Download climate change: social science perspectives

CARLETON UNIVERSITY
DEPARTMENT OF GEOGRAPHY& ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES
GEOG/ENST 2500A, WINTER 2015
CLIMATE CHANGE: SOCIAL SCIENCE PERSPECTIVES
Instructor:
Classroom:
Class Time:
Office:
Office Hours:
Email:
Phone Number:
Dr. Jamie Brownlee
SA 520
M&W 11:35-12:55
Loeb B340
11:30-12:30 Tuesday (or by appointment)
[email protected]
613-234-7833 (home)
Pre-requisites:
GEOG 1020 or ENST 1020, or second-year standing
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
There is an overwhelming consensus among climate scientists that climate change poses a
serious – and potentially grave – threat to human beings, ecosystems and other species. This
course will use a social science perspective to look at the issue of global climate change,
including its history, root causes and consequences. Throughout the course, we will discuss how
the climate crisis is integrally related to global capitalism, systems of power and inequality, and
the structure of the modern corporation. We will consider the specific role of social processes
and institutions – such as politics, governments, capital accumulation, economic growth, the
fossil fuel industry, consumer culture, the mass media, and the advertising and public relations
industries – both in shaping climate change debates and accelerating the threat. We will also
interrogate our own role as citizens and consumers in the global economy. Finally, this course
will examine the efficacy of different responses and solutions to the problems associated with
climate change, ranging from market reforms and ‘green capitalism’ to more radical social and
economic transformations.
COURSE OBJECTIVES:
Because this is a social science course, students will be encouraged to think critically about how
social, economic and political arrangements underlie global climate change. How and why are
dominant social institutions at the root of climate change and our current responses to it? What
are the linkages between social and economic inequality and the policy-making process? More
generally, this course will challenge students to identify their beliefs and assumptions about the
social and the political world, and to identify opportunities for engagement with these issues
beyond the boundaries of the classroom.
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COURSE TEXT AND READING MATERIALS:
•
Klein, Naomi. 2014. This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. the Climate. Toronto:
Knopf.
This book is available at Octopus Books, which is located at 116 Third Avenue.
Please note that all other assigned readings will be available through cuLearn.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS AND EVALUATION:
1.
CRITICAL REACTION PAPER, DUE FEBRUARY 4TH
15%
This assignment involves writing a critical reaction to all of the readings from one week
of classes between weeks 2 and 5 (i.e., choose one of the weeks from week 2 to week 5).
The paper should be approximately 5 double-spaced pages, and the only sources you
should use are those assigned for the week. In the paper, briefly summarize some of the
main arguments of each of the readings and then analyze and compare the arguments
within them. The point of the paper is to allow you to engage with a particular topic and
to develop your critical reflection and analysis skills. The paper is due in class on
February 4th.
2.
MIDTERM EXAM, FEBRUARY 11TH
25%
The midterm exam will be some combination of multiple choice, short answer and essay
questions (details forthcoming). It will cover material from both the assigned readings
and the lectures (weeks 1-6). The exam will be held in class on February 11th.
3.
FINAL PAPER, DUE IN CLASS APRIL 6TH
30%
Students can select their own paper topic, understanding that it must be relevant to the
issues addressed in the course. While the paper can draw on some of the weekly readings,
it must also reference additional academic sources. It should be approximately 12-15
double-spaced pages. Papers will be graded on the quality of your research and writing,
strength of your analysis and arguments, and your ability to situate your arguments within
existing debates. Students are encouraged to discuss paper ideas with me at any point
during the course. Additional information will be provided in class.
4.
30%
FINAL EXAM
The final exam will be some combination of multiple choice, short answer and essay
questions (details forthcoming). It will cover material from both the assigned readings
and the lectures, in the second half of the course only (weeks 7 through 12). The final
exam will be scheduled by the university in the exam period.
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GRADES
In accordance with the Carleton University Undergraduate Calendar (p. 45), the letter grades
assigned in this course will have the following percentage equivalents:
A+ = 90-100
A = 85-89
A - = 80-84
F = Below 50
B+ = 77-79
B = 73-76
B - = 70-72
C+ = 67-69
C = 63-66
C - = 60-62
D+ = 57-59
D = 53-56
D - = 50-52
WDN = Withdrawn from the course
Final grades are subject to the Dean’s approval.
