Mark Strother

1/22/2015
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Sustainability and Culture
Anthropology 353
Sustainability 353
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Introductions: Professor Matthew Lauer:
-My research: Environmental change, sustainability, indigenous
rights, and conservation issues in South America and Pacific.
Diego Rivera (1934) “Man at the Crossroads”
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I lived and worked for two years in the Venezuelan
Amazon with indigenous people called the Ye’kwana
(2001-2003)
Also spent two years in the Peace Corps in the Dominican
Republic (1994-1996)
4 Also work on large project in the
Solomon Islands. This is my
current project.
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Introductions: Your TA for this class is
Mark Strother
•2nd year Master’s student in
anthropology
•Research interests include: Marine
anthropology, Pacific island cultures,
the incorporation of indigenous
ecological knowledge into marine
resource management
Meet by appointment:
Email: strother.mark@gmail.com
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1/22/2015
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Some basic responsibilities:
1) Attend class
2) Show up on time
3) Do the reading (BEFORE the class meeting).
4) Expect to spend about 9 hours a week reading and
studying for this course.
Logistics of course:
Course website: Can be accessed through Blackboard or
directly. Has syllabus and online readings.
- http://lauer.sdsu.edu/courses/353-spring-2015/
- Username: anth353, password: sustain
-Syllabus is located on course website
-Lecture slides will be posted online after the class meeting
Two required texts and online articles
(about 80-100 pages a week)
Clickers
Grading
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Required Texts
Bodley, J. H. 2008. Anthropology and Orlove, B. S. 2002. Lines in the water:
Nature and culture at Lake Titicaca.
contemporary human problems, 5th
edition. Walnut Creek, CA: Altamira Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.
Press.
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We’ll also be reading sections of these books that are posted
on the course website
Pollan, M. 2006. The
omnivore's dilemma: A natural
history of four meals. New
York: Penguin Press.
Diamond, J. M. (2005).
Collapse: How societies
choose to fail or succeed.
New York, Viking.
Reisner, M. (1993).
Cadillac desert: The
American West and its
disappearing water.
New York, Penguin
Books.
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Downloadable articles from website:
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Every student must purchase a “clicker”
at the SDSU bookstore or register for
i>clicker GO as a learning resource.
I>Clicker GO is an app you use on your
smart phone or laptop. Register at
http://iclickergo.com ($10 for the
semester)
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1/22/2015
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You must register your clicker ID or you i<clicker
GO ID via Blackboard
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How many of you are?
Clicker responses worth 20% of final grade
A.
You earn clickers points as follows: No answer=0
points, Wrong answer=1 point, Correct answer=2
points.
B.
C.
D.
Each student will be granted three free clicker days,
meaning that I will omit the worst three scoring days
from your clicker score.
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How many of you have taken a class
about sustainability before?
A.
B.
E.
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First year students at SDSU
Sophomores
Juniors
Seniors
Something else (super senior?)
Grading:
-Three exams on Feb 24, April 14, May 14
(26.6% each) and clicker responses (20%).
Yes
No
-Exams will be multiple-choice and true-false
questions as well as short essays.
- No makeup exams allowed.
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Let’s begin with the clip ‘The planet is fine’ by
George Carlin (1992 video ‘Jammin’ in New York’)
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Different social constructions of nature, physical and
human, as well as our place in nature.
Inequality
Equality
Michiel Schwarz and Michael Thompson. 1990. Divided We Stand: Redefining Politics, Technology and Social Choice.
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