The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

School of Social Work

A. Course Description: This course will examine perspectives and models of sustainable development. Students will propose a project and present a participatory plan for engaging in sustainable development work.

B. Course Objectives: At the termination of the course students should be able to:

1. Demonstrate an understanding of the effect their personal social and cultural background (including personal and professional values) has on their own thinking and views about sustainable development. This understanding should be reflected in a plan for the student's growth and work.
2. Articulate a working definition of sustainable development that incorporates information from the past, as well as current thinking about the term, and provides some practical, ethically based direction for the student's work in development.
3. Identify and describe some aspects of sustainable development initiatives in the United States and throughout the world, in indigenous as well as modern social groups.
4. Identify and analyze some social, cultural, political and economic aspects of communities, both external and intrinsic, that may influence sustainable development, positively or negatively.
5. Employ knowledge and skills necessary to (a) assess the knowledge people in a community already have about their sustainability, and to (b) help communities engage in building inclusive, non discriminatory life enhancing structures and practices.
6. Develop and present a detailed participatory plan indicating how they would propose to learn about the knowledge, values, practices, and structures in a specific community in preparation for development facilitation.

C. Required Texts and Additional Readings:

Bernard, Ted & Young, Jora. (1997). The ecology of hope: Communities collaborate for sustainability. Gabriola Island, BC: New Society Publishers.

United Nations Development Program (UNDP). (2001). Human development report 2001. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD). (2000). Sustainable development success stories, Vol. 4. New York: United Nations.

Additional required readings are available in the Learning Resource Center on the fifth floor, or can be borrowed from my office. The readings in the syllabus beginning with an asterisk "*" should be completed for the date indicated. Additional readings are listed for your interest and further exploration. Some materials will be given to you as hand outs. Please feel free to share citations you find useful for this content as we progress through the semester.

Chapters from the following books will be assigned throughout the semester. These books represent ideas from a spiritual/ecological perspective, from an economic/futures perspective, and from a practical/grassroots educational perspective. I encourage you to read for depth of understanding in the areas of your greatest interest. If you don't find among the readings listed in the syllabus offerings that will provide depth, please ask me and the class for additional ideas. There are many more materials available than we can cover in a semester.

Berry, Thomas. (1988/paperback edition, 1990). The Dream of the Earth. San Francisco: Sierra Club Books. (Described as a geologian and cosmologist, Berry helps us reckon with the role of human activity in the Universe.)

Henderson, Hazel. (1996). Building a win-win world: Life beyond global economic warfare. San Francisco, CA: Berrett-Koehler Publishers. (An alternative economic/futures perspective with concrete ideas for how to plan and measure sustainable development.)

Gubbels, Peter, & Koss, Catheryn. (2000). From the roots up: Strengthening organizational capacity through guided self-assessment. Oklahoma City, OK: World Neighbors. (A work book for people who plan to engage with grassroots communities anywhere in the World.)

D. Expanded Description and Teaching/Learning Methods:

The course will focus on the social and cultural aspects of communities that are relevant for sustainable development facilitators. Facilitators are teachers, trainers and organizers who serve as "cultivators" and "midwives" for community change. They may be social workers, planners, administrators, public health workers or educators. The course will draw upon literature reflecting patterns of environmental racism and the exclusion of women and indigenous peoples from development planning and projects. Throughout the semester students will be introduced to a variety of perspectives on the meaning of sustainable development, and models of sustainable development from Asia, Africa, Latin America and the United States. Students will analyze their own strengths for this work and the strengths of a community in which they plan to develop a real or hypothetical sustainable development project. Near the end of the semester students will present a participatory plan for engaging with the community for sustainable development work.

The course will be divided into three major areas of inquiry: current perspectives on sustainable development, examples of sustainable development projects from the U.S. and abroad, and, training ourselves and others in sustainable development practice. The class will include readings, lectures, discussions, participatory exercises and student presentations. We will draw upon speakers from the community and faculty from other departments to help us understand concepts and processes.

We will work together to foster a supportive learning environment that encourages critical thinking by being able to appreciate points of view different from our own, working to clearly articulate our own views, and linking experiences to readings and assignments.

Students with disabilities which affect their participation in the course may notify the instructor if they wish to have special accommodations considered.

E. Assignments and Writing Guidelines:

Four written assignments and two presentations are required for this class. There are no exams. You are expected to apply concepts from the literature listed in this syllabus, or from literature you have explored beyond this syllabus, in your final definition of sustainable development, in both your presentations, and in the final paper. Application of the literature should demonstrate your ability to analyze and critique theories and concepts that help us understand and explain sustainable development work.