ACADEMIC REGULATIONS AND ACCOMMODATIONS
University rules regarding registration, withdrawal, appealing marks, and most anything else you
might need to know can be found on the university’s website, here:
http://calendar.carleton.ca/undergrad/regulations/academicregulationsoftheuniversity/
REQUESTS FOR ACADEMIC ACCOMMODATIONS
You may need special arrangements to meet your academic obligations during the term. For an
accommodation request the processes are as follows:
Academic Accommodations for Students with Disabilities:
The Paul Menton Centre for Students with Disabilities (PMC) provides services to students with
Learning Disabilities (LD), psychiatric/mental health disabilities, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity
Disorder (ADHD), Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), chronic medical conditions, and
impairments in mobility, hearing, and vision. If you have a disability requiring academic
accommodations in this course, please contact PMC at 613-520-6608 or [email protected] for a
formal evaluation. If you are already registered with the PMC, contact your PMC coordinator to
send me your Letter of Accommodation at the beginning of the term, and no later than two
weeks before the first in-class scheduled test or exam requiring accommodation (if applicable).
After requesting accommodation from PMC, meet with me to ensure accommodation
arrangements are made. Please consult the PMC website for the deadline to request
accommodations for the formally-scheduled exam (if applicable). The deadline for contacting the
Paul Menton Centre regarding accommodation for final exams for the December 2014 exam
period is November 7, 2014.
For Religious Obligations:
Students requesting academic accommodation on the basis of religious obligation should make a
formal, written request to their instructors for alternate dates and/or means of satisfying academic
requirements. Such requests should be made during the first two weeks of class, or as soon as
possible after the need for accommodation is known to exist, but no later than two weeks before
the compulsory event. Accommodation is to be worked out directly and on an individual basis
between the student and the instructor(s) involved. Instructors will make accommodations in a
way that avoids academic disadvantage to the student. Students or instructors who have
questions or want to confirm accommodation eligibility of a religious event or practice may refer
to the Equity Services website for a list of holy days and Carleton's Academic Accommodation
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policies, or may contact an Equity Services Advisor in the Equity Services Department for
assistance.
For Pregnancy:
Pregnant students requiring academic accommodations are encouraged to contact an Equity
Advisor in Equity Services to complete a letter of accommodation. The student must then make
an appointment to discuss her needs with the instructor at least two weeks prior to the first
academic event in which it is anticipated the accommodation will be required.
For more details visit the Equity Services website: http://www2.carleton.ca/equity/
ACADEMIC INTEGRITY AND PLAGIARISM
Students are expected to familiarize themselves with and follow the Carleton University Student
Academic Integrity Policy (See http://www.carleton.ca/sasc/academic-integrity/).
Plagiarism
Plagiarism is the passing off of someone else's work as your own and is a serious academic
offence. For the details of what constitutes plagiarism, the potential penalties and the procedures
refer to the section on Instructional Offences in the Undergraduate Calendar.
What are the Penalties for Plagiarism?
A student found to have plagiarized an assignment may be subject to one of several penalties
including: expulsion; suspension from all studies at Carleton; suspension from full-time studies;
and/or a reprimand; a refusal of permission to continue or to register in a specific degree
program; academic probation; award of an FNS, Fail, or an ABS. The Policy is strictly enforced
and is binding on all students.
What are the Procedures?
All allegations of plagiarism are reported to the faculty of Dean of FASS and Management.
Documentation is prepared by instructors and/or departmental chairs. The Dean writes to the
student and the University Ombudsperson about the alleged plagiarism. The Dean reviews the
allegation. If it is not resolved at this level then it is referred to a tribunal appointed by the
Senate.
ASSISTANCE FOR STUDENTS
Student Academic Success Centre (SASC): www.carleton.ca/sasc
Writing Tutorial Services: http://www.carleton.ca/sasc/writing-tutorial-service/
Peer Assisted Study Sessions (PASS): www.carleton.ca/sasc/peer-assisted-study-sessions
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COURSE CALENDAR
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WEEK ONE – JANUARY 5 & 7
INTRODUCTION AND ASSESSMENT OF THE EVIDENCE: WHAT DOES THE SCIENCE SAY?
READINGS
•
Klein, Naomi. 2014. “One Way or Another, Everything Changes” in This Changes
Everything: Capitalism vs. the Climate. Toronto: Knopf. pp. 1-28.
TH
TH
WEEK TWO – JANUARY 12 & 14
HISTORICAL ROOTS OF THE ECOLOGICAL AND CLIMATE CRISIS
READINGS
•
•
•
Klein, Naomi. 2014. “Beyond Extractivism: Confronting the Climate Denier Within” in
This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. the Climate. Toronto: Knopf. pp. 161-187.
