, I will
provide you with a set of questions that will require you to draw together ideas, terms and concepts learned
in lecture and course readings and that are present in the documentaries that we conclude each section
with. You will sign up for the papers the second week of class. Papers are due 1 week after we finish
watching and discussing the film. For each class period your paper is late I will deduct 10 points.
Papers should be:
* 3-4 pages
* 12” Times New Roman font
* 1” margins on ALL sides
* Double spaced
HOMEWORK/NEWS & VIEWS: Twice this semester you will write a 1-page paper about an interesting
news article, media clip, or radio clip and how it relates to a course topic. You will sign up for a date when
your ‘News & Views’ assignment will be due. Papers should be double spaced, 12 pt. Times New Roman font,
1” margins. News & Views assignment will be graded as follows:
√+ =5 points: well written, uses concepts and terms learned in class, and no spelling/grammatical errors;
√ =3 points: good answer, incorporates some concepts and terms learned in class with few spelling
and/or grammatical errors;
√- =1 point: below average answer, contains no concepts or terms learned in class, and has several
spelling and/or grammatical errors;
 0 points: missed or late assignment with very slim content and/or many grammatical problems.
You will also have homework assignments that are designed to help you think sociologically about course
material. These will be explained in more detail in class when assigned.
IN-CLASS WRITING: Throughout the semester you will be given short, in-class writing exercises based on
course materials including lecture, readings and documentaries. This is designed to help ensure that you are
both keeping up with the required readings and understanding the course material. This will also allow me
to review material when there is evidence of confusion and misconception. I will drop the two lowest
grades, which includes missed assignments. These cannot be made up and will be graded as follows:
√+ =5 Your response demonstrates a complete understanding of the material.
√ =3 Your response demonstrates partial understanding of the material.
√- =1 Your response indicates little understanding of the material.
 0 = You clearly did not read the material or failed to turn in a response.
2
VIDEO QUESTIONS: I will hand out questions for you to answer while watching each documentary. These
questions are meant to prompt our class discussion after each film, so be prepared to contribute your
answers if called upon. These are to be turned in after we finish watching each film and I will not accept late
work. I will drop your lowest grade, which includes failing to turn in the assignment.
√+ =5 All questions are answered correctly and completely.
√ =3 Some missing and/or inaccurate answers.
√- =1 Few questions answered.
 0 = Failed to turn in question sheet or clearly did not watch the film.
FINAL EXAM: Your final exam will be a 3-4 page essay that will be due on the day of the final. I will provide
you with the essay topic/questions the last week of class. Your final essay exam needs to follow the same
guidelines as the papers (see above).
EXTRA CREDIT: Throughout the semester I will provide you with extra credit opportunities. These may
include, but are not limited to: attending a public lecture on or off campus; watching a documentary on
campus; participating in a campus sponsored event. I will notify the class of these opportunities as they
arise. They will be graded the same as a ‘News & Views’ assignment (see above).
ATTENDANCE: In order to do well in this class you need to attend lecture. While I will not be taking daily
attendance, you will NOT be able to make up missed assignments, which comprise a significant portion of
your final grade. It is your responsibility to hand in assignments on time. Failure to do so
will result in a zero.
FINAL GRADES: It is your responsibility to keep all of your graded assignments and exams. If you have
questions or concerns about your final grade you will need to bring me your saved coursework to compare
against my record.
TECHNOLOGY IN THE CLASSROOM: No laptops in the classroom. If you require a laptop due to disability
accommodations please obtain the appropriate documentation and bring me a copy.
DO NOT TEXT DURING CLASS!! OMG. If you are expecting an urgent text or phone call please let me know
before class begins. Please note that I will call you out if I see you texting under the desk and may ask that
you leave the classroom, so please don’t embarrass yourself.
DO NOT LEAVE CLASS EARLY!! If you leave class early without discussing it with me before class begins
you will not receive attendance points.
MISC POLICIES: If you qualify for accommodations because of a disability, please submit to me a letter from
Disability Services (DS) by the end of the second week so that your needs may be addressed. DS
determines accommodations based on documented disabilities. Contact information:
303-492-8671, Willard 322, www.colorado.edu/sacs/disabilityservices.
Please review the course schedule ASAP. If you have conflicts between religious observance dates and
course examinations or assignments, let me know by the end of the second week of the semester in order
to arrange accommodation.
