NE2019 P5: Climate Changing the Undergraduate Curriculum
NEXT EARTH: TEACHING CLIMATE CHANGE ACROSS THE DISCIPLINES
A NEARLY CARBON-NEUTRAL CONFERENCE
Panel 5: Climate Changing the Undergraduate Curriculum
“A Climate Change Module for Introduction to Sociology Class”
Andrew Szasz, (Professor of Sociology and Environmental Studies, University of California, Santa Cruz)
“What Fosters Inclusive Environmental Identities? A Panel Discussion of ‘Insider’ and ‘Outsider’ Experiences”
Isabel Romo-Hernandez (California State University, Dominguez Hills), Victoria Derr (Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies, California State University, Monterey Bay), Amanda Baugh (Associate Professor of Religious Studies, California State University, Northridge), and Ana Gonzalez (California State University, Monterey Bay)
For the Cultivating Inclusive Identities talk, I am curious about the role of abuelos (grandparents) in cultivating interest in and care for the environment. It wasn’t the focus of our talk, but in preparations for it, and in the panel, both Isabel and Ana mention this, and it emerges strongly in Significant Life Experience research. Significant Life Experience has sought to explain how people learn to care for nature, and has found two primary factors: direct contact with nature in childhood and an adult who teaches respect – los abuelos. But much of this research was conducted decades ago, including my own dissertation research with Hispano communities in Northern New Mexico where abuelos were also very important in this role. Now, we also are seeing many people become active for the environment because they experience degradation within the environment and want to change it. Many students I have known have written about and spoken about the importance of an abuelo or abuela, especially those who are still in Mexico, in fostering these connections. But I wonder what happens as experiences are changing, on both sides of the border, or when crossing the border is increasingly challenging? What are the experiences of children in Mexico and of Latinx in the US and how are they learning querencia in these times? Or more broadly, how are these relationships forming. I am curious what others experience or find in their own research and teaching?
This is a particular question for Ana: you said you thought it was really interesting how I didn’t think of myself as an environmentalist until higher education. I’m curious, if you know, what you thought my background might be – it is just interesting to me in the context of this talk to wonder about what you thought of as my identity, and how hearing about my early years was surprising to you. . . If you have any thoughts on that?
Thank you Isabel, Victoria, Amanda, and Ana for a really engaging panel. I love the idea of doing an environmental footprint journal, particularly with students in classes teach who don’t (yet?) self-identify as environmentally aware. I can envision using this assignment in a PHIL 101 course, for example.
I’m wondering if any of you can recommend sources that you’ve found most useful/engaging in helping students to understand and care about environmental racism. I’ve drawn on the work of Ta-Nehisi Coates in one particular class I teach to draw some of these links, but his approach is a bit tangential. Taking a more direct approach to learning about environmental racism seems to me an excellent way to introduce students to wider EJ concerns.
(And Hi, Amanda! Thanks for sending the link for this conference to the NEH group. Very glad to be able to take part).
Thanks for your interest and questions!
Amanda and I will have some resources available via the NXTerra Transformative Resources for Climate Action website that will be up soon. A few resources that I am pulling from that page and other courses I teach are:
Anything by Robert Bullard or Julian Agyeman. Some specific articles:
Taylor, D. E. (1997). American environmentalism: the role of race, class and gender in shaping activism 1820-1995. Race, Gender & Class, 16-62.
Julian Agyeman et al.: “Trends and Directions in Environmental Justice: From Inequity to Everyday Life, Community, and Just Sustainabilities.”
Rigolon, A. (2016). A complex landscape of inequity in access to urban parks: A literature review. Landscape and Urban Planning, 153, 160-169.
Anguelovski, I. (2016). From toxic sites to parks as (green) LULUs? New challenges of inequity, privilege, gentrification, and exclusion for urban environmental justice. Journal of Planning Literature, 31(1), 23-36.
I also like this reader, as it provides diverse perspectives on environmental justice, including environmental racism: Ammons, E., & Roy, M. (2015). Sharing the Earth: An International Environmental Justice Reader. University of Georgia Press.
For films, I like Ron Finley’s Ted Talk, A Guerilla Gardener in South Central LA: https://www.ted.com/talks/ron_finley_a_guerilla_gardener_in_south_central_la?language=en
Also, although longer, I have found these provoke great conversations about environmental racism and justice, from very different perspectives and viewpoints:
Bratt, P. (Producer), Bratt, P. & Congdon, J. (Writers). (2017). Dolores. [Documentary]. Five Stick Films.
I hope others will post ideas here, too!
Esparza, M. (Producer), Redford, R. (Director), Nichols, J. & Ward, D.S. (Screenplay). (1988). The Milagro Beanfield War. [Motion Picture]. Universal Pictures.
King, C. D. & Castle, E.A. (Director & Producer), Pitman, A.M. (Producer). (2018) Warrior Women [Documentary]. Castle King, LLC. https://www.warriorwomenfilm.com/
Fox, J. (Director). (2016). How to let go of the world and love all the things climate can’t change.
Thanks so much, Tori! This is great.
For the Cultivating Inclusive Identities talk, I am curious about the role of abuelos (grandparents) in cultivating interest in and care for the environment. It wasn’t the focus of our talk, but in preparations for it, and in the panel, both Isabel and Ana mention this, and it emerges strongly in Significant Life Experience research. Significant Life Experience has sought to explain how people learn to care for nature, and has found two primary factors: direct contact with nature in childhood and an adult who teaches respect – los abuelos. But much of this research was conducted decades ago, including my own dissertation research with Hispano communities in Northern New Mexico where abuelos were also very important in this role. Now, we also are seeing many people become active for the environment because they experience degradation within the environment and want to change it. Many students I have known have written about and spoken about the importance of an abuelo or abuela, especially those who are still in Mexico, in fostering these connections. But I wonder what happens as experiences are changing, on both sides of the border, or when crossing the border is increasingly challenging? What are the experiences of children in Mexico and of Latinx in the US and how are they learning querencia in these times? Or more broadly, how are these relationships forming. I am curious what others experience or find in their own research and teaching?
This is a particular question for Ana: you said you thought it was really interesting how I didn’t think of myself as an environmentalist until higher education. I’m curious, if you know, what you thought my background might be – it is just interesting to me in the context of this talk to wonder about what you thought of as my identity, and how hearing about my early years was surprising to you. . . If you have any thoughts on that?