Please refer to the APA Style Guide and the SSW Writing Guide for information on attribution of quotes, plagiarism, and appropriate use of assistance in preparing assignments. Your written work should use APA style references. Students from outside the School will be given a copy of the SSW Writing Guide which has a summary of the APA style Guide as well as updated material on citing sources from the Internet, and appropriate use of language to avoid discriminatory writing. Students are expected to abide by the University Honor Code in not giving or receiving unauthorized aid in preparing their written work.

We have rich resources available on this campus in print material. You will also find excellent sources on the Internet. Please evaluate sources of material carefully on the Internet. Your bibliographies for any of the written assignments should not contain more than one third of their citations from Internet sources. Please be analytical about Internet sources that are not generally recognized as scholarly sources.

The assignments are described below.

1. Meaning of Sustainable Development: Students will write a paragraph that defines sustainable development, once at the beginning of the semester and once at the end. You can think about this assignment as describing to others how you will know sustainable development when you see it? Your definition at the end of the course will be part of your final paper. This first assignment is a reflection of your thoughts now, before you do a lot of reading and reflection about the meaning of sustainable development. When you define sustainable development again as part of your final paper you should show how your definition compares with the definitions of at least two other authors. First definition due January 28. Last definition will be incorporated into your final paper, due at the last class period, April 29.

2. Knowledge and Skills Growth Plan: One page document, prepared once at the beginning, and again at the end of the semester. The top half of the page will list what you know and can do to facilitate sustainable development. The bottom half will list what you need to know and be able to do to facilitate sustainable development. The first version of this assignment is due January 28. The second is due at the last class period, April 29.

3. Conceptual Sharing: Each student selects one class period to provide a 15 minute discussion/presentation of their critical thinking about a concept relevant to sustainable development (see suggested list at the end of this syllabus). Presentations begin January 28.

The presentation should:

• Identify the concept(s) and its meaning, (4 points)
• discuss the usefulness of the concept for work toward sustainable development, pros and cons, and, (7 points)
• describe in what directions we could explore this concept for greater understanding/usefulness. (4 points)

4. Application of Knowledge and Skills to a Sustainable Development Project: Students will propose a real or hypothetical sustainable development project/initiative of their choice (e.g. ecotourism, sustainable agriculture, urban micro enterprise, the education of women and girls, experiential environmental programs for young people, indigenous/natural wellness promotion, integrated health and development projects, bioregional community project, etc.). The initiative must have goals that help community groups move toward sustainable development. Use a place where you have lived and worked, a place identified from our readings, or a place where you would like to work as the hypothetical site for your proposed project. It can be a project that has already started or that is planned for a specific community/regional location any where in the world. The project must have a specific location so that local social, cultural, geographic, environmental, economic, and political characteristics are incorporated in the analysis. The analysis must describe how these characteristics potentially support or prevent a community's maintenance or initiation of a sustainable development project. (This paper is due the last day of class, April 29.)

The paper will include:

1. A description of the community location and general aspects of the social, cultural (including gender role issues, the diversity of cultural traditions, and racial bias), geographic, environmental, economic, and, political characteristics.
2. A description of the project (real or hypothetical), identifying specifically the aspects of the project that would lead the community toward sustainable development. (This section should include your own final definition of sustainable development, drawing from at least two authors for comparison.)
3. A detailed description of a plan you would use to learn of the knowledge, structures, and practices in the community that will affect the sustainable development project.
(What do the people already know about their community and its sustainability? How will you learn about their knowledge of themselves, their community and their world? Make sure your plan incorporates the voices of women, people of color, people of low wealth and power, and other marginalized groups often excluded from planning.)
4. Some analyses of the community's social, cultural, geographic, environmental, economic, and political characteristics as they relate to serving as barriers or helpers to the sustainable development initiative.
5. Some participatory approaches that incorporate knowledge, values, practices and structures learned from the community that could enhance the life and strength of the project.
6. Some approaches that incorporate knowledge you have of the world and sustainable development practice that could enhance the life and strength of the project.
7. A statement describing your personal development plans for becoming even more knowledgeable and effective in this or related sustainable development work.

