University of California, San
Diego
Winter, 2008
Instructor:
Professor Clark Gibson Teaching
Assistants:
Office: Social
Science Building 386 Nick
Warner
Telephone: 822-5140 Mike
Binder
E-Mail ccgibson@ucsd.edu
Office Hours: Wed. 830-930 a.m.
Course Meeting Times and
Location:
2:00pm – 3:20 / Peterson 210
Overview:
This course is designed to
introduce students to the politics of environmental issues in developing
countries. The course provides
students with general tools with which to think about the politics of the
environment. It focuses on
conservation politics at the community and national level in several regions of
the world, and features contemporary debates about several important topics in
conservation policy.
Course Requirements and
Grading:
The final grade is based on
how many of the 100 possible points you earn during the course. The points are distributed in the
following manner:
1. In-class Assignments 10
total points / 10% of your final grade
Each assignment is worth 7.5
points. Three in class
assignments given; the two best scores will be used for your final grade.
2. Reading Quizzes 40
total points / 40% of your final grade
Each quiz is worth 8 points
(7 quizzes given – the 5 best scores will be used for your final grade).
3. Exams 50 total points / 50% of your final
grade
Each of the three exams is worth
16.7 points. Exams are not cumulative.
4. Discussion
+ 2 points to final grade
While participation in the
context of more than one hundred students is difficult, it is also
encouraged. I will call on
students without warning. Your
participation will be evaluated daily by Mr. Warner, Mr. Binder, and Professor
Gibson.
Important Notes Regarding
Requirements and Grading:
1) I do not allow laptop use in the classroom.
2) This course focuses heavily on in-class
activities. If you prefer classes
which require less attendance and allow you to "catch up" with the readings, do
not take this course.
3) Quizzes and in-class assignments CANNOT be made up. You receive an allowance on assignments
that can be dropped (2 quizzes, 1 in-class assignment). They should be used judiciously. Make-up tests for the exams, composed
of different questions, should be scheduled with me.
4) Bring the current reading assignment to class.
Texts to Purchase: These two books can be purchased used.
Gibson, Clark C. 1999. Politicians and Poachers: The Political
Economy of Wildlife Policy in Africa. Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press.
Agrawal, Arun and Clark C. Gibson. 2001. Communities and the Environment. New
Jersey: Rutgers University Press 2001.
All other readings will be
linked to a webpage or provided by me.
Note: Reading is to be
finished for the date listed (e.g., you should have read Murombedzi "Pre-colonial and Colonial..." and Agrawal
and Gibson 1-31 before the class meeting on 1/10.
Jan 8 Introduction
The Role of Communities in
Wildlife Politics in Africa
Jan 10 Murombedzi
"Pre-colonial and Colonial..."
Agrawal and Gibson (A + G) 1-31
Jan 15 Gibson
119-152 "The Consequences..."
Marks "On Poaching an Elephant"
Jan 17 Bond 160-194
Jan 22 McDermott
32-62 (in A + G)
Ilahiane 89-110 (in A + G)
Jan 24 Dzingirai
"CAMPFIRE is not..."
McCay 180-189 (in A + G)
Jan 29 Test
1
Conservation Politics at
the National and Sub national Levels
Jan 31 Gibson
49 – 79, "The Political Logic..."
Feb 5 Gibson
83 – 116, "The Bureaucratic Politics..."
Feb 7 Ascher
Feb 12 Ross
Chapter 1 "Introduction" and Chapter 4 "Philippines"
Feb 14 Ross
Chapter 5 "Sabah, Malaysia" and Chapter 7 "Indonesia"
Feb 19 Test
2
Wildlife Politics and the
International Arena
Feb 21 Bonner
39-53, 54-113
Feb 23 Bonner
114 – 159; Berthge (Spiegel
website)
Conservation Dilemmas in
the Developing World
Feb 28 Amazon
Forests:
Hecht "The Logic of Livestock..."
Fearnside "Deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon..."
Laurance
et al. "Deforestation in Amazonia" Google Scholar: DOI:
10.1126/science.304.5674.1109b
Mar 4 Desertification: Ribot "A History of Fear..."
Hein and
Ridder; "Desertification in the Sahel..."
The Market: Wunder "The Efficiency of Payments..."
Mar 6 Ecotourism: Belsky 641-666
Kiss "Eco-tourism based Conservation..."
Mar
11 Parks
and Reserves: Brandon et al.
"Reconciling Biodiversity...";
Wishusen et al. "Reinventing..."
Mar 13 Test
3
Suggestions on How to Read for
this Course (and Others)
As I have indicated in class, much of the course material
you read for this class is at the cutting edge of conservation politics in
developing countries. I choose
this material intentionally so that you can be exposed to the best thinking on
the subject. But, as a result, the
material can be difficult for some students.
Let me offer a few suggestions on reading the selections
assigned in this class.
1. Pay
attention to titles
The title of an article often gives you an indication
about what you should learn from reading it. For example, if a chapter is titled "How South Africa tamed
the frontier" you should be able to list and explain most if not all of those
things the author thinks are important in SA's taming of the frontier. If you cannot do this after reading the
selection the first time, then you probably need to skim or to read the article
again to absorb this information.
2. Pay
attention to headings and subheadings
Headings and subheadings are clear clues as to what
information an author seeks to give you.
One way to make sure you understand an author's intentions is to change
the heading into a question, and then find answers to that question in the
section. For example, if the heading
for a section is "Creating effective wildlife policies" your question could be
"How to create effective wildlife policies?" You then would look for the answer
to this question in the section.
If you could do this for every section of an article or chapter, you
will understand most of what the author seeks to convey. This is a very thorough technique that
can be used for almost any written work.
3. Pay
attention to lists, outlines, tables
When an author uses numbers to identify concepts -- either
using the number itself (1, 2, 3...), using words (First, Firstly, Second,
Secondly, etc.) or putting concepts in an outline or a table -- it is a good
indicator that she or he is addressing a subject of major interest. By listing these numbered concepts and
making sure you understand why the author has listed them (Of what are they
examples? Why are these included
and not others?), you will probably comprehend one of the author's most
significant arguments.
4. Pay
attention to topic sentences in paragraphs
This is the most time consuming and difficult of the
techniques listed here. It is also
the best. Some authors write very
simply and use obvious topic sentences to signal what they will discuss. For example, the topic sentence "In
this essay, I will discuss the relationship between election laws and their
effect on wildlife populations" indicates fairly clearly what the author will
do in her article. Other authors
are not so obvious in their writing.
If you have read an article or chapter and applied the techniques listed
above and still do not understand it, you may have to find the topic sentences
of many of the paragraphs to help you comprehend the overall direction of the
work.