Shelly Thomas <[email protected]>
Dear Colleagues,This fall I will be teaching an undergraduate general
education science course that will focus on sustainability,
especially concentrating on how our daily choices of food and energy
(procurement and use) affect people and the environment around the
world.1) I am looking for papers (peer-reviewed would be excellent),
book chapters, websites, (possibly movies), etc. - especially those
that have a strong scientific background - that describe either the
big picture or case studies. Students will read these for class
discussion. (Are there any examples with positive results? There was
a problem, it was addressed, now things are good/better).For
example,Food:-In Peru, under the Bush administration, asparagus
agriculture was begun and subsidized in order to provide a product to
replace poppies for the drug trade. Unfortunately, asparagus uses
much more water, and the aquifer is quickly being drained =
unsustainable, but important for jobs.-Low worker protection
standards in developing countries (ex. exposure to pesticides) =
cheaper products for US consumers, but pollution & health issues on
the farms.Energy:-Wind power = renewable, but problems for birds and
bats and some bugs-Fracking = short-term incomes & job opportunities,
but massive short- and long-term health and ecological problems2) I
am looking for potential projects that students can do as a group of
4-5 students that will also address these same issues. For example,
tracing food to its source (ex. buy all the products from local
supermarket, follow it back, see how much energy is used, etc). Other
ideas? My class is too large for field trips.If you have any ideas,
please email them to me directly (or through ECOLOG if you prefer).
I will be happy to make a list of the responses and post it to
ECOLOG.Thank you,ShellyShelly Thomas, Ph.D.James Madison
UniversityHarrisonburg, VA
- [ECOLOG-L] Case studies: food & energy sustainabilit... David Inouye