5. Plan for Understanding Community Knowledge: Students will develop and present to the class a detailed plan indicating how they will propose to learn about the knowledge, values, practices, and structures in a specific community/region (from part 4,c above). The plan will cover the student's (facilitator's) first three to five months in a project site. It will provide detailed information about how the facilitator will come to understand all the systems of knowledge and experience already in the community. It will describe how the facilitator will build the necessary relationships with a range of community members in order to work toward maintaining or initiating a sustainable development project. (See "Evaluation of Presentations" at the end of the syllabus for more direction). The plan may draw upon any tools or methods that facilitate the active participation of the community members in broadening their knowledge base and the knowledge base of the facilitator.

(Note: Tuesday, February 19, 5-8:00 pm The School of Social Work will sponsor a Hunger Banquet on the 5th Floor of our building. The Hunger Banquet is an educational activity to demonstrate the disparity of resources in the world, especially food resources. The class members are asked to help with the Hunger Banquet in whatever way they can, and to participate if it is feasible.)

F. Evaluation and Grading System:

The School of Social Work uses the following grading system: 94-100 = H; 80- 93 = P; 70- 79 = L; and, 69 and below = F.

Spring Semester Plan, 2002

Section A - Current Perspectives, Definitions, and Historical References for Sustainable Development

January 14: Introductions, plans for the course, course outline and assignments, and Unit I. Please do readings for Unit 1 and Unit 2 by January 28.

Unit 1: Definitions and historical references:

• What is the meaning of sustainable development? (Student's one page definition due Jan. 28.)
• What is the relationship between sustainable development and social work, social development, community development, community organization, regional planning, or health education?
• What perspectives can we understand from indigenous peoples that help us understand the "integrity of the universe"?
• How is the human community (and human development) connected to the natural world. How does one "listen to the earth"?
• How can we focus on local and global issues at the same time?
• How many acres are required to support your lifestyle as compared with the lifestyle of a Brazilian?

* Berry, Thomas. (1988). The Dream of the Earth. San Francisco: Sierra Club Books. Chapter 14 : The historical role of the American Indian, pp. 180-193.

(*) Estes, Richard J. (1993). Toward Sustainable Development: From Theory to Praxis. Social Development Issues, 15(3), pp. 1-29.

* NASW. (1996 & Revised, 1999). NASW Code of Ethics. Washington DC: National Association of Social Workers. (available on the WEB).

* United Nations Development Program (UNDP). (2001). United Nations Development Report, 2001. (Overview, pp. 1-8). New York/Oxford: Oxford University Press.

* Calculate your ecological footprint by going to: www.rprogress.org/programs/ef/calculate.html

This is located inside the website of Redefining Progress, a good location for reorienting our notions of "progress".

* Check out the brochure for the World Summit on Sustainable Development to be held in September of 2002 at: www.johannesburgsummit.org/html/brochure/final_brochure.pdf

Reading for Additional Insight:

Durning, Alan T. (December, 1992). Guardians of the Land: Indigenous Peoples and the Health of the Earth. Worldwatch Paper 112. Washington D. C.: World Watch Institute.

Gamble, D. N. & Weil, M. O. (July, 1997). Sustainable development: The challenge for community development. Community Development Journal, 32(3), pp. 210-222.

Haq, Mahbub ul. (1995). Reflections on human development. Chapter 6: A framework for sustainable development, pp. 76-92. New York/Oxford: Oxford University Press.

January 21: Holiday, MLK, Jr.

January 28:

Unit 2: Perspectives on sustainability: human development, poverty, development models, feminist perspectives and bioregions.

• How is the Human Development Index different from the Gross Domestic Product? What is the Human Poverty Index?
• What are some differences in development models described as modernization, dependency theory, basic needs, and structural adjustment?
• What are some characteristics that make sustainable development different from other models?
• What is human capital and what kinds of social policy investments can improve it?
• Why focus on the poor? Why does inequality matter?
• What recent development strategies have tried to improve outcomes for women and children?
• How and why has women's work remained invisible in most of the world?

(*) McKay, John. (1990). The Development Model. Development: Journal of the Society for International Development. 3/4, pp. 55-59.

* United Nations Development Program. (1997). Overview: Human development to eradicate poverty, in Human development report 1997, (pp. 2-14). New York/Oxford: Oxford University Press.

* United Nations Development Program. (1999). Chapter 3: The invisible heart - care and the global economy, in Human development report 1999, (pp. 77-83). New York/Oxford: Oxford University Press.

* United Nations Development Program. (2001). Chapter 1: Human development--past, present and future, in Human development report 2001, (pp. 9-25). New York/Oxford: Oxford University Press.

