LDA 3: SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT THEORY AND PRACTICE

Room: Geidt 1001

Units: 4   

Time: Mondays and Wednesdays 11-12:30

Discussion sections at various times on Thursdays and Fridays

DESCRIPTION

In the context of the growing climate and sustainability crisis, this course introduces the concept of sustainable development with emphasis on applications in design, planning, and public policy. We have two main objectives. The first is to understand how people have thought about sustainability, including the origins of this concept, different points of view on it, and applications in a number of topic areas. The second is to develop our ability to identify and pursue sustainable solutions for any context, using key cognitive skills important to sustainability action.

Key skills related to sustainability include:

• thinking holistically and understanding contexts & stakeholders
• thinking long-term in identifying strategies for positive change
• thinking proactively to take leadership toward solutions and compassionately engage with others

Following a philosophy of “active learning,” LDA 3 combines short lectures with in-class discussions, sketch exercises, role plays, videos, a walking tour of three different ecovillages, and guest speakers. As a GE visual literacy course LDA 3 includes a number of graphic exercises, but no drawing experience is required. As a GE writing course LDA 3 emphasizes writing skills through a 10-page research paper. Through this paper you are able to explore a sustainability-related topic of your choosing, systematically analyzing different perspectives, stakeholders, and possible solutions related to that topic. Plan to meet online with your TA or the instructor to discuss your topic as well as research and writing strategies. Initial section meetings will also help you develop the topic.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

-- Understand origins of the sustainability concept, theoretical perspectives on it, and current applications

-- Practice thinking holistically, long-term, and proactively about current situations

-- Improve ability to develop constructive solutions to real-world problems

-- Practice engaging with others and taking leadership within a range of settings

-- Improve writing, research, graphic representation, oral presentation, and site design skills

CLASS REQUIREMENTS

• Regular attendance for lecture sessions and sections
• Complete assigned readings on-time
• Walking tour of 3 eco-villages in West Davis (final exam will have a question on this)
• Neighborhood design assignment
• Framing sustainability exercise
• 10-page double-spaced research paper (proposal+draft+final due and graded separately)
• Final exam + best 3 of 4 pop quizzes

GRADING

5 percent – 1-page research paper proposal

5 percent – Framing sustainability exercise

15 percent – Draft of 10-page research paper

15 percent – Neighborhood design

15 percent – Pop quizzes (best 3 out of 4)

20 percent – Final 10-page research paper

20 percent – Final exam

5 percent – Participation/effort

We do our best to ensure that you can receive the grade you want. Students who attend class regularly and stay on top of the assignments almost always do well. The TAs and Instructor will look at paper drafts ahead of time to give you advice (take the draft to their office hours). There are two extra-credit opportunities. The class average grade is usually a B+. 

We are happy to accommodate students with disabilities in whatever ways are appropriate. Please email the instructor to make arrangements.

We highly recommend that students familiarize themselves with the Academic Assistance and Tutoring Centers on campus, especially its Writing Support Center, which can be very useful for the research paper in this class. A comprehensive list of resources for students is at https://ebeler.faculty.ucdavis.edu/resources/faq-student-resources/.

BONUS POINTS

This year there are two ways to earn bonus points (must be completed by 6/6/24):

1. Attend a city council or commission meeting (any city; in-person with selfie) and write a 2-page double-spaced reflection on some aspect of the meeting (include selfie). (2 points)
2. Present a sustainability example in 3 minutes to the class, identifying innovative aspects of this example, how it came about, and what it might mean for a sustainable future. Include an image or two if possible. Email the instructor with the proposed example first for feedback & a scheduled time. This must be something new and different from what we discuss in class. Can only be done once per student. Slots will probably fill up by the middle of the quarter. (2 points)

PARTICIPATION

We want students to be actively engaged in the class and sections, and 5% of the final grade is Participation. There are multiple ways to show active participation. Attending class and section meetings and contributing to discussions is one. Meeting with your TA or instructor during office hours to talk about ways to improve your work (+ then incorporating their suggestions!) is another.