3
The University has developed a classroom behavior policy. Students are required to adhere to the
behavior standards listed in the Rights and Responsibilities Regarding Standards of Conduct and to refrain
from disrupting classes and other academic settings. The specific policy may be found at:
http://www.colorado.edu/policies/classbehavior.html
Both students and faculty are expected to abide by the University’s honor code, details found at:
http://www.colorado.edu/academics/honorcode/ Cheating and plagiarism are to be taken very seriously
and are grounds for failure in the course. In a general sense, to plagiarize is to use another’s words or ideas
as your own, without proper attribution given to the original author. Please find more specific information
through links on the honor code website.
UNIVERSITY DEADLINES: see http://registrar.colorado.edu/calendar/calendar_fall11.html
ACADEMIC CALENDAR: http://www.colorado.edu/academics/calendar.html
4
DETAILED SCHEDULE (Subject to change!)
Week 1, August 22nd: Introduction to Sociology and Environmental Sociology
Monday: Welcome & Review Syllabus
Wednesday: Introduction to Sociology & Environmental Sociology
Readings:
•C. Wright-Mills, “The Sociological Imagination” CULearn
Friday:
Readings:
•King & McCarthy. “Introduction: Environmental Problems Require Social Solutions.”
Pages 1-11.
•Experts from Humphrey, Lewis & Buttel. Environment, Energy & Society Chapter 1
“Exploring Environmental Sociology.” Pages 1-4; Pages 10-18 starting at “An
Ecofeminist Account of Deforestation in the Less-Developed Countries.” CULearn
Week 2, August 29th: Social Theory and the Environment: Main Theories
Monday: *Sign Up for Papers!!
Film: The Ecological Footprint: Accounting for a small planet (30min)
Homework Assignment #1: Ecological Footprint Assignment—DUE Friday, September 2nd
Web sites: http://www.myfootprint.org/
http://www.footprintnetwork.org/en/index.php/GFN/page/calculators/
*Go to both web sites and calculate your ecological footprint. What are your results? What surprises you?
What doesn’t surprise you? Draw a connection between the film we watched in class and your findings.
Wednesday: Treadmill of Production & Ecological Modernization
Readings:
•Bell, Michael. 2009. An Invitation to Environmental Sociology. Pine Forge Press: Los
Angeles, CA. Pages 60-63 & 175-178. CULearn
•King & McCarthy, Chapter 3. “Treadmill Predispositions and Social
Responses: Population, Consumption, and Technological Change.”
Friday: Political Ecology & World Systems Theory (Homework #1 Due!)
Readings:
• Bell, Michael. 2009. An Invitation to Environmental Sociology. Pine Forge Press: Los
Angels, CA. Pages 91-96. CULearn.
•Barbosa, Luiz C. 1996. “The People of the Forest against International Capitalism:
Systematic and Anti-Systemic Forces in the Battle for the Preservation of the Brazilian
Amazon Rainforest.” In Environmental Sociology: From Analysis to Action. First edition.
Eds. Leslie King & Deborah McCarthy. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.: Boulder,
CO. CULearn.
Week 3, September 5th: Social Theory and the Environment: Main Theories
5
Monday: NO CLASS—LABOR DAY!!
Wednesday: Postmaterialism & New Environmental Paradigm (NEP)
Readings:
• Bell, Michael. 2009. An Invitation to Environmental Sociology. Pine Forge Press: Los
Angeles, CA. Pages 171-175. CULearn
Friday: Social Constructionism
Readings:
•Grieder, Thomas & Lorraine Garkovich. 1994. “Landscapes: The Social Construction of
Nature and the Environment.” Rural Sociology. 59: 1-24. Read Only Pages: 1-8; 10-13
•King & McCarthy, Chapter 7. “Wild Horses and the Political Ecology of Natural
Restoration in the Missouri Ozarks.”
Homework #2: DUE Sept. 16th
Week 4, Sept 12th: Social Construction, Nature & Conservation
Monday:
Film: Begin ‘Milking the Rhino’
Readings:
• Carolan, Michael. “Conserving Nature, But To What End?” Pages 159-163. CULearn
Wednesday: Conservation & Communities
Film: ‘Milking the Rhino’
Readings:
•Dowie, Mark. 2009. “Maasai. ” In Conservation Refugees: The Hundred-Year
Conflict Between Global Conservation and Native Peoples. Pp. 23-41. MIT Press:
Cambridge, Massachusetts. CULearn.
