Environment and Development in East and South East Asia

Masters’ ProjectAmy Duray

April 21, 2009

AgendaSection 1: Masters’ Project OverviewSection 2: Masters’ Project as Learning

ProcessSection 3: Question and Answer Period

Section 1: Masters' Project OverviewSubmitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for EVPP798: Master’s Research Project in Environmental Science and Public Policy

Outline of this Section:1. Masters’ Project Objective and Administrative Elements2. Course Objectives3. Course Outline4. Instructional Methods5. Evaluative Tools6. Contributions to existing Undergraduate Majors and

Minors7. Contribution to University and Department Objectives

Masters’ Project ObjectiveDesign an upper-level undergraduate course

for “Environment and Development in East and Southeast Asia” suitable for offering under EVPP 490 (3 credits)

Administrative ElementsDeliverable Components:

SyllabusLesson PlansReading ListEvaluative Tools

Credit Hours: 3 credit hours (approximately 45 hours of academic instruction)

Prerequisites: NoneMinimum and Maximum Enrollment: 15/22Schedule Developed for Summer C 2009 Term

Course Objectives (1 of 2)Understand the interactions between

economic development and the environmentWhy the poor are burdened by degraded

environmental conditionsHow poverty contributes to environmental

degradationDescribe how economic development and

poverty are adversely effecting the environment in the region

Course Objectives (2 of 2)Suggest ways that environmental issues that

are poverty- or development-driven can be resolved given regional and global political and economic environments.

Evaluate if current models of Sustainable Development are adequate to address current and future issues within the region.

Course Outline (1 of 2)Part I: Introduction (10 hours)

Subjects: General Overview and Introduction; Development/Environment interactions; Global Developmental Frameworks; Asian Regionalism; Global and Regional Agencies in play in Development

Student Activities: Initial Survey; Research Topic Selection; Student-team Formation

Part II: The Asian Environment (10 hours) Subjects Covered: Geography and Climate; Ecological

History; Cultural and Ideological factors in Conservation and the Environment

Student Activities: First Student Research Summary; Student Research Project Progress Report; Student-team topic selection and initial coordination

Course Outline (2 of 2)Part III: Current Environmental Issues (14 hours)

Subjects Covered: Land Use/Degradation; Biodiversity Loss; Freshwater Stress; Marine Resources; Air/Atmosphere

Student Activities: Student Research Project In-class Presentation and wiki submission; Student team Project Progress Report; Second Student Research Summary

Part IV: Sustainable Development and the Future(6 hours)Subjects Covered: Tools and Metrics; Critiques of

Sustainable Development; U.S. Future Directions in Development and International Environmental Policy

Student Activities: Third Student Research Summary; Course Evaluation; Final Examination

Instructional MethodsLearner from Teacher:

Lectures and ReadingsMultimedia Resources

Learner from Self:Research SummariesIndividual Project

Learner from Peers:Capstone ExerciseClassroom Participation

Evaluative Tools (1 of 3)Country Report – Individual Project

Task: Develop a country report to inform your development colleagues on key development and environmental concerns, as well as the current state of environmental governance capacity of your country. Deliver in written and oral format.

Requirements: Four defined sections: Country overview, MDG

progress, Environmental Issues, Environmental Governance Capacity

No Fewer than 10 sources (balanced internet/peer-reviewed)

On the Wiki here.

Evaluative Tools (2 of 3)Research Summaries

Three individual one-page summaries of relevant research on the five environmental issues we will study in Part 3.

Components: Citation, Summary, Relevance to the region, Rationale for selection.

On the wiki here.Class Participation

Components: Attendance and promptness, Level of engagement in class, Listening skills, Behavior, Preparation for class, Peer-to-peer learning, and assigned discussion topics.

Matrix for evaluation on the wiki here.

Evaluative Tools (3 of 3)Capstone Group Exercise

Teams of 3-4 studentsStudent-selected issueDescribe the issue, which includes a DPSIR (Driver-

Pressure-State and Trends-Impact-Response) Model.Apply the World Bank’s Logical Framework process

to suggest an overall strategic objective, supporting objectives, supporting activites, indicators, measurable outcomes, and assumptions.

