Climate Justice Climate Ethics

CE5600 Climate Justice Climate Ethics (Fall 2016)

Tuesday 10:30 – 12:30 and additional meetings as determined by class

PLTS and GTU
Location: PLTS Vaulted Classroom in Sawyer Hall

Professor

Cynthia Moe-Lobeda Phone: 206 384-8760

cmoelobeda@plts.edu Office Hours: TBD and by appt.

Office: PLTS, Gisey Hall B2

Course Description from Course catalog

This course will use methodologies of Christian ethics to examine: 1) the climate crisis as a moral matter in relationship to various forms of structural injustice including injustice grounded in race/ethnicity, class, and colonialism, and 2) pathways for addressing the climate crisis. Special attention will be given to global – local connections and perspectives from marginalized communities. Methodological resources include liberation ethics, Earth ethics, post-colonial perspectives, eco-feminist perspectives, and eco-hermeneutics. This is a seminar course involving extensive reading, writing, collaborative knowledge building, and discussion grounded in the reading. Assignments include a paper, research into the climate justice movement, peer-teaching, and occasional short written assignments. The informing undercurrent of the course is the quest for hope and moral-spiritual agency in the face of seemingly insurmountable obstacles.

Student Learning Outcomes

By the end of this course, students who participate fully in it will be able to do the following with some proficiency, and will have set the stage for further developing that proficiency.

Identify & Understand

  1. Key ethical issues related to climate change
  2. important scientific findings regarding climate change and resources for on-going knowledge regarding climate change
  3. ways in which Christian traditions have contributed to the climate crisis, and resources in Christian traditions that can help make the transition to sustainable Earth-human relations marked by social justice

Analyze

  1. the relationship between climate change and structural injustice, particularly class, race and gender based injustice.
  2. the systemic roots of climate change
  3. scholarship and climate change social action movements/organizations with regard to how well structural injustice concerns are addressed in relation to climate change
  4. climate change social action movements/organizations in regard to types of outcomes sought, actions promoted, and ideological grounding

Identify and Evaluate

  1. different positions in both the scholarly community and the activist community regarding ethical responses to climate change

Identify, Evaluate & Build on

  1. Key approaches (methods) that make up the major lines of thinking within climate

ethics, especially Christian ethical approaches

Synthesize

  1. from within the Christian tradition and elsewhere both sources of hope and ingredients of moral agency for overcoming barriers to climate justice and social action
  2. current scholarly approaches to climate ethics in order to construct a working method to use in their own scholarly work on climate justice

Course Resources

Required Readings

JenkinsWillisThe Future of EthicsGeorgetown
Gardiner, et al. (ed)StephenClimate Ethics: Essential ReadingsOxford
RasmussenLarryEarth-Honoring Faith: Religious Ethics in a New Key

 

 

Oxford

 

 

 

Pope Francis Laudato SiAvailable on-line
Shiva

 

 

VandanaSoil Not OilSouth End Press

Many additional shorter readings will be provided on Moodle or will be acquired on-line. The authors of these include: James Cone, Maxine Burkett, Jutta Brunnee, Jennifer Harvey, Sara Wolcott, Naomi Klein, Patrick Bond, Peggy Shephard, Guiellmo Kerber, Lester Brown, and others.

Films

Climate Refugees

Merchants of Doubt (depending upon availability)

Course Format

  1. Class sessions will be based upon careful and active reading of assigned readings, and raising questions in relationship to them.
  2. Class sessions will consist of a combination of:
  • Student-led discussion of readings.
  • Professor led discussion of readings.
  • Collaborative knowledge-building through delegation of readings and shared notes.
  • Brief interactive lectures.
  • Peer consultations on papers.
  1. Students are invited to bring a 3-5 minute presentation to share in class that expresses or explores — through a medium other than academic discourse — a concept learned in the course. That medium could be poetry, dance, music, visual art, or some other “language” of ethics. This is optional and will NOT be graded; doing it or not will not influence ones’ participation grade.

