GEOG 6500 - Seminar in Environmental Justice

In this seminar environmental justice will be examined in both theory and praxis. Our discussions will range from contested ideas and discourses about environmental justice, to more grounded examples of political movements that seek to contest (in)justice in both urban and rural environments. Specific topics will likely include the conceptual genesis of environmental/social justice movements, distributional inequity of toxics proximity in poor/minority communities, overcoming procedural inequities of white privilege, negotiating urban amenities like forests and parks, overcoming urban food deserts through enhanced food security, the rights of nonhuman species to the city, among other topics.

Requisites:
Credit Hours: 4
Repeat/Retake Information: May be repeated for a maximum of 8.0 hours.
Lecture/Lab Hours: 3.0 seminar, 1.0 research
Grades: Eligible Grades: A-F,PR,WP,WF,WN,FN,AU,I
Learning Outcomes:

Comprehension of the relationship between environmental struggles by poor and minority communities and the civil rights movement.
Critique traditional notions of distributional injustices concerning toxics with more advanced concepts of injustice associated with limited access to political power by people of color.
Expand the traditional EJ focus on toxics to include the distribution of environmental amenities like parks, trees, water, etc.
Redefine the environment to include ‘the place you work, live, and play.’