Present to classmates, and summarize in a written wiki page.

On the wiki here.

Evaluative Tools SummaryObjectives

Country Report

Team Project

Research Summaries

Examination

Environment and Poverty Interactions

DescribeAnalyze Identify List Recall

Development and Poverty effects upon Environment in Asia

Give ExamplesInterpret

Summarize

ModelSummarize

ListSummarize Describe

Creative ideas for problem-solving

Identify

Create, Adapt

ValidateDefend

IdentifyAdaptExtend

Extend

Assessing current paradigms

ExamineRecommend

CreateCritique Examine

Propose

How this Course contributes to GMU’s Majors and Minors: B.S. Degree in Global and Environmental Change: “examines, from local,

regional and global scales the dynamics of Earth’s systems and their interactions: the geosphere, the atmosphere, the ecosphere and the sociosphere.” -- and yet no explicit offerings for students at the undergraduate level regarding regional issues, decision-making, and policies. (http://globalaffairs.gmu.edu/academics/major.shtml)

B.S. and Minor in Global Affairs: “introduces [students] to the global trends affecting all societies and provides you the tools to understand these trends. As a Global Affairs major, [students] examine transnational and international processes in a wide range of areas: politics, economics, culture, peace and conflict, the environment, and more. [Students] study specific regions, languages, and investigate the ways particular parts of the world experience globalization.” (http://globalaffairs.gmu.edu/academics/major.shtml)

Minor in Sustainability Studies: “Mason’s Sustainability Studies minor introduces students to the concepts, principles and ethical and moral issues that inform the sustainability paradigm.  The minor’s curriculum integrates classroom learning, field study, and service projects in a program that prepares students to apply the sustainability perspective to their future employment, consumption decisions, and lifestyle choices, as well as to the improvement of communities in which they live.” (http://green.gmu.edu/quickSources/news.html)

Why GMU needs this course (and more like it…)University Goals emphasize Global Leadership…

“Educate the new generation of leaders for the 21st century men and women capable of shaping a global community with vision, justice, and clarity.”

“Provide innovative and interdisciplinary undergraduate, graduate, and professional courses of study that enable students to exercise analytical and imaginative thinking and make well-founded ethical decisions.”http://www2.gmu.edu/resources/visitors/vision/mission.html

and Sustainability:“All students are exposed to Sustainability principles in

their coursework where applicable.”http://green.gmu.edu/about/vision.html

Why ESP needs this course (and more like it…)Complement to EVPP377: Environmental Policy Making

in Developing Countries (3:3:0) “Overview of environmental policy process in developing countries around the world. Major focus on understanding distinctive problems and dynamics of environmental policy making in poor countries to generate better policy decisions and management.” (2009 GMU Catalog)

Regional courses not available at the undergraduate level. This course is an undergraduate analog of the course offered

through the graduate program as EVPP 626.Other regional environmental courses at graduate level

include EVPP627 (Latin America) and EVPP 628 (Africa).An opportunity to study global environmental issues

in a specific location, using current policy tools.

Masters' Project as Learning ProcessAn evaluation of the course development process as a mechanism for demonstrating subject matter competency

Outline of this Section:1. Course Development Process2. Meeting Bloom’s Goals3. Integration of Key Concepts4. Masters’ Project Lessons Learned5. Masters’ Program Lessons Learned6. The Future

An overview of my Course Development Process (1 of 2)Phase 1: Research and EvaluationResearch: Learning methods, university offerings,

syllabus developmentEvaluation: Assessed graduate format, determined

what fit undergraduate levelMore Research: Much, much more reading on

development models, Asian regionalism, sustainable development paradigm assessments, current events.

Phase 2: Development of Course ObjectivesWhat critical elements did I hope to achieve?What tools did I want to develop or reinforce?

An overview of my Course Development Process (2 of 2)Phase 3: Development of Content Creation of Unit 1 and Unit 4 Adaptation of materials from EVPP 626 to develop Unit 2 and Unit

3.Phase 4: Development of Assessment Tools What kind of exercises would produce the learning objectives that

I intend? How could I assess learning in students with varied learning

styles and personalities? How would I grade these?Phase 5: Synthesis, Reflection and Presentation Developing the presentation was a way to verify that I included all

the objectives in a coherent way? Refining lesson plans and evaluative tools to more closely attain

objectives. Exploring this project as a learning method and competency

demonstrator.

