wwhhaatt sshhoouulldd yyoouu ddoo iinn mmaayy?? :: llooaaff :: wwoorrkk ; take “environment & human affairs” ffiirrsstt 66 wweeeekkss,, tt--tthh 66::0000--99::5500Ecology and Human Affairs Dr. Sanda Kaufman, Instructor TTh 6:00 - 9:30 MGL College of Urban Affairs 1st 6 weeks Summer Semester, 2007 Cleveland State University ECOLOGY AND HUMAN AFFAIRS SYLLABUS COURSE OBJECTIVES Our natural environment, a key limited resource, is often the subject of heated debate among concerned individuals, communities, the business sector, and agencies at all government levels that engage in regulatory and permitting activities. Decisions are often fraught with conflict that delays or prevents any action. Decision making for environmental policy and management has to take into account conflicting values, information with heavy scientific content, and the possibility that consequences will affect numerous people for extended periods of time. One measure of the quality of decisions is their implementability. The implementation of policies and decisions affecting the natural environment can be hampered by decision processes geared to the interests of one party to the near exclusion of other interests. Such processes in essence foil implementation, by failing to ensure the participation of those who can prevent it. On the other hand, broad participatory processes can easily reach impasse as various interest groups successfully block each other's initiatives. What types of processes are most likely to yield decisions and policies that can be implemented? Ecology and Human Affairs addresses this question. It is one of two courses designed to introduce students to principles, techniques and examples of decision making in contexts with environmental linkage. The Environmental Policy course presents the range of issues currently at the core of environmental policy debates, and the process of formulating policies that respond to current and future needs and provide remedies to past problems whose consequences linger. The second course expands the student's ability to assess decision situations affecting the environment, by: • discussing the kinds of challenges a decision maker encounters in the realms of planning and environmental decision making; • identifying strategies (negotiation, litigation, lobbying, etc.) suitable for various decision situations (such as one-shot versus on-going, two-party versus multiparty, local versus national), with focus on implementation; • carrying out the analysis on which decisions can be based, generating implementable strategies, and negotiating them with others who have a say in implementing a selected strategy; • presenting results of the analysis and of negotiations to constituencies. At the conclusion of this course, students should be able to: • identify the joint aspects of an environmental decision situation; • analyze own interests, options, and likelihoods of consequences; • identify potential stakeholders in the decision, map their interests, resources and strategies; • understand the design needs for a negotiation process that leads to an acceptable and implementable decision; • argue in favor of selected decisions before a constituency.Sanda Kaufman Ecology and Human Affairs, Summer 2007 3 Levin College of Urban Affairs 5/24/2007 Cleveland State University TABLE OF CONTENTS COURSE OBJECTIVES 2 COURSE METHOD 4 TEXTS, MATERIALS 4 EVALUATION PROCEDURE 6 OFFICE, PHONE 6 IMPORTANT CSU DATES 6 UNIVERSITY POLICIES 6 SPECIAL NEEDS 6 SCHEDULE 7 HOMEWORK 1 8 HOMEWORK 2 8 HOMEWORK 3 8 Connect to the course WEB page: http://urban.csuohio.edu/~sanda/syl/env.htm for syllabus and for up-to-date links to other related WEB sites.Sanda Kaufman Ecology and Human Affairs, Summer 2007 4 Levin College of Urban Affairs 5/24/2007 Cleveland State University COURSE METHOD The course consists of: • lectures on decision making and negotiations principles and strategies; • class discussions of current issues and case studies; • guest presentations; • student presentations on assigned questions regarding case studies; • negotiation simulation games and “Understanding Environmental Problems” (see the Silver County simulation website). ⇒ Students are expected to: attend all classes; participate actively in games and discussions, asking clarifying questions; read text materials as assigned. ⇒ Assignments should be handed in ON TIME (typed). Since written assignments serve the goal of sharpening communication skills that complement the analytic ones, pay attention to completeness, clarity and aspect. Grading will be based on both soundness of the analytical thinking and effectiveness of interpretation and communication of conclusions. ⇒ Prepare for class sessions by reading text assignments, identifying topics that need clarification or discussion in class. Feel free to raise questions to ensure that you thoroughly understand discussed analytical frameworks and can apply them outside the classroom. TEXTS, MATERIALS 1. Lawrence Bacow & Michael Wheeler: Environmental Dispute Resolution, New York: Plenum (1984). 2. Class web site: http://urban.csuohio.edu/~sanda/syl/env.htm & related pages: o http://urban.csuohio.edu/~sanda/envir/sust.htm (sustainability sources) o http://urban.csuohio.edu/~sanda/plng.htm (planning) o http://urban.csuohio.edu/~sanda/conflict.htm, http://urban.csuohio.edu/~sanda/envir.htm (environmental sources) o http://urban.csuohio.edu/~sanda/dec.htm, and http://urban.csuohio.edu/~sanda/gis.htm (methods and GIS sources) o http://www.environmentalframing.org/online-training_index.shtml (simulation website). Related Readings1 M.H. Bazerman, 1986. Judgment in Managerial Decision Making. Wiley. D.J. Bem, 1970. Beliefs, Attitudes, and Human Affairs. Brooks/Cole.. W.J. Baumol & W.E. Oates, 1979. Economics, Environmental Policy, and the Quality of Life. Prentice Hall. V. Brown, D. Ingle Smith, R. Wiseman, J. Handmer, 1995. Risks and Opportunities: Managing Environmental Conflict and Change. London: Earthscan. S.L. Carpenter and W.J.D. Kennedy, 1988. Managing Public Disputes. Jossey-Bass. J. Darmstadter, ed., 1992. Global development and the Environment: Perspectives on Sustainability. Resources for the Future. M. Denny,