Broswimmer, Franz. 2002. “The Modern Assault on Nature: The Making of Ecocide” in
Ecocide: A Short History of the Mass Extinction of Species. London: Pluto Press. pp. 5469.
Rifkin, Jeremy. 1991. “A Private Nature” in Biosphere Politics: A New Consciousness
for a New Century. New York: Crown. pp. 38-47.
TH
ST
WEEK THREE – JANUARY 19 AND 21
CORPORATE PERSONHOOD, EXTERNALITIES AND THE MODERN ENVIRONMENTAL MOVEMENT
READINGS
•
Klein, Naomi. 2014. “Fruits, Not Roots: The Disastrous Merger of Big Business and Big
Green” in This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. the Climate. Toronto: Knopf. pp.
191-211.
•
Bakan, Joel. 2004. “Business as Usual” in The Corporation: The Pathological Pursuit of
Profit and Power. Toronto: Viking. pp. 28-59.
•
Karliner, Joshua. 1997. “The Greening of Global Reach” in The Corporate Planet:
Ecology and Politics in the Age of Globalization. San Fransicso: Sierra Club. pp. 30-47.
TH
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WEEK FOUR – JANUARY 26 AND 28
CAPITALISM VERSUS THE CLIMATE: CAPITAL ACCUMULATION, ECONOMIC GROWTH AND
GLOBALIZATION
READINGS
•
Ellwood, Wayne. 2014. “Climate Change and Carbon Footprints” in The No-Nonsense
Guide to Degrowth and Sustainability. Oxford: New Internationalist. pp. 53-69.
•
Majka, Christopher. 2012. “In the Valley of the Shadow of Peak Oil.” Rabble.ca, July 5.
pp. 1-9.
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•
Kovel, Joel. 2007. “Capital” in The Enemy of Nature: The End of Capitalism or the End
of the World? Halifax: Fernwood. pp. 26-50.
ND
TH
WEEK FIVE – FEBRUARY 2 AND 4
THE GLOBAL ECONOMIC CRISIS, UNBURNABLE CARBON AND THE FATE OF THE PUBLIC
SPHERE
READINGS
•
•
•
McKibben, Bill. 2012. “Global Warming's Terrifying New Math.” Rolling Stone, July 19.
pp. 1-13.
Klein, Naomi. 2014. “Public and Paid For: Overcoming the Ideological Blocks to the
Next Economy” in This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. the Climate. Toronto:
Knopf. pp. 96-119.
Klein, Naomi. 2014. “Planning and Banning: Slapping the Invisible Hand, Building a
Movement” in This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. the Climate. Toronto: Knopf. pp.
120-160.
TH
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WEEK SIX – FEBRUARY 9 AND 11
GLOBAL WARMING IS GOOD FOR YOU: ADVERTISING, PUBLIC RELATIONS AND CORPORATE
‘GREENWASH’
READINGS
•
Karliner, Joshua. 1997. “The Emerald City” in The Corporate Planet: Ecology and
Politics in the Age of Globalization. San Fransicso: Sierra Club. pp. 168-194.
•
Rampton, Sheldon and John Stauber. 2001. “Global Warming is Good for You” in Trust
Us, We’re Experts! New York: Centre for Media and Democracy. pp. 267-283
•
Beder, Sharon. 2009. “Teaching Corporate Values” in This Little Kiddy Went to Market:
The Corporate Capture of Childhood. London: Pluto Press. pp. 143-157.
MID-TERM EXAM – FEBRUARY 11TH
*READING WEEK*
RD
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WEEK SEVEN – FEBRUARY 23 AND 25
CONFRONTING CONSUMPTION ON A WARMING PLANET: SOCIAL INEQUALITY AND THE
POLITICS OF CONSUMERISM
•
•
Ellwood, Wayne. 2014. “Life on the Treadmill” in The No-Nonsense Guide to Degrowth
and Sustainability. Oxford: New Internationalist. pp. 132-145.
Bomford, Michael. 2010. “Getting Fossil Fuels off the Plate” in The Post-Carbon
Reader: Managing the 21st Century’s Sustainability Crisis. California: Post Carbon
Institute. pp. 119-127.
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•
•
Maniates, Michael. 2002. “Individualization: Plant a Tree, Buy a Bike, Save the World?”
in T. Princen, M. Maniates and K. Conca (eds.), Confronting Consumption. Cambridge,
MA: MIT Press. pp. 43-66.
