You’re new here, so allow me to fill you in on some of the basics of ENVS 160. We don’t spend much of the class really focused in any one discipline. At first, this may seem frustrating. You will find yourself either thinking, “man, that was cool, I hope we stay on this for a while,” and then having to move on, or “geez, this is really not my area of interest, I hope we move on soon,” and then being pleased when the class changes topics. It is a give and take. But that’s just environmental studies. We put our fingers into all of the metaphorical pies, and it’s up for debate whether this method works well or not. Now I am not an ENVS major/minor, but I hope that what I’ve learned will continue on to help one of you that are – so here we go!
Section I
Get ready to be sad, because it’s time for climate change. Through the wonderful Mike Hulme, we began ENVS 160 with a ringer of a climate change text. Why We Disagree About Climate Change (2009), introduced us to the idea that climate change is not simply a two-sided debate. There are religious, social, economic, political and even personal realms to include, and each realm has a plethora of its own views. In our assignment, here, we had to investigate if the people around Portland considered climate change an important issue. First of all, this assignment brought me out of my comfort zone as I am generally shy and dislike interacting with strangers. However, I managed, and was rewarded with the realization that not everyone cares, even in a blue city like Portland. We, as environmentalists, need to understand that the climate is not a priority for everyone, and that really came as a shock for me.
Section II
Next, we flew to a completely different academic field with Vaclav Smil and his book, Making the Modern World (2014). All of a sudden we’re considering hard numbers and analytics. For our assignment, here, we were asked to follow Smil’s lead and approach a topic with a non-biased, strictly observational tactic. My group chose to go about this approach through tin mining. This section really helped me get a grasp on how little I actually knew about that which I had to write. We were forced to step back from our own understandings of a place and instead do everything in our power to evaluate tin mines through the eyes of the people that lived there. I recommend that you do this in as many forms as possible, as it has greatly helped me better understand the intricacies of PC culture.
Section III
Finally it seems like we are entering the realm of “traditional” ENVS. But what’s the difference? How much can a split between classic and contemporary environmental studies really accomplish? Well, in our third assignment, here, we were fortunate enough to select a topic that really stressed some of the differences a one-word change can make. Ecoterrorism, sounds spooky right? But what about Ecojustice? Suddenly the same acts can be perceived in completely different manners based solely off of one word swap. In Dr. Proctor’s survey, Ecotypes (2017), we were able to experience how we deal with these “swaps” and which we are drawn to more: contemporary or classic thinking (EcoTypes and Classic vs. Contemporary Environmental Thought, accessed 04/09/17). This not only allowed me a greater understanding of myself, but it also impressed upon me the importance of word choice and how it can affect opinions: something you should be vigilant of yourself.
Section IV
We wrapped up the class readings with the book Who Rules the Earth? By Paul Steinberg (2015). I personally loved this book, and I recommend reading all of it, regardless of what’s assigned. Steinberg has a way of writing that makes it seem as though he’s just chatting with you. The final four assignments, post 1 , post 2, post 3, and post 4 , were posts that typically had something to do with his work. These posts were the perfect way to wrap up the semester. We were forced to reflect on what we’d learned, and in the process I was able to remember the reason I took this class. I may not be an ENVS person, but I feel saturated with new knowledge, which is exactly what I wanted.
This course will be frustrating, time-consuming, and difficult to grasp, but the payoff is enormous. I have skills now that I never thought I’d master, like citations, and opinions I didn’t have in December. I am walking into my summer break with a head full of new ideas and ways to view the world. That seems like a successful class to me.
Works Cited
Hulme, Mike. 2009. Why We Disagree about Climate Change: Understanding Controversy, Inaction and Opportunity. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Smil, Vaclav 2013. Making the Modern World: Materials and Dematerialization. Wiley Publishing.
Steinberg, Paul. 2015. Who Rules the Earth?: How Social Rules Shape Our Planet and Our Lives. Oxford: Oxford University Press.