Course Requirements

  1. Preparation:
  • Read and reflect on all readings in their entirely before the designated class session.
  • Weekly Critical Reading Notes (to be described in class).
  1. General Participation:
  • Attend every class session and be ready to begin at 2:10. (Please see Attendance Policy at the end of this syllabus).
  • Engage in the class discussion in ways that contribute to the development of a trusting and exciting learning community in the context of this course:
  • When we are discussing readings, focus primarily on understanding the readings and interacting with them.
  • Participate respectfully–verbally and non-verbally.
  • Listen actively to what your colleagues in the class are saying.
  1. Lead discussion of the readings related to specific topics on the syllabus. Each student will do this a number of times based on how many people are in the seminar. Each student will select the topics for which that student provides this leadership. You may use your pedagogical creativity if you choose, or you may be more traditional in your pedagogy. You may assign critical reading questions in advance if you so choose.
  2. Major paper: Research paper, or constructive proposal paper, or methodological comparison paper. Each student will develop a question and a plan for pursing it through a peer consultation process with other students. It is advisable to develop a question that will serve your dissertation, comps, or research readiness requirement (approx. 15-20 pages).
  3. OPTION A: Method synthesis paper: This paper will summarize your developing/working method in relationship to climate ethics / climate justice. It will include analysis of the ethical methods encountered in course readings. 6-8 pages
  4. OPTION B: Map the terrain of the scholarly and activist “movement” toward climate justice.

Assessment

The course grade will consist of:

– Participation and preparation (attendance, discussion contributions, CRNs) 35%

– Leadership of seminar discussion 15%

– Major paper 30%

– Method synthesis paper OR Mapping the terrain paper 20%

Final grading as related to points:

A 93-100 A- 90-92.9

B+ 87-89.9 B 83-86.9 B- 80-82.9

C+ 77-79.9 C 73-76.9 C- 70-72.9

F 0-69.9

Schedule of Readings

Part I: Climate Crisis and Context

Note: Films to be watched:

  • By the third class, please watch Climate Refugees
  • By the fourth class, please watch Merchants of Doubt (depending upon availability)

WEEK ONE: Sept. 6

Introduction to the course and to each other

WEEK TWO: Sept. 13

Climate Change – Current state of knowledge

Readings:

Read: Foreword, Executive Summary, chap 1.

Skim the rest in order to see what is there and be able to use it.

“Climate Change Report Warns Of Dramatically Warmer World This Century,” World Bank Press Release, Nov. 18, 2012 At:

Https://Www.Worldbank.Org/En/News/Feature/2012/11/18/Climate-Change-Report-Warns-Dramatically-Warmer-World-This-Century

  • IPCC: Climate Change 2014 Synthesis Report (otherwise known as Fifth Assessment Report): Summary for Policy Makers (Read the “headlines.” Skim the rest sufficiently to know what it is saying.
  • Climate Change Impacts in the United States: The Third National Climate Assessment. US Global Change Research Program, https://nca2014.globalchange.gov/. Explore the website. Read the 12 key findings in the report
  • Rasmussen: Chap 2: 55-71
  • Caney in Gardiner, Chap 9. “Climate Change, Human Rights and Moral Thresholds.”

Geo-politics of Climate Change

Reading:

  • Northcott, in A Political Theology of Climate Change: “Geopolitics of a Slow Catastrophe,” pp. 7-21 (Posted on Moodle)

WEEK THREE: Sept. 20

Climate Change as Climate Injustice — Unequal Impacts

Concepts to engage

Climate refugees

Climate colonialism

Climate debt and ecological debt

Climate racism

Climate apartheid

Readings:

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:

OPTIONAL: Additional Reading:

  • Sophia Wirsching, Peter Emberson, and Guillermo Kerber, eds., “Climate Refugees: People displaced by Climate Hagne and the Role of the Churches,” World Council of Churches. Available on-line.
  • Nidhi Tandon, “Biopolitics, Climate Change and Water Security: Impact, Vulnerability and Adaptation issues for Women,” “Agenda: Empowering Women for Gender Equity, 73, Biopolitics: New Technologies Trilogy, Volume 1, 1 (2007), 4-17. (Available through Jstor)

Part II: How We Got Here

WEEK FOUR: Sept. 27

Roots of the Crisis: Multi-Dimensional Analyses (spiritual, ethical, economic, political)

Reading:

  • Pope Francis: LS Intro para 1-9 and Chap Three
  • Rasmussen chap 2 pp. 50-54 and 71-79 and review 55-71.