(*) World Resources Institute. (1994). Chapter 3: Women and Sustainable Development, in World Resources, 1994-95: A Guide to the Global Environment. New York, N.Y.: Oxford University Press. pp. 43-60.

(*) Development Works. Just One Percent: Gaining More than we Give. Washington

D C.: InterAction - Handout. Also, check out www.interaction.org.

Reading for Additional Insight:

Daly, Herman E. (1996). Beyond growth: The economics of sustainable development. Boston: Beacon Press.

Daly, Herman E. & Cobb, John B., Jr. (1989). For the Common Good: Redirecting the economy toward community, the environment, and a sustainable future. Boston: Beacon Press.

Estes, Richard. (1999). The poverties: competing definitions and alternative approaches to measurement. Social Development Issues, 21(2), pp. 11-21.

French, Hilary F. (1995). Forging a Global Partnership, in Brown, Lester, et. al. State of the World: A Worldwatch Institute Report on Progress Toward a Sustainable Society. New York, NY: W. W. Norton & Co., Chapter 10, pp. 170-189.

Gamble, D. N. & Varma, S. (1999). International women doing development work define needed skills for sustainable development. Social Development Issues, 21(1), pp. 47-56.

Henderson, H. (1996). Building a win-win World. Chapters 1 & 2: Global economic warfare, & Juggernaut globalism. pp. 11-73. San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler Publishers.

Swigonski, Mary E. (1994). The logic of feminist standpoint theory for social work research. Social Work. 39(4), 387-393.

United Nations Development Program (UNDP). (2000). Overview and Chapter 1: Human rights and human development, in Human Development Report 2000. New York/ Oxford: Oxford University Press, (pp. 1-28).

United Nations Development Program (UNDP). (1998). Overview and Chapter 1 & 2 in Human Development Report 1998. New York/ Oxford: Oxford University Press, (pp. 1-45).

February 4: Guest Speaker Prof. Melinda Meade, UNC-CH Dept. of Geography.

Unit 3: Perspectives on sustainability - population, migration, consumption, issues of race in science, and bioregions:

• What are some factors that influence the growth and decrease of population?
• What are some impacts of consumption on local and global societies?
• How and why is the present industrial economy not sustainable?
• How have colonialism and racism affected development approaches?
• How does the Green Movement articulate life sustaining values?
• How should we define development? progress?
• What are bioregions?

* Bernard, Ted & Young, Jora. (1997). The ecology of hope: Communities collaborate for sustainability. Gabriola Island, BC: New Society Publishers. Introduction and Part 1, pp. 1-40.

* United Nations Development Program (UNDP). (2000). Chapter 6: Promoting Rights in Human Development, in Human Development Report 2000, (pp. 112-128 ). New York/ Oxford: Oxford University Press.

* World Resources Institute. (2000). Summary: People and ecosystems: The fraying web of life, in World Resources, 2000-2001, People and Ecosystems. New York, N.Y.: Oxford University Press. (pp. 1-23).

(* )Charles, L. et. al. (1990). Where you at? A bioregional quiz, in Andruss, V. et. al. Home: A bioregional reader. Gabriola Is. B.C.: New Society Publishers, (pp. 29-30). - Handout.

(* )North Carolina River Basins and Environmental Education Centers, (1998). N. C. Center for Geographic Information & Analysis, 301 N. Wilmington St., Suite 700, Raleigh, NC 27601-2825.

Population Resource Bureau's Web sites:

www.prb.org

www.popnet.org

www.measurecommunication.org (Funded by USAID and implemented by PRB and the Academy for Educational Development).

www.ameristat.org

Reading for Additional Insight:

Berry, Thomas. (1988). Chapter 7: Economics as a religious issue, (pp 70-88); Chapter 11: Patriarchy, a new interpretation of history, and, Chapter 12: Bioregions, the context for reinhabiting the earth, (pp. 138-170). in The Dream of the Earth. San Francisco: Sierra Club Books.,

Harcourt, Wendy. (1994). Negotiating Positions in the Sustainable Development Debate: Situating the Feminist Perspective. in Harcourt, Wendy, (ed.) Feminist Perspectives on Sustainable Development. London & New Jersey: Zed Books Ltd. in association with Rome: SID. pp. 1-25.

Harvey, David. (1996). The environment of justice, in Justice, nature, and the geography of difference. Malden and Oxford: Blackwell publishers, (pp. 366-71, 385-911).

