Research/Writing Assignment Environmental Change, Justice, and Equity ( 100

points possible ; Due at midnight on Sunday October 18th )

Learning objectives
- Students will be able to define concepts of environmental equity and justice.
- Students will be able to discuss how one of the following environmental issues/challenges (climate
change, pollution, food security) disproportionately impacts some communities more than others
including resource dependent communities, poor communities, communities of color, and racially
diverse communities.
- Students will be able to explain how environmental change, which impacts everyone, will impact
some communities in a much more profound way, and consider potential
- Students will be able to clearly document information found in the literature.
- Students will be able to read and summarize information for a general audience.
- Students will be able to communicate scientific and sociological information in written formats for a
general audience.
- Students will be able to identify critical system components of human migration
- Students will be able to discuss the complexity of the ethical and moral implications and obligations
of environmental change and environmental justice as relates to areas such as climate induced
human migration, pollution, resources accessibility etc.).

Context for the Assignment:

“The natural environment is more than simply a backdrop to the social world. Ecosystem
services, hazards, and deep human-environment relations affect every important social and cultural
phenomenon, from the location of settlements, through to attachment to place” (Black et. al., 2011, pg.
S3). Because of this interdependence of human health and wellbeing to ecosystem process, we cannot
fully understand environmental justice issues without considering underlying environmental drivers
along with human societal drivers. Environmental change can initiate or exacerbate fragile conditions for
individuals, communities, and nations leading to increased vulnerability to adverse environmental
conditions. Vulnerability is a function of likelihood of being exposed to an environmental hazard and the
capacity of that population to adapt to changes wrought from the exposure. Vulnerability is exacerbated
by issues of justice and equity just as issues of justice and equity can lead to increased vulnerability.
Much of the environmental change the world is experiencing is driven by human-environmental
interactions such as land use change, harvesting, mining, energy production and use, water, soil, and air
contamination etc. This change has been the result of industrialization and resource demand
predominantly in developed nations. These activities can lead to significant environmental justice issues
at a local, national, and international scales. This is often through the disproportionate distribution of
impacts on human health from environmental degradation, higher exposure and increased vulnerability
and risk to environmental change, as well as disproportionate accessibility to healthy and safe options.
On an international scale, it is mainly those in developing nations that are more likely to directly
experience the negative impacts from global environmental change due to direct exposure and to the
fragility and vulnerability of those nations or populations.

Black, R. et.al. (2011). The effect of environmental change on human migration. Global Environmental
Change. Vol 21. Supplement 1. Pgs. S3-S11. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2011.10.001

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For this paper, students will choose, research, and write about an area of environmental justice.
To get started, explore the concept of environmental equity and justice:

Watch the following discussion by Dr. Robert Bullard presented at WSU in Fall of 2019 titled “The Quest
for Environmental, Climate, Racial, and Economic Justice in the United States”

Explore some ideas on environmental justice: Website Links on Environmental Justice Issues
• Environmental Justice / Environmental Racism http://www.ejnet.org/ej/
• Environmental Protection Agency: Environmental Justice
https://www.epa.gov/environmentaljustice
• US 4th Climate Assessment Report: https://nca2018.globalchange.gov/
• Highlights on what environmental justice is (Science Direct)
https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/earth-and-planetary-sciences/environmental-justice\
• Share other web links you find!
Step 2: Choose a general topic area from the following: (note, consider system archetypes that exist
within each one of these environmental justice issues)
• Climate Change – Impacts to resource dependent communities, climate induced human
migration.
• Pollution (air, water, soil)(i.e. Landfills, Mining, Energy production, and the “not in my
backyard” philosophy) (i.e. Flint Michigan, Love Canal, Silver Valley Mining- Coeur d’Alene
River/Lake Region etc.)
• Food Security: Food deserts, food access, food security in cities and/or in resource dependent
communities.
• Students may propose another area of focus, but it must be approved by their lab TA.

Step 3: Do your research and outline and write your paper: Here are some suggested questions to
consider in each the research option areas and for formatting your papers:

Readings and Research Questions for each topic area.

Research Option 1: Climate Change – Resource dependent communities, climate induced human
migration. This essay could address the following:
• How are humans impacting environmental change, such as climate change?
• What are the major concerns with a changing climate and how will this impact humans living in
resource dependent communities and/or the need for human migration? Who will be impacted
by this environmental change? Will the impacts be more heavily felt in different parts of the
world?
• How does climate change represent and environmental justice issue/challenge on a local and/or
an international scale? What is the developed world’s ethical/moral obligation to address this
environmental change?
• Discuss a real case study example of the disproportionate impacts of climate change. How are
the people adapting to these impacts? (i.e. consider island nations that may be underwater,
urban heat islands, drought and food production impacts, rural agricultural regions etc.)
• Consider system thinking and system archetypes and how they play a role in this case study,
how could using systems thinking help to avoid the environmental justice issue?

Research Option 2: Pollution (air, water, soil)(i.e. Landfills, Mining, Energy production, and the “not in
my backyard” philosophy). This essay could address the following:

• How do humans and human civilization impact pollution (air, water, soil – based on whatever
focused area of pollution you plan to discuss).
• How does the pollution/contamination that you are discussing happen and how is it managed?
• How does this pollution/contamination constitute and environmental justice issue (also make
sure to define what this means)?
• Discuss a real case study example of the disproportionate impacts of this
pollution/contamination and how it constitutes an environmental justice issue. How was or is
(or not) this challenge being addressed? Make sure to discuss how this pollution/contamination
occurred, who is at fault, and who is impacted.
• Consider system thinking and system archetypes and how they play a role in this case study,
how could using systems thinking help to avoid the environmental justice issue?

Research Option 3: Food deserts – food access, food security in cities and/or in resource dependent
communities.
• What is food security, how is it measured and who are at risk of food insecurity.
 • How is food security changing at different scales (local rural or city, nationally, internationally
(pick a scale to focus on).
• How does food security an environmental justice issue? Make sure to define environmental
justice.
• Discuss a real case study of food security and environmental justice. How is this evolving over
time, who is involved, how does society, economics, and environmental change impact the
situation?
• What is or can be done to address these challenges?
• Consider system thinking and system archetypes and how they play a role in this case study,
how could using systems thinking help to avoid the environmental justice issue?

These questions provided are only ideas and are not meant to be responded to in order, resulting in an
essay that seems to be nothing more than a list of responses to each question. The essay should be
organized in a way that makes sense to you and focusses on your strongest and most interesting
responses and will be tailored to the specific topic you have chosen to research and write about. The
essay should have an introduction, a conclusion, in text citations, and a bibliography.

• Organize the research essay by using an introduction, body, and conclusion.

• Be sure to define key terms for the reader.
• Support the discussion using examples from research in scholarly sources (i.e. Case Study).
• Always use your own words and cite all sources in text (all resources used to get information
and ideas) and in a works cited/bibliography page at the end of your research essay.
• Research essay will have at least 3 scholarly sources from the literature that you find to back up
your discussion. (see presentations in blackboard on identifying and getting access to scholarly
sources)

The research essay body should be at least 1500 words and no longer than 2500 words (this does not
include the bibliography). The research essay is worth 100 points and is due Sunday October 18th by
midnight to blackboard. (See syllabus for discussion of policy on plagiarism and academic integrity).
Table 1 General grade rubric for the writing assignment

Title 5%
Essay Organization
and Flow 20%
Content 45%
Conclusion 25%
Intext Citations and
Bibliography 5%