Roots of the Crisis: Political-Economy of Fossil-Fuel and Neoliberal Capitalism

Reading

  • Northcott in Moral Climate pp 33-39 (Posted on Moodle)
  • Naomi Klein: This Changes Everything: pp 8-26, and 64-75 (The rest of chap 2 is optional) (Posted on Moodle)
  • Shiva: pages 13-16 and bottom of 31 – 32.
  • Northcott in A Political Theology of Climate Change: pp 50-60 and 85-92 and 141 last paragraph – 144 (Posted on Moodle)

WEEK FIVE: Oct. 4

Roots of the Crisis: White Supremacy and Doctrine of Discovery

Reading:

  • Sara Wolcott: “Inheritance, Howard Thurman and the Doctrine of Discovery: Retelling the Origin Story of Climate” (posted on Moodle)
  • Watch “Doctrine of Discover” (on-line film; link will be provided)
  • Willie James Jennings: excerpt from Christian Imagination: Theology and the Origins of Race (Posted on Moodle)
  • Papers from 2014 AAR session called “Climate Debt, Race Debt, and Climate Colonialism: Forging a Just Future (Posted on Moodle).
  • Jennifer Harvey, “Dangerous Goods: Seven Reasons Creation Care Movements Must Advocate Reparations,” in Buffalo Shout, Salmon Cry. Herald Press, 2013. (Posted on Moodle)
  • James Cone, “Whose Earth Is It Anyway?” in Earth Habitat: Eco-Injustice and the Church’s Response, Dieter Hessel & Larry Rasmussen eds. (Posted on Moodle)
  • Marguerite Spencer, “Environmental Racism and Black Theology: James H. Cone Instructs Us on Whiteness.” (Posted on Moodle)

Roots of the Crisis: Religion

Reading:

  • Lynn White’s critique if you are not already familiar with it (available on-line)
  • Rasmussen: Prelude (being sure to get the main point in the para that spans pp. 6-7; and chap 3.

Part 3: Theo-Ethical approaches

WEEK SIX: Oct. 11

Identifying the Ethical Issues

Reading:

  • Gardiner chap 1, 3, 4,

Catholic Social Teaching through a Franciscan Lens (integral ecology)

Reading:

  • Pope Francis: Laudato Si Chap Two and Chap Four

A glimpse at climate change and systematic theology

Reading:

  • Introduction to Systematic Theology and Climate Change edited by Michael Northcott (Posted on Moodle)

UNFCCC and Contributions from International Environmental Law

Reading:

  • Brief history of UNFCCC up to about 2005 in Gardiner 15 pp 263-4.
  • Jutta Brunnee, “climate Change, global Environmental Justice and International Environmental law.”
  • A Civil Society perspective from South Africa: Article by Patrick Bond: https://newpol.org/content/who-wins-%E2%80%9Cclimate-apartheid%E2%80%9D.
  • OPTIONAL for more depth on UNFCC from persp of international env law: “Jutta Brunnee: “The UNFCCC as a Negotiation Forum” in Climate Policy 13:5 (2013): 589-607.
  • I will provide additional optional reading suggestions for any who what more depth in this area.

Additional reading options:

  • View table of contents of Melbourne Journal of International Law (Australia)
    Volume 10, Number 2, October 2009. Select as per your interest.

WEEK SEVEN: Oct. 18

Philosophical ethics’ approaches to climate inequity

Reading:

  • Gardiner 5, 7 (unless don’t have time)
  • Gardiner 14 (may skim 254-7)
  • Gardiner 12 (could skip 221 bottom – 226 top; more technical than necessary for this course)

Regarding chap 12 and Greenhouse Development Rights Framework (GDR). OPTIONAL: See also https://gdrights.org/about/. This link contains more information about the GDR discussed in Chap 12.

Justice theory complexified by structural injustice/structural evil

Reading:

  • Iris Marion Young: “Responsibility and Historical Injustice,” in Responsibly for Justice 171-187
  • Moe-Lobeda: Resisting Structural Evil: Love as Ecological-Economic Vocation, 3 (Posted on Moodle)

WEEKS EIGHT and NINE Oct 25 and Nov. 1

Christian Ethics as critical participation in community adaptation to overwhelming problems

Reading:

  • Jenkins: most of the text (some pages will be optional as per TBA)

WEEK TEN: Nov. 8

Religious Earth Ethics Rooted in Deep Tradition and Reconstructed

Reading:

  • Rasmussen: Chap 1, 2 (pp. 43-50; review the rest of Chap 2), 3 – 5.