Friday: Conservation and Communities (Homework #2 Due!)
Film: Finish ‘Milking the Rhino’ & Discussion
Readings:
• Chapin, Mac. 2004. “A Challenge to Conservationists.” World Watch Magazine 17(6):
17-31 CULearn
Week 5, Sept. 19th: Social Construction, Media & Global Climate Change
Monday:
Readings:
•King & McCarthy, Chapter 15. “Science in Environmental Conflicts.”
•Boykoff, M. & J. M. Boykoff. 2004. “Balance as bias: global warming and the US
prestige press.” Global Environmental Change. 14: 125-136 CULearn.
Wednesday:
6
Readings:
•Dispensa, J.M. & Brulle, R. 2003. “Media’s Social Construction of Environmental
Issues: Focus on Global Warming-A Comparative Study.” Int J of Soc and Social
Policy. 23(10): Read Only Pages 79-100. CULearn
Friday: Celebrity & the Environment
(Papers Due for Milking the Rhino)
Readings:
•Boykoff, M. & Michael K. Goodman. 2009. “Conspicuous redemption?
Reflections on the promises and perils of the ‘Celebritization’ of climate
change.” Geoforum 40(3):395-406. CULearn.
Week 6, Sept. 26th: Social Construction, Media and Global Climate Change
Monday:
Film: ‘Everything’s Cool”
Readings: None
Wednesday:
Film: Finish ‘Everything’s Cool’ & Discussion
Readings:
•King & McCarthy, Chapter 21. “People Want to Protect Themselves a Little Bit”:
Emotions, Denial, and Social Movement Nonparticipation.”
Friday: Advertisement and the Environment
Readings:
•King & McCarthy, Chapter 13. “Selling “Mother Earth”: Advertising and the Myth of
the Natural.”
Homework Assignment #3—DUE Friday, October 7th.
Week 7, October 3rd: Advertisement, Popular Culture & the Commodification of Nature
Monday:
Readings:
•King & McCarthy, Chapter 14. “Prime-Time Subversion: The Environmental Rhetoric
of The Simpsons.”
•Podeschi, Christopher W. 2002. “The Nature of Future Myths: Environmental
Discourse in Science Fiction Films, 1950-1999.” In Environmental Sociology: From
Analysis to Action. First edition. Eds. Leslie King & Deborah McCarthy. Rowman &
Littlefield Publishers, Inc.: Boulder, CO. CULearn.
Wednesday: (Papers Due for Everything’s Cool)
Film: Begin ‘Tapped’
Readings:
•Opel, Andy. 1999. “Constructing Purity: Bottled Water and the Commodification of
Nature.” Journal of American Culture. 22(4): 67-76. CULearn
Friday: (Homework #3 Due)
7
Film: Finish ‘Tapped’ & Discussion
Readings: None
Week 8, October 10th: Environmental Inequality & Environmental Justice
Monday:
Readings:
• King & McCarthy, Chapter 4. “Environmental Justice: Grassroots Activism and Its
Impact on Public Policy Decision Making.”
Wednesday:
Readings:
• King & McCarthy, Chapter 6, “The Next Revolutionary Stage: Recycling Waste or
Recycling History?”
•King & McCarthy, Chapter 11. “The Unfair Trade-off: Globalization and the Export of
Ecological Hazards.”
Friday: Environmental Justice & Energy: Guest Speaker--Kate Clark
(Papers Due for ‘Tapped’)
Readings:
• King & McCarthy, Chapter 2. “Mountaintop Removal in West Virginia”
Week 9, October 17th: Environmental Inequality & Environmental Justice
Monday: Environmental Justice & Energy
Film: ‘Gasland’ (excerpts)
Readings:
•Steingraber, Sandra. 2010. “The Whole Fracking Enchilada.” Orion. Sept/Oct.
Wednesday: Ecotourism, Conservation & Development (News & Views #1 Due!)
Readings:
•King & McCarthy, Chapter 4. “Tourism, Environmentalism, and
Cultural Survival In Quintana Roo.”
•King, David A. and William P. Stewart. 1996. “Ecotourism and commodification: protecting
people and places.” Biodiversity and Conservation 5: 293-305. CULearn
Friday: Guest Speaker-Josh LePree—Ecotourism in Costa Rica
Readings:
• Wall, Geoffrey. 1997. “Is Ecotourism Sustainable?” Environmental Management
21(4): 483-491.
