ENVSTY101: THE NATURE OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEMS | TERM PAPER

Due December 6, 2023

During our class we have and will continue to learn about urgent environmental problems and their complexities. We also discuss innovative, cross-sector solutions. In approximately 1000 words, describe one environmental problem and how to solve it.

REQUIREMENTS

· Due December 6th at 4PM uploaded to Blackboard in .pdf, .doc, or .docx form under “Submit Term Paper”

· A HARD COPY must also be passed in in class on December 6th

· Paper should be approximately 1000 words

· APA format

· Font: Times New Roman or Calibri 12 pt

· Paper must have citations and a bibliography, and no plagiarism will be tolerated (That includes any use of artificial intelligence)

GRADING RUBRIC

· The term paper is worth 20 points towards the total 120 points you can earn in the class (without extra credit).

· The grading rubric is as follows:

Points

Considerations

4

· well-written and concise

· paper has been reviewed and spell-checked and is free of typos and grammatical errors

· length of your paper is appropriate (approximately 1000 words)

· paper is written in APA format and includes name, date, paper title, body text, and a bibliography

· in-text citations are in APA format

· bibliography is in APA format

· paper has a compelling title

· paper was passed in during class on December 5th and uploaded to Blackboard on time

· paper is in Times New Roman or Calibri size 12 font

8

· the environmental problem is clearly stated in the introduction

· you use empirical statistics to characterize why this is a problem

· you demonstrate understanding of the economic and political drivers of the problem

· you demonstrate understanding of how the problem impacts humans including human health if applicable

· you demonstrate understanding of how the problem impacts biodiversity if applicable

· you have stated why the problem is (1) urgent and (2) complex

8

· You have presented a feasible solution to the problem and how the solution can be achieved

· You have identified the “players” that need to come to the table to solve the problem (i.e. government leaders, advocacy groups, corporate leaders across specific sectors, consumers, etc)

· You have identified a “starting point” to catalyze the movement towards the solution

QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER WHEN CHOOSING A TOPIC

· Have any of these problems resonated with you on a personal level?

· Are you interested in global vs domestic issues or both?

· What statistics in class have you found most striking?

· Are you interested in diving into US policy solutions? – If so, choose a domestic environmental problem.

· Are you interested in international affairs? – If so, choose a problem that requires international collaboration like climate change or ocean acidification.

· Maybe there is an environmental issue that intersects with one of your passions, like fashion or art or hunting. Perhaps explore a problem relevant to YOU.

HELPFUL RESOURCES

· The Purdue Online Writing Lab has helpful resources pertaining to APA citations

· Please visit the UMass Boston Writing Center for assistance if you need it

· Project Drawdown is a great resource for solutions if your problem is related to climate change

· Refer to this class reading if your problem is related to waste or recycling

· Refer to the videos embedded in the course slides for inspiration

· Dr. Butler will hold “Term Paper Office Hours” if you need to drop in with specific questions or need help, date and time details to follow