| Date | Topic | Reading |
|---|
| Aug 26 | Introduction and overview | |
| Sep 2 | Discuss long writing assignment: Analyze sustainability in the
Tucson basin without conducting research on the topic;
within your 400-word description, define sustainability; receive
campus sustainability assignment, to be conducted with a group |
| Sep 9 |
Discuss art, literature, and science; be prepared to compare and contrast
poetry and science; present group's idea for campus sustainability
assignment, to be approved by instructors
|
Poetry
samples distributed during class period;
Excerpt
from E.O. Wilson's Consilience
|
| Sep 16 | Discuss short writing assignment based on pages 1-66 of
Endgame. Consider, for example: Define civilization. What is the
problem of civilization, as described by Jensen? How do Jensen's first
five premises relate to the problem of civilization? | Jensen
pages 1-66
|
| Sep 23 | Discuss short writing assignment based on pages 67-140 of
Endgame. Consider, for example: Define carrying capacity. What is
the carrying capacity of Earth? Of the continental United States? Of the
Tucson metropolitan area? How does carrying capacity vary with
availability of fossil fuels? Is civilization irredeemable, as indicated
by Jensen? If not, why not?
| Jensen
pages 67-140
|
| Sep 30 | Present, with your group, results from your assessment of campus
sustainability. Discuss pages 141-205 of Endgame. Consider, for
example: How are individual choices linked to carrying capacity? How are
individual choices linked to the problem of civilization, as defined by
Jensen? How is individual choice related to the concept of free will?
| Jensen
pages 141-205
|
| Oct 7 |
Discuss short writing assignment based on pages 207-280 of
Endgame. Consider, for example: Link power, abuse, violence, and
the collapse of ecosystems. Link power, abuse, violence, and the collapse
of interpersonal relations. How are the two related?
| Jensen
pages 207-280
|
| Oct 14 |
Discuss short writing assignment based on pages 281-349 of
Endgame. Consider, for example: Jensen claims there is no hope for
civilization. Is his conclusion inevitable, given how he defines hope? Is
the same conclusion inevitable if we use an alternative definition of
hope? Explain.
| Jensen
pages 281-349
|
| Oct 21 |
Discuss short writing assignment based on pages 351-414 of
Endgame. Consider, for example: Can we spend our way to
sustainability? Discuss the roles of nihilism and denial in moving toward
sustainability.
| Jensen
pages 351-414
|
| Oct 28 |
Discuss short writing assignment based on pages 415-495 of
Endgame. Consider, for example: Do empathy and love have a role in
sustainability? Does love require pacifism? What steps will you take
within the next six months to further sustainability?
| Jensen
pages 415-495
|
| Nov 4 |
Discuss short writing assignment based on pages 513-573 of
Endgame. Consider, for example: Does "saving the world" require
extinction of humans? Why or why not? What premises underlie your
conclusion? What does Jensen mean when he uses the term "saving the
world"?
| Jensen
pages 513-573
|
| Nov 11 |
Discuss short writing assignment based on pages 575-651 of
Endgame. Consider, for example: Describe the cycling of nutrients
from ocean to forest, using nitrogen as an example. Briefly describe the
benefits and costs of dams. Who derives the benefits? Who bears the costs?
| Jensen
pages 575-651
|
| Nov 18 |
Discuss short writing assignment based on pages 653-718 of
Endgame. Consider, for example: How do you interpret the following
quote from Albert Einstein? "How is it conceivable that all our
lauded technological progress--our very Civilization--is like the axe
in the hand of the pathological criminal?" Link pacifism and hatred,
with a personal focus on natural ecosystems. What responsibility to we
have, if any, to protect and preserve species and their ecosystems? |
Jensen
pages 653-718
|
| Nov 25 |
Discuss short writing assignment based on pages 719-783 of
Endgame. Consider, for example: What does is mean to be human, and
how does this relate to preservation of native species and ecosystems?
Empires fall: Describe how the demise of the United States will benefit
and harm native species and ecosystems. Assume the fall is complete within
five years. | Jensen
pages 719-783
|
| Dec 2 |
Discuss short writing assignment based on pages 785-931 of
Endgame. Consider, for example: According to David Hume,
governments are founded and maintained on opinion alone. What opinions
underlie the maintenance of the U.S. government? What steps will you take
within the next six months to further sustainability | Jensen
pages 785-931
|
| Dec 9 | Discuss long writing assignment: Analyze sustainability in the
Tucson basin; within your 400-word description, define sustainability and
use references
|