NEWS/ANNOUNCEMENTS AND EXAMPLES

In this course we try to link class material to real-world events. So at the beginning of each class we’ll have 5-10 minutes to share announcements or current events related to sustainability. Please feel free to speak up during this time, but keep your announcement or comments brief.

GRAPHIC EXERCISES

We will do some graphic exercises (quick drawings of various types) in class and section. No experience is needed. Assignments can be done by hand with markers and paper or with a simple graphic software package such as Google Draw (other suggestions are provided on an LDA 3 Graphic Tools document under the Files tab in Canvas). Please bring several colored markers with broad (chisel) tips to classes and sections when graphic exercises are on the schedule.

COURSE MATERIALS

There is no course materials fee for this class. The text is The Sustainable Urban Development Reader, Fourth Edition(Routledge 2023), edited by your instructor. It is available from the UCD bookstore. Reading other chapters in addition to course readings is strongly recommended. A few additional readings are on Canvas under Files.

One or two short readings will usually be assigned for each class period. These are intended to give you insight into different perspectives related to sustainable development. Read the Editor’s Introduction as well as the text of each reading. Look for key concepts and phrases. Ask yourself questions such as:

• What are this author’s main themes/interests?
• In what historical context were they writing?
• Were they reacting to a particular tradition or situation?
• What is the style of their writing? What are the pros and cons of this style?
• What about their work is most useful to situations today?

DIVERSITY, EQUITY, AND INCLUSION

Like everyone else, the instructor has a particular background in terms of class, race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, and other characteristics. He will do his best to acknowledge the particular biases that those may impart and to acknowledge other points of view. He has tried to include readings by authors from diverse backgrounds, and emphasizes social equity topics throughout the course. He believes that every student is equal, and seeks to respond with respect to all. We want everyone to feel included. There is no such thing as a bad question or comment. Don’t worry about feeling shy or feeling like your point of view is less valuable because you’re not from a mainstream background or have less experience than others.

OFFICE HOURS

Wed mornings 8:45-10:45 in 165 Hunt. You can sign up at https://calendly.com/smwheeler/office-hours-prof-wheeler. If you cannot make this time, email the instructor at smwheeler@ucdavis.edu.

The teaching assistants for LDA 3 are:

NAME	Sections/Rooms	Office_Hours	Location/options	Link to sign in to Office Hours
Gulnara Nabiyeva gnnabiyeva@ucdavis.edu	7&8 Fri 1 166 Hunt Fri 2 166 Hunt	Fri 12-1	Hunt Hall 167 or  Zoom https://bit.ly/31DLyYw	https://calendly.com/link_gulnara/15min
Kat Bailey katbailey@ucdavis.edu	1&4 Tr 12 168 Hunt F 9 166 Hunt	Thurs 1-3	by appointment	email katbailey@ucdavis.edu
Yansong Li (Kevin)	5&6 Fri 10 166 Hunt Fri 11 166 Hunt	Tues and Thur 11- 12	Hunt Hall 161 Walk-in but prefer email in advance	yskli@ucdavis.edu
Farzaneh Ehsani	9&10 Fri 3 166 Hunt Fri 4 166 Hunt	Wed 10-11 & Fri 2-3	Hunt 161	sehsanioskooie@ucdavis.edu
Allexa Fontanilla	2&3 Tr 12 178 Hunt Tr 1 178 Hunt		by appointment (email)	amfontanilla@ucdavis.edu

Email them for other times if you can’t make those weekly office hours.

ACADEMIC HONESTY

In line with U.C. Davis policy, students are expected to maintain high standards of academic honesty. This means that all work that you present as your own must in fact have been done by you, and that all sources must be properly cited. In particular, do not copy material from websites unless for short quotes with citations. Also, do not copy graphics without citation unless they lack citation in the original. We will use plagiarism detectors when grading papers.