Henderson, H. (1996). Building a win-win World. Chapters 3, 4, & 5: The technology trap, the jobless productivity trap, & Government by mediocracy, pp. 74-127. San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler Publishers.

Merchant, Carolyn. (1992). Chapter 7: Green Politics, in Merchant, C. Radical Ecology: The Search for a Livable World. New York and London: Routledge. (pp. 157-182).

Shiva, Vandana. (1993). Colonialism and the Evolution of Masculinist Forestry, in Harding, Sandra, (ed.). The "Racial" Economy of Science: Toward a Democratic Future. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press. pp. 303-314.

Southern Exposure (Summer/Fall, 1998). The Globalization Game. Vol.XXVI (2&3).

Tokar, Brian. (1997). The green alternative: Towards a future of sustainable communities in the USA, in Kaoru Yamaguchi (Ed.). Sustainable global communities in the information age: Visions from future studies, (91-102). Twickenham, England: Adamantine Press, Ltd.

United Nations Development Program (UNDP). (2000). Chapter 2: Struggles for human freedoms, & Status of major international human rights instruments, in Human Development Report 2000. New York/ Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 29-55.

United Nations Development Program (UNDP) . (1998). Chapter 4: Unequal human impacts on environmental damage, in Human Development Report 1998. New York/ Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 66-85.

United Nations Development Program (UNDP) . (1996). Human Development Report 1996. New York/ Oxford: Oxford University Press. Chapter 2, pp. 43-65.

World Resources Institute. (1994). Chapter 2: Population and the environment, in World Resources, 1994-95: A Guide to the Global Environment. New York, N.Y.: Oxford University Press. (pp. 27-42).

World Resources Institute. (1998). Critical Trends: Population and human well-being, in World Resources, 1998-99: A Guide to the Global Environment. New York, N.Y.: Oxford University Press. (pp. 141-151).

World Resources Institute. (1998). Critical Trends: Feeding the world, and production and consumption, in World Resources, 1998-99: A Guide to the Global Environment. New York, N.Y.: Oxford University, pp. 152-169.

Section B - National and International Efforts Toward Sustainable Development

February 11.

Unit 4: Examples from across the globe.

• What are some identifiable projects/efforts from our region, from elsewhere in the U.S., and from other parts of the world that are working toward sustainable development?
• Who are the facilitators and what methods are they using for participatory involvement?
• What are some of the differences and similarities in projects being initiated in our own region and in the developing world?
• Why and how do human rights influence human development?
• How does the "technology divide" influence development?

* United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD). (2000). Sustainable development success stories, Vol. 4. New York: United Nations.

* United Nations Development Program. (2000). Chapter 3: Inclusive democracy secures rights, in Human Development Report 2000, (pp. 56-72). New York/Oxford: Oxford University Press.

* United Nations Development Program. (2001). Chapter 4: Unleashing human creativity: National strategies, in Human Development Report, 2001, (pp. 79-93). New York/Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Video: "Community" - focus on women's involvement in economic development in Bangladesh, Oxfam America.

Readings for additional insight:

Berry, Thomas. (1988). The Dream of the Earth. San Francisco: Sierra Club Books. Chapters 10: The New Story, pp. 123 - 137, & 13: The Hudson River valley, a bioregional story, pp. 171-179.

Durning, Alan B. (1989). Poverty and the Environment: Reversing the Downward Spiral. Worldwatch Paper 92. Washington D. C.: World Watch Institute.

Henderson, H. (1996). Building a win-win World. Chapters 6,7, & 8: Grassroots globalism, Rethinking human development, & Cultural DNA codes and biodiversity, pp. 131-193. San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler Publishers.

Hinsdale, Mary Ann, Lewis, Helen, and Waller, S. Maxine. (1995). It Comes From the People: Community Development and Local Theology. Philadelphia, PA.: Temple University Press. Chapter 3: Confronting and Using Power, pp. 65-78.

United Nations Development Program. (1999). Chapter 4: National responses to make Globalization work for human development, in Human Development Report 1999, (84-96). New York/Oxford: Oxford University Press.

February 18, Guest Speakers, Mikki Sager, Nancy Hunt, Nate Butler, and Danielle O'Hara from the Resourceful Communities Program.