WEEK ELEVEN: Nov. 15

Religious Earth Ethics Rooted in Deep Tradition and Reconstructed

Reading:

  • Rasmussen: Chap. 6, 7, Interlude, 8 – 12 (different chaps assigned to different people)
  • “Manifesto for an Ecological Reformation of Christianity” (Posted on Moodle)

Part 4: Action/Hope – Perspectives, Movements, Organizations, Lines of Action

WEEK TWELVE: Nov. 22

Integral Ecology

Reading:

  • Pope Francis: LS: Intro paragraphs 10-12 and Chap Five (review Part I and read the rest)
  • Shiva: Soil Not Oil: Intro and chap 1.

Love as an Ecological-Economic vocation

Reading:

  • Pope Francis: LS: Chapter Six Part V
  • Moe-Lobeda: Resisting Structural Evil, Chaps 8 and 9.

Interfaith and ecclesial movements toward climate justice

Reading:

  • See the Forum on Religion and Ecology to familiarize yourself with it and its many resources. See for example the list of statements by ecclesial or interfaith bodies.
  • Kerber: “International Advocacy for Climate Justice” (posted on Moodle)
  • Choose and read one of the interfaith statements such as:
    • the Uppsala Interfaith Climate Manifesto from 2008,
    • the Interfaith Declaration on Climate Change from 2009,
    • the Declaration on Climate Justice and Sustainable Peace in Africa from 2011,
    • Statement by the Interfaith Summit on Climate Change (NY 2014)
  • World Council of Churches, “Budapest Call for Climate” (Available on-line)
  • Explore websites of WCC and Lutheran World Federation for its work on climate justice

WEEK THIRTEEN: Nov. 29

Climate Justice Movement

Reading:

  • Peggy Shepard and Cecil Corbin-Mark, “Climate Justice” Guest Editorial, Environmental Justice 2:4 (2009) (Posted on Moodle)
  • Stephenson: chapter Four “Organizing for Survival” (Posted on Moodle)
  • Patrick Bond: “Climate Justice: Movement Below,” chap. in Politics of Climate Justice
  • Brian Tokar: “Toward a Movement for Climate Justice,” chap 3 in Toward Climate Justice

NOTE: there is overlap between Tokar and Bond. Notice the differences in how they present information on the same organizations; read a little on-line about who each of these authors is.

  • See list of organizations involved in the Climate Justice Now network: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Climate_Justice_Now!

Sustainable agriculture movement

Reading

  • Shiva: Soil Not Oil: Chap 3 and chap 4 through page 123.
  • Website TBA

Divestment/Reinvestment movement

Reading:

  • Investigate the divestment/reinvestment portion of GreenFaith website.

WEEK FOURTEEN: Dec. 6

Ecological economy and energy transition (ethics of sufficiency vs greening capitalism)

Reading:

  • Shiva: Soil Not Oil: Review Intro and read: chap 2, pp. 123-5, and Conclusion.
  • Transition Town Movement: Esther Alloun and Samuel Alexander: “The Transition Movement: Questions of Diversity, Power, and Affluence. Simplicity Institute Report 14. (Google the title. The PDF will come up.)
  • Lester Brown, “Rescuing a Planet under Stress,” in The Futurist (July-August 2006) and response by Manuel Pastor, “Who Wins and Who Loses in the Sustainable Economy.” (Posted on Moodle)
  • Eban Goodstein, “Climate Change: What the World Needs Now is Politics,” in Worldwatch 19:1 (Jan/Feb 2006), 25-7.

WEEK FIFTEEN: Dec. 13

Watershed Discipleship

Reading:

  • Myers: excerpt from Watershed Discipleship (forthcoming book). Posted on Moodle

Anticipatory communities embodying reconstructed religious traditions

Reading:

  • Rasmussen: Review Interlude; read Chap 13 and Postlude.

Critical participation in community adaptation to overwhelming problems

Reading:

  • Jenkins – Review Jenkins and reread Afterword

Teaching Climate Change

  • Moe-Lobeda: “Teaching Climate Change for Moral Agency, Eco-justice, and Structural Analysis” (Posted on Moodle)

Synthesis: Be ready to discuss:

  • Your sources of hope and moral agency
  • How the work of this seminar will impact your on-going doctoral studies and
  • How the work of this seminar will impact your teaching or future vocational intentions
  • What you have learned that is particularly important to you
  • What key questions emerge that you intend to pursue or would like to pursue

POLICIES

ATTENDANCE POLICY

Discussion of readings and related scholarly work and life experience is the centerpiece of this seminar. Much of the course learning will come from engaging in that discussion, and much knowledge will be generated by students during the seminar sessions that is not available in the readings. In papers and other assignments you will make use of the content of the seminar discussions and lectures. Therefore attendance at all seminar sessions is required, as is timeliness. One unexcused absence will lower your participation grade. Timeliness means being ready to begin by the time the seminar begins. Lateness of 30 minutes or more unless excused will be counted as an absence.