Week 10, Oct 24th: Ecotourism & Social Dimensions of Natural Disasters & Hazards
Monday: (Papers Due for Gasland)
Film: ‘Jamaica For Sale’
Readings: None
Wednesday:
8
Film: Finish ‘Jamaica For Sale’ & Discussion
Readings: None
Friday: Social Dimensions of Natural Hazards and Disasters
Readings:
• Tierney, Kathleen. 2006. “Social Inequality, Hazards, and Disasters.” In On Risk And
Disaster: Lessons from Hurricane Katrina. University of Pennsylvania Press.
Philadelphia, PA. Pages 109-128. CULearn
Week 11, Oct. 31st: Social Dimensions of Natural Hazards and Disasters
Monday: Guest Speaker: Brandi Gilbert--Haiti
Readings:
• TBD
Wednesday: (Papers Due for Gasland)
Readings:
• Tierney, Kathleen, Christine Bevec & Erica Kuligowski. 2006. “Metaphors Matter:
Disaster Myths, Media Frames, and Their Consequences in Hurricane Katrina.” ANNALS
AAPS. 604: 57-81.
• http://www.worldwatch.org/ww/katrina2
Friday: NO CLASS
Week 12, November 7th: Hurricane Katrina: Social Dimensions of Natural Disasters and Hazards
Monday:
Film: “When The Levees Broke: A Requiem In Four Acts”
Readings: None
Wednesday:
Film: Finish “When The Levees Broke: A Requiem In Four Acts” & Discussion
Readings: None
Friday: Food Systems & Agriculture
Readings:
• King & McCarthy, Chapter 24. “Greetings from the Non-Barcode People.”
Week 13, November 14th: Food Systems & Agriculture
Monday: Food Systems & Agriculture
Readings:
• Eikenberry, Nicole & Chery Smith. 2005. “Attitudes, beliefs, and prevalence of
dumpster diving as a means to obtain food by Midwestern, low-income, urban
dwellers.” Agriculture & Human Values. 22(2): 187-202.
Wednesday: (Papers Due for When The Levees Broke)
9
Film: ‘Dive’
Friday: (News & Views #2 Due!!)
Film: Finish ‘Dive’ & Discussion
-----------------------------------------Thanksgiving Break Nov. 21st - Nov. 25th -------------------------------------Week 14, November 28th: Urban Green Space, Agriculture & Social Movements
Monday: Urban Green Space & Agriculture (Colorado Matters clip?)
Readings:
•King & McCarthy, Chapter 25. “Healing the Rift: Metabolic Restoration in Cuban
Agriculture.
•Armstrong, Donna. 2000. “A Survey of Community Gardens in Upstate New York:
Implications for Health Promotion and Community Development.” Health & Place 6:
319-327.
Wednesday: Urban Agriculture
Film: ‘The Garden’
Readings: None
Friday: (Papers Due for Dive)
Film: Finish ‘The Garden’ & Discussion
Readings: None
Week 15, December 5th: Social Movements, Social Change & The ‘Death of Environmentalism’
Monday: Social Movements
Readings: None
Wednesday: Social Change
Readings:
•King & McCarthy, Chapter 22. “Individualization: Plant a Tree, Buy a Bike, Save the
World?”
•King & McCarthy, Chapter 28. “Cleaning the Closet: Toward a New Fashion Ethic.
Friday: “Death of Environmentalism”? CLASS DEBATE.
(Papers Due for The Garden)
Readings:
•Shellenberger, M., & T. Nordhaus. 2004. The death of environmentalism. CULearn
(http://www.grist.org)
•Dunlap, Riley E. 2006. “Where’s the Data? An Examination of ‘The Death of
Environmentalism’s Ambiguous Empirical Foundations.” Organization &
Environment 19:88-102. CULearn
10
FINAL EXAM: Tuesday, December 13TH 1:30-4:00PM
“If you have three or more final exams scheduled on the same day, you are entitled to arrange an alternative exam
time for the last exam or exams scheduled on that day. To qualify for rescheduling final exam times, you must provide
evidence that you have three or more exams on the same day, and arrangements must be made with your instructor
no later than the end of the sixth week of the semester (Friday, September 30, 2011).”
11