Mikki Sager, from the Resourceful Communities Program, will present on her work in both the eastern and western parts of the state. She and a recent graduate, Craig White, have worked with Tyrrell County down east, as well as with communities in the western part of North Carolina, to develop local, participatory, racially integrated community development efforts that are environmentally and culturally sensitive and economically viable. Currently Mikki and Nate are working with eastern counties to help them rethink frameworks for rebuilding after hurricane Floyd by taking into account the bioregions of the eastern half of our state.

(Don't forget the Hunger Banquet on February 19, 5-8:00 pm.)

Unit 4, Continued:

• How do we define wealth and poverty in efforts toward development?
• What are some specific projects in North Carolina that are moving us toward sustainable development?

* Bernard, Ted & Young, Jora. (1997). The ecology of hope: Communities collaborate for sustainability. Gabriola Island, BC: New Society Publishers. Part 2, pp. 43-180.

Readings for additional insight:

Henderson, H. (1996). Building a win-win World. Chapters 9 & 10: Information & Redefining wealth and progress, PP. 196-246. San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler Publishers.

Peña, D. & Gallegos, J. (1997). Local knowledge and collaborative environmental action research. In P. Nyden, A. Figert, M. Shibley, & D. Burrows (Eds.), Building community: Social science in action. Thousand Oaks, CA: Pine Forge Press. PP. 85-91, with references pp. 250-256.

Sarin, Madhu. (1995). Wasteland Development and the Empowerment of Women: The SARTHI Experience, in Leonard, Ann (ed.), SEEDS 2: Supporting Women's Work around the World. City University of New York, N.Y.: The Feminist Press. pp. 110-133. (This book contains other case studies from the U.S. , Zambia, Mozambique, Sudan, and Thailand that may be helpful in selecting a sustainable development project.)

United Nations Development Program. (2000). Chapter 4: Right empowering people in the fight against poverty, in Human Development Report 2000, (73-88). New York/Oxford: Oxford University Press.

February 25: No class

March 4

Unit 4, Continued:

• What can we learn from sustainable agriculture?
• How do we interpret the balances between technological advances in plant development, environmental protection, and food security?
• What are the differences between the world's research agenda and the world's research needs?

* Adriance, Jim. (1995). Living with the Land in Central America. Grassroots Development , 19/1. pp. 3-17. (Other examples of sustainable development projects in Latin America can be found in the journal, Grassroots Development.)

* United Nations Development Program. (2001). Chapter 5: Global initiatives to create technologies for human development, in Human Development Report 2001, (95-117). New York/Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Video: "Saving their Corner of the Planet" Grassroots efforts to protect the environment in Honduras.

Reading for Additional Insight:

Bunch, Roland. (1982). Two ears of corn: A guide to people-centered agricultural improvement. Oklahoma City, OK: World Neighbors

Henderson, H. (1996). Building a win-win World. Chapters 11 & 12: Perfecting Democracy's tools & New markets and new commons, pp. 247-292. San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler Publishers.

Hoff, Marie D. (1998). Sustainable Community Development: Studies in economic, environmental, and cultural revitalization. Boca Raton, FL: Lewis Publishers.

Wilson, Larry. (1995). Fighting Toxic Waste Dumping in Kentucky. in Bradford, Bonnie & Gwynne, Margaret A. (eds.), Down to Earth: Community Perspectives on Health, Development, and the Environment. West Hartford, CT.: Kumarin Press. pp. 107-112. (This books contains other case studies from the U.S. , Colombia, Honduras, Ecuador, Bolivia, Armenia, Mali, Kenya, Uganda and Sri Lanka that may be helpful in selecting a sustainable development project.)

World Resources Institute. (1994). Chapter 14: National and Local Policies and Institutions, in World Resources, 1994-95: A Guide to the Global Environment. New York, N.Y.: Oxford University Press. pp. 235-252.

World Resources Institute. (1998). Critical Trends: The Global commons; Resources at risk, in World Resources, 1998-99: A Guide to the Global Environment. New York, N.Y.: Oxford University Press, (pp. 170-199).

World Resources Institute. (1998). Chapter 3: Improving health through environmental action, in World Resources, 1998-99: A Guide to the Global Environment. New York, N.Y.: Oxford University Press, (pp. 73-126).

We also have available for review case study material from World Neighbors (Oklahoma City, OK) Projects in Honduras, Peru, India and Nepal. Some case study material is also available through EcoGen: Ecology, Community Organization, and Gender , a joint project of Clark University and Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University established to examine the role of gender in rural livelihood systems.

Chapters 3 & 4 of the Human Development Report 1996 also will have a variety of brief examples of development and growth initiatives, some of which are representative of sustainable development efforts.