Beder, Sharon. 2009. “Turning Children into Consumers” in This Little Kiddy Went to
Market: The Corporate Capture of Childhood. pp. 6-22.
ND
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WEEK EIGHT – MARCH 2 AND 4
UNDERMINING ACTION ON THE CLIMATE FRONT: THE RECORD OF THE HARPER
GOVERNMENT
READINGS
•
Turner, Chris. 2013. “Landscape at Twilight” in The War on Science: Muzzled Scientists
and Wilful Blindness in Stephen Harper’s Canada. Vancouver: Greystone. pp. 17-46.
•
Engler, Yves. 2014. “Canadian Diplomatic Efforts to Sell the Tar Sands” in A Line in the
Tar Sands: Struggles for Environmental Justice. Toronto: Between the Lines. pp. 55-63.
•
The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada. 2014. “The Big Chill:
Silencing Public Interest Science, A Survey.” pp. 2-7.
•
Monbiot, George. 2009. “Canada’s Image Lies in Tatters.” The Guardian, November
30th. pp. 1-3.
TH
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WEEK NINE – MARCH 9 AND 11
“GAME OVER FOR THE CLIMATE”:
THE TAR SANDS AND CANADA’S ENERGY FUTURE
READINGS
•
Nikiforuk, Andrew. 2009. “How the Tar Sands are Fueling the Global Climate Crisis.”
Toronto: Greenpeace Canada. pp. 3-43.
•
Rozworski, Michael. 2014. “The Outsize (un)Importance of the Tar Sands.” Socialist
Project E-Bulletin, No. 1012. pp. 1-6.
•
Environmental Defence. 2008. “Canada’s Toxic Tar Sands: The Most Destructive Project
on Earth” pp. 7-28.
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WEEK TEN – MARCH 16 AND 18
UNDERSTANDING AND CONFRONTING CLIMATE CHANGE DENIAL
READINGS
•
•
•
Klein, Naomi. 2014. “The Right is Right: The Revolutionary Power of Climate Change”
in This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. the Climate. Toronto: Knopf. pp. 31-54.
Mann, Michael. 2012. “Climategate: The Real Story” in The Hockey Stick and the
Climate Wars: Dispatches from the Front Lines. New York: Columbia University Press.
pp. 207-232.
Derber, Charles. 2010. “The Denial Regime” in Greed to Green: Solving Climate Change
and Remaking the Economy. Boulder, CO: Paradigm 74-87.
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RD
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WEEK ELEVEN – MARCH 23 AND 25
SOLUTIONS TO THE CLIMATE CRISIS I: THE EFFICACY OF ‘GREEN CAPITALISM’ AND
MARKET-BASED REFORMS
READINGS
•
•
•
Klein, Naomi. 2014. “Fruits, Not Roots: The Disastrous Merger of Big Business and Big
Green” in This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. the Climate. Toronto: Knopf. pp.
211-229.
Klein, Naomi. 2014. “No Messiahs: The Green Billionaires Won’t Save Us” in This
Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. the Climate. Toronto: Knopf. pp. 230-255.
Klein, Naomi. 2014. “Dimming the Sun: The Solution to Pollution is … Pollution?” in
This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. the Climate. Toronto: Knopf. pp. 256-268, 278290.
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ST
WEEK TWELVE – MARCH 30 & APRIL 1
SOLUTIONS TO THE CLIMATE CRISIS II: ARGUMENTS FOR SYSTEMS CHANGE
READINGS
•
•
•
•
McKibben, Bill. 2014. “Expanding the Fossil Fuel Resistance” in A Line in the Tar
Sands: Struggles for Environmental Justice. Toronto: Between the Lines. pp. 279-285.
Klein, Naomi. 2014. “You and What Army? Indigenous Rights and the Power of Keeping
Our Word” in This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. the Climate. Toronto: Knopf. pp
367-387.
Klein, Naomi. 2014. “The Leap Years: Just Enough Time for Impossible” in This
Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. the Climate. Toronto: Knopf. pp. 449-466.
Chivers, Danny. 2010. “What Might a Zero-Carbon Future Look Like?” in The NoNonsense Guide to Climate Change: The Science, The Solutions, The Way Forward.
Oxford: New Internationalist. pp. 185-188.
WEEK THIRTEEN – APRIL 6
•
Course Wrap-Up
•
Final Paper Due
TH
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