Should you have an excused absence, following is the best plan I can devise to help you garner some of what you missed in the missed class. Your responsibilities are to: 1) ahead of time ask two or three colleagues in the class to take notes for you; 2) read these notes and all of the readings; 3) after completing the readings, spend about three hours – the amount of time lost in class — writing a brief paper on how these readings interact with previous materials of the course (about 1½ double-spaced pages). In addition, please ask a colleague in the class to collect handouts for you and to note any changes in the syllabus that are announced.

Veterans Resources

If you are a veteran, military member, or a family member of a veteran or military member, please refer to Cal Lutheran’s Veterans Resources webpage for important information: https://www.callutheran.edu/veterans/

Also, if you are a veteran receiving benefits and you are struggling in a class, you most likely qualify for free tutoring. Please contact the Veterans Coordinator, Jenn Zimmerman, veterans@callutheran.edu or 805-493-3648, for more information.

Communication and Academic Discourse

All class communication will be grounded in mutual respect. Both the students and the instructor must be open to academic discourse, which can include challenges to and critiques of ideas. This is different from personal attacks which will not be tolerated.

Inclusive Language Policy

In keeping with the PLTS and GTU inclusive language policies, you are required to use inclusive language for human beings in all of your coursework.

Accommodations Policy

Students whose first language is other than English and who need accommodations with regard to completing class assignments should communicate their needs to the instructor.

Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary of California Lutheran University is committed to providing reasonable accommodations in compliance with ADA of 1990 and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 to students with documented disabilities. If you are a student requesting accommodations for this course, please register with Christopher Evans in the Office of the Dean (cevans@plts.edu). As part of registration, you will be provided with a Letter of Accommodation that outlines your requested accommodations for your instructor.

Course Evaluations Statement

All course evaluations are conducted online. Your feedback is important to us. You will receive an email message reminding you when the website is open for your feedback. The link is: https://courseval.callutheran.edu

Disability Statement

California Lutheran University is committed to providing reasonable accommodations in compliance with ADA of 1990 and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 to students with documented disabilities. If you are a student requesting accommodations for this course, please contact your professor at the beginning of the semester and register with the PLTS Disability Support Services Coordinator, Chris Evans (cevans@plts.edu), for the facilitation and verification of need.

Statement on Academic Honesty

The educational programs of California Lutheran University are designed and dedicated to achieve academic excellence, honesty and integrity at every level of student life. Part of CLU’s dedication to academic excellence is our commitment to academic honesty. Students, faculty, staff and administration share the responsibility for maintaining high levels of scholarship on campus. Any behavior or act which might be defined as “deceitful” or “dishonest” will meet with appropriate disciplinary sanctions, including dismissal from the University, suspension, grade F in a course or various forms of academic probation. Policies and procedures regarding academic honesty are contained in the faculty and student handbooks.

Plagiarism, cheating, unethical computer use and facilitation of academic dishonest are examples of behavior which will result in disciplinary sanctions. Plagiarism includes, but is not limited to:

  • Word for word copying without using quotation marks or presenting the work as yours
  • Using the ideas or work of others without acknowledgement
  • Not citing quoted material. Students must cite sources for any information that is not either the result of original research or common knowledge.

Sexual Misconduct

California Lutheran University does not tolerate any degree of sexual misconduct on or off-campus. We encourage you to report if you know of, or have been the victim of, sexual harassment, misconduct, and/or assault. If you report this to a faculty member, she or he must notify Cal Lutheran’s Title IX Coordinator about the basic facts of the incident. More information about your options for reporting can be found at https://www.callutheran.edu/title-ix/

Final Note

This syllabus is subject to minor modifications based on the needs and responses of class participants. I will inform you of those changes in class. Should you miss class due to an excused absence, please check with a colleague in the class about any changes in syllabus.

I am so very delighted and honored to be working with you in th