Some Web sites that provide information about sustainable development projects are: 

• www.netaid.org (the UNDP sustainable dev. Web site)
• www.wri.org (World Resources Institute)
• www.wn.org (World Neighbors)
• www.iied.org (International Institute for Environment and Development)
• caster.ssw.upenn.edu/~restes/praxis.html (Richard Estes Web site)

March 11: Spring Break

Section C - Training/Educating Ourselves and Others for Sustainable Development

March 18

Unit 5: Educating Ourselves

• The WHO questions (Christine Robinson, 1996)

Who are you? Why are you interested in this project? How will you benefit if the project is successful? What will you lose if the project fails? What are your values that undergird your work? How are these values helpful? When are they barriers to the community's interests? How does your race and gender orientation influence your approach?

Who are they? What is the culture and basic livelihood structures of the people in the community with whom you are working? How do they understand and describe the future? Why would they want to work toward sustainable development? What do they have to gain if the project is successful? What do they lose if it fails?

Who are you to them? How do the people from the community see you? In what ways are you different from them? What expectations do they have of you? What experiences have they had with other outside facilitators in the past?

• How do participatory methods help us learn?
• What personal perspectives and behaviors demonstrate respect for the worth and dignity of the people with whom we work?
• If we are to move toward an "ecological culture", away from a "patricentric, scientific/technological culture", how would we educate ourselves?
• If we combine a scientific/technological culture with "just" development, what are the principles that should guide our development?

* Berry, Thomas. (1988). The Dream of the Earth. Chapter 8, The American college in the ecological age,(89-108), in, The Dream of the Earth. San Francisco: Sierra Club Books.

* Chambers, Robert. (1997). Whose reality counts? Putting the first last. Chapter 6: Learning to learn. (pp. 102-129). London: Intermediate Technology Publications.

* Henderson, H. (1996). Building a win-win World. Chapter 13: Agreeing on rules and social innovations, pp. 293-329. San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler Publishers.

(*) World Neighbors (1994). Learning with the Community through Participatory Rural Appraisal. in World Neighbors in Action: A Newsletter for Project Personnel. Oklahoma City, OK: World Neighbors. March, 24/1E. - Handout

(*) World Neighbors (2001) Fall, Quarterly Report. Oklahoma City, OK: World Neighbors.

(*) Robinson, C. (1996). The Who Questions - Handout

(*)Sustainable Chapel Hill - Handout

(*) Sustainable Orange County - Handout

Reading for Additional Insight:

Blauert, Jutta & Zadek, Simon, (Eds.). (1998). Mediating sustainability: Growing policy from the grassroots. West Hartford, CT.: Kumarian Press.

Chambers, Robert. (1994). Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA): Challenges Potentials and Paradigm. World Development, 22, (10), pp. 1437-1454.

Daly, Herman E. & Cobb, John B. Jr. (1989). Chapter 8 - From Individualism to Person-in-Community, in Daly, H. E. & Cobb, J.B. Jr., For the Common Good. Boston, MA: Beacon Press. (pp. 159-175).

Hart, Maureen. (1999). Guide to sustainable community indicators, Second edition. North Andover, MA: Hart Environmental Data.

Web site: http://www.subjectmatters.com/indicators/

Healy, Lynne M. (2001). International social work: Professional action in an interdependent world. New York/Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Henderson, Hazel. (1994). Paths to Sustainable Development: The Role of Social Indicators. Futures. March, 26/2, pp. 125-137.

Hoff, Marie D. (1994). Environmental Foundations of Social Welfare: Theoretical Resources. in Hoff, Marie D. & McNutt, John G. The Global Environmental Crisis: Implications for Social Welfare and Social Work. Aldershot, U.K.: Avebury. (pp. 12 -35).

Hokenstead, M.C. & Midgley, James. (1997). Issues in international social work: Global challenges for a new century. Washington DC: NASW Press

Orr, David W. (1994). Earth in mind: On education, environment, and the human prospect. Washington DC: Island Press.

Pimentel, David, Westra, Laura, & Noss, Reed F. (2000). Ecological integrity; Integrating environment, conservation, and health. Washington DC: Island Press.

Stoesz, David, Guzzetta, Charles, & Lusk, Mark. (1999). International development. Needham Heights, MA: Allyn & Bacon.

Swimme, Brian & Berry, Thomas. (1992). The Universe story. San Francisco, CA.: HarperCollins.