There are multiple ways to cite information. APA style is recommended for this course, as it is most common in the social sciences. A reference guide is available on the LDA 3 Canvas site and from https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide.html. If you have questions about citation procedures or academic honesty, please ask the instructor or TAs. Academic dishonesty may lead to failing the course or other more serious measures.

It may be tempting to use AI apps such as ChatGPT to help write your research paper. Please don’t do this. You’ll learn a lot less this way, and will miss a major opportunity to improve your writing. AI can make mistakes, and may also reproduce published material without citation, which opens you to plagiarism charges. The TurnItIn plagiarism checker in use for this course claims to be able to detect AI-written papers. The in-person Final Exam and Quizzes for this course will include hand-written essay questions, and we’ll be able to compare those with your paper to see if the writing styles match. If we find that the paper has been written by AI rather than yourself, we’ll treat it as plagiarism and refer you to Student Judicial Affairs.

CLASS SCHEDULE

	PART 1: SUSTAINABILITY THEORY AND SKILLS
Class 1 Mon 4/1	Course Introduction Defining “sustainability” Exercise: Brainstorming sustainability challenges & solutions
Class 2 Wed 4/3 Reading:	History of the sustainability concept Exercise: Sketch design for a development site §  Introduction to Part 1 (pp. 1-5) §  Donella Meadows et al.: “Perspectives, Problems, and Models” (pp. 34-39)
Section #1	Brainstorm research paper topics. What sustainability-related subject would be fun and meaningful for you to research this quarter? How does one frame a good research question?
Class 3 Mon 4/8 Reading:	Thinking holistically/understanding different perspectives (lecture + videos) Exercise and discussion: How do we reduce greenhouse gas emissions? §  Ann Whiston Spirn, “City and Nature” (pp. 46-50) §  Aldo Leopold: “The Land Ethic” (pp. 14-20)
Class 4 Wed 4/10 Reading:	Thinking long-term Exercise in analyzing an issue: nuclear power (peer learning model) §  Herman Daly: “The Steady-State Economy” (pp. 40-45) §  Optional podcast: https://gimletmedia.com/shows/howtosaveaplanet/z3h42mz
Section #2	Research Paper Proposal Review: Bring a one-page draft to section with paper title, research question, a paragraph on why this topic is important to sustainability, research method, and a paragraph on expected findings and implications. 1-PAGE RESEARCH PAPER PROPOSALS DUE MON 4/15 11:59 PM
Class 5 Mon 4/15 Reading:	Thinking proactively Exercise and discussion: Ending homelessness §  Annie Leonard, “The Story of Change” (pp. 332-334) §  Joanna Macy and Chris Johnstone, “Active Hope” (pp. 335-338)
Class 6 Wed 4/17	Who can influence action towards sustainability? Exercise to be determined
Section #3	Cognitive mapping of sustainability issues in a place you grew up.  How might we think long-term, holistically, and proactively about those issues? (Bring markers if possible.)
Class 7 Mon 4/22 Reading:	What tools can help guide us toward sustainability? (The U.N. Sustainable Development Goals; Indicators; Ecological Footprints; Carbon Calculators, etc.) Introduce Framing Sustainability Exercise Exercise: Brainstorming sustainability indicators for UC Davis §  Review U.N. SDG website at https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/ §  M. Wackernagel & W. Rees, “What Is an Ecological Footprint?” (pp. 305-313)