Meeting Bloom’s Goals (1 of 3)Remembering: Can the student recall or

remember information?Developing this course plan forced me to progress

to mastery-level knowledge of critical concepts such as: regional geography, DPSIR model, MDGs, I=PAT and EKC theories

Understanding: Can the student explain ideas and concepts?Illustration of general conceptsSelection of relevant regional examplesInterpretation of models (i.e. DPSIR and

LOGFRAME)

Meeting Bloom’s Goals (2 of 3)Applying: Can the student apply and use

information in a new way?Transforming previous research into illustrations,

charts and discussionsCreating a narrative to describe historical ecology

factors in Unit 2Analyzing: Can the student distinguish between

the different parts?Simplifying graduate-level materialPrioritizing concepts for discussionDeveloping evaluative criteria for assignments by

determining critical components to be assessed

Meeting Bloom’s Goals (3 of 3)Evaluating: Can the student justify a stand or decision?

Determining most appropriate resources to inform studentsChoosing quality and diverse evaluative toolsJustifying inclusion of such a course into the curriculum

Creating: Can the student create a new product or point of view?This entire project was a creative endeavor = taking a

relatively broad survey course and bringing it to a new audience

Emphasizing individual assessment as part of the final stages of the course in order to encourage critical thinking

Integration of Key Concepts (1 of 3)I=PAT Theory

Demonstration of contributions to Environmental Impact from Population, Affluence, and Technology

Challenges: Defining the Components Isolating the effects of each on the total Impact

Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) Theory Model of Economic Degradation as a function of national

wealth Challenges:

Non-local effects Empirical studies show differing performance for pollution v.

resource extraction activitiesParadigm effect

Focus on current paradigms often prevents us from seeing new solutions or benefits which may be possible under a new paradigm

Evaluating “Sustainable Development,” I=PAT, and EKC as paradigms

Exploring alternative paradigms

Integration of Key Concepts (2 of 3)Wicked Problems

Problems characterized by incomplete scientific understanding and conflicting human values.

Other characteristics include: multiple stakeholders, competing objectives, and uncontrollable or unpredictable elements (i.e. future outcomes, economic forces), uniqueness in time and space

Complex interaction of Science and Values in Environmental Decision Making Science defines the problem and scope, provide scientific assessments of

possible solutions, identify and quantify risk. Values inform decisions based on risks and conflicting priorities Ideally distinct, however values of scientists or communities can

influence outcomes unitentionally

Importance of culture and context in policy decisions Informs the objectives and paradigms of the parties Sensitivity to culture and context assists in collaboration

Integration of Key Concepts (3 of 3)Adaptive Management to compensate for scientific

uncertaintyIdentifying uncertain effects or dynamics, Developing a management plan that seeks to

answer the unknownsApplying the plan on a scale likely to produce

significant outcomesAggressively monitoring observed outcomesLearning from the comparison of desired and

observed outcomesApplying the lessons learned in the management

plan.

Masters’ Project Lessons LearnedCourse Development as a Format for the Masters’ Project:

Education is an art unto itself. Despite a long track record of training development in the government sector, I had little knowledge of course development in an academic setting. Additional reading (two books) was required.

Consider limiting the scope of lesson plans developed. Completing 21 lesson plans was a lot. Especially in those units where material was completely new.

You’ll read twice as much as you will ultimately require, as you cast aside inappropriate readings (scope, complexity, slant, etc.)

Other:Don’t be innovative if you are in a hurry.Importance of a plan to success on a Masters’ Project

Masters’ Program Lessons Learned1. Role of someone like me with both scientific

understanding and decision-making experience

2. Importance of continual evaluation of objectives and paradigms

3. Increasing scrutiny of scientific research and policy-making strategy – challenging methods, assumptions, and outcomes

Question and Answer

ConclusionWhat other actions need to be taken by 24 April to conclude this project?