Class 8 Wed 4/24 Reading:	PART 2: PUTTING SUSTAINABILITY INTO PRACTICE How can we respond to the climate crisis?: mitigation, adaptation, and justice TA Lecture (Gulnara): The SDGs and 2030 Agenda §  Bill McKibben, “The End of Nature” (pp. 56-62)\ §  Carbon-Neutral Cities Alliance, “Game Changers” (pp. 83-85) §  Debashish Munji et al., “A Culture-Centered Approach to Climate Adaptation” (pp. 95-99)
Section #4	Development approval role-play
Class 9 Mon 4/29 Reading	How can we use land more sustainably? Exercise: Design a sustainable community §  Peter Calthorpe, “The Next American Metropolis” (pp. 117-128) §  William Zinsser “Principles of Writing” on Canvas (skim pp. 6-45) FRAMING SUSTAINABILITY EXERCISE DUE ON CANVAS BY MON 4/29 11:59 PM
Class 10 Wed 5/1 Reading	How can we get around more sustainably? Guest Speaker: Carla Fresquez, Interim Director, UC Davis Sustainability §  Taryn Fransen, “Reducing emissions: Opportunities in Transport” (103-105) §  John Pucher and Ralph Buehler, “Cycling towards a sustainable transport future” (pp. 111-115)
Section #5	Introduce neighborhood design assignment; site analysis discussion in groups
Class 11 Mon 5/6 Reading:	How can we move toward more sustainable economies? Video: The example of Mondragon In-class debate: Is capitalism sustainable? §  Mark Roseland, “Strengthening Local Economies” (pp. 234-244)
Class 12 Wed 5/8 Reading:	How can we improve social equity? Videos: Camden NJ; e-waste in Africa Exercise and discussion: Ending racism §  Robert Bullard: “People-of-Color Environmentalism” (pp. 63-69) §  Leslie Kern, “Feminist City” (pp. 186-191) DRAFT 10-PAGE PAPER DUE THURS 5/9 11:59 PM
Section #6	Site design exercise
Class 13 Mon 5/13 Reading:	How can buildings become more sustainable? TA Lecture 2 §  Paula Melton, “The Urgency of Embodied Carbon” (pp. 247-253) §  U.S. Green Building Council, “LEED 4.1” (pp. 258-260)
Class 14 Wed 5/15 Reading:	How could we have more sustainable and affordable housing? Exercise: Design a sustainable housing unit §  Alan During, “Yes, You Can Build Your Way to Affordable Housing: Lessons from Unexpected Places” (pp. 169-179) §  Dan Parolek, “Missing Middle Housing” (pp. 180-185)
Section #7	NEIGHBORHOOD DESIGN ASSIGNMENT #3 PRESENTED IN SECTION + DUE ON CANVAS BY WED 5/15 11:59 PM
Class 15 Mon 5/20 Reading:	How can we use materials and energy more sustainably? TA Lecture (Kevin): Circles of Sustainability: Circular Economy and Doughnut Economy §  David Miller, “Using Materials Wisely” (pp. 153-159)
Class 16 Wed 5/22 Reading:	How could we have more sustainable food systems? TA Lecture 4 Class Debate: Should GMOs be part of a sustainable future? §  Vandana Shiva, “The gendered politics of food” (pp. 276-279) RESEARCH PAPERS DUE TUES 5/28 11:59 PM ON CANVAS
Section #8	To be determined
Mon 5/27	MEMORIAL DAY – NO CLASS
Class 17 Wed 5/29 Reading:	Sustainable development internationally (1)  Videos: Curitiba and other International Examples §  Hanna-Ruth Gustafsson and Elizabeth Kelly, “Developing the sustainable city: Curitiba, Brazil” (pp. 339-348) §  Jacqueline M. Klopp and Jeffrey W. Paller, “How Africa can build inclusive, safe, and sustainable cities” (pp. 361-363)
Class 18 Mon 6/3 Reading:	Sustainable development internationally (2) TA Lecture 5 §  Janice E. Perlman with Molly O’Meara Sheehan, ““Fighting Poverty and Environmental Injustice in Cities” (pp. 202-213) §  Guilio Verdini and Li Zhang, “Urban China: The torturous path toward sustainability” (pp. 355-360)
Section #9	Final Exam Review
Class 19 Wed 6/5 Reading:	Finding hope for the future Review: What remaining questions do you have about sustainability? §  Ernest Callenbach, selections from Ecotopia (pp. 366-374) §  Ursula LeGuin, “Description of Abbenay” (pp. 375-378) §  Stephen M. Wheeler, “The View from the Twenty-Third Century” (pp. 379-383)
Tues 6/11	FINAL EXAM  6-8 PM (Final exam times scheduled by the Registrar)