United Nations Development Program (UNDP). (1999). Chapter 5: Reinventing global governance - for humanity and equity, in Human Development Report 1999. New York/ Oxford: Oxford University Press, pp. 97-114.

Weaver, James H., Rock, Michael T., & Kusterer, Kenneth. (1997). Achieving broad-based sustainable development: Governance, environment, and growth with equity. West Hartford, CT: Kumarian Press.

World Resources Institute. (1994). Chapter 1: Natural Resource Consumption. in World Resources, 1994-95: A Guide to the Global Environment. New York, N.Y.: Oxford University Press. (pp. 3-26).

March 25 & April 1:

Unit 6: Educating Others

• How do we form partnerships with local community groups to construct a vision for sustainable development?
• How can community visions and global visions be connected?
• How does the facilitator actually work toward this partnership and complex development planning?
• How can local communities measure the quality of their lives and environment before and after initiating change toward sustainable development?

(*) Corson, Walter H. (1994). Changing Course: An Outline of Strategies for a Sustainable Future. Futures. March, 26/2, pp. 206-223.

(*) Gubbels, Peter & Koss, Catheryn. (2000). From the roots up: Strengthening organizational capacity through guided self-assessment. Field Guide 2. Oklahoma City, OK: World Neighbors.

* Kleymeyer, Charles David. (1996). Cultural traditions and community-based conservation. Grassroots Development, 20/1, pp. 27-35.

* Kleymeyer, Charles David. (1994). Chapter 1 - The Uses and Functions of Cultural Expressions in Grassroots Development. in Kleymeyer, C. D. Cultural Expression and Grassroots Development: Cases from Latin America and the Caribbean. Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner Publishers. pp 17-36.

* Korten, David C. (1995). Chapter 24 - Agenda for Change, in Korten, D. C. When Corporations Rule the World. West Hartford, CT: Kumarian Press, Inc. & Berrett-Koehler Publishers. (pp. 307-324).

* Noponen, Helzi. (1997). Participatory monitoring and evaluation - A prototype internal learning system for livelihood and micro-credit programs. Community Development Journal, Vol.32 (1), pp. 30-48.

* Odum, Howard T. & Odum, Elisabeth C. (2001). A prosperous way down: Principles and policies. Chapter 17: Transmitting Knowledge, (pp. 251- 267). Boulder: University of Colorado Press.

Reading for Additional Insight:

Arnold, Rick, Burke, Bev, James, Carl, Martin, D'Arcy, & Thomas, Barb. (1991). Educating for change. Toronto, Ontario: Between the Lines, & the Doris Marshall Institute for Education and Action.

Chambers, Robert. (1997). Whose reality counts?: Putting the first last. London: Intermediate Technology Press.

Freire, Paulo. (1998). Teachers as cultural workers: Letters to those who dare teach. Boulder, CO.: Westview Press

Hinsdale, Mary Ann, Lewis, Helen, and Waller, S. Maxine. (1995). It comes from the people: Community development and local theology. Philadelphia, PA.: Temple University Press. Chapter 7: Insiders, Outsiders, and Participatory Research. pp. 153-172.

Hope, Anne & Timmel, Sally. (1995). Training for transformation: A handbook for community workers, Revised (Volumes I, II, & III). Gweru, Zimbabwe: Mambo Press.

Pretty, Jules N., Guijit, Irene, Thompson, John, & Scoones, Ian. (1995). Participatory Learning and Action: A Trainers Guide. IIED.

Vella, Jane. (1989). Learning to teach: Training of trainers for community development. Washington DC: Save the Children and OEF International.

Review Readings from Unit 5.

April 8, 15, & 22: Presentations of student plan to engage with a community.

April 29 : Evaluation of Course, Final Papers due.

Conceptual Sharing: Each student selects one class period to provide a 15 minute discussion/presentation of their critical thinking about a concept relevant to sustainable development. The presentation should:

• identify the concept(s) and discuss its meaning, (4 points)
• discuss the usefulness of the concept for work toward sustainable development, pros and cons, ( 7 points), and
• describe in what directions we could explore this concept for greater understanding/usefulness. (4 points)

Suggested Concepts:

1. perspectives on how to think about the term "development", and development models
2. perspectives from indigenous people that help us understand "the integrity of the universe"
3. perspectives on the role of women in development paradigms
4. perspectives on colonialism and racism in development paradigms
5. perspectives on bioregionalism and its usefulness, or not, for sustainable development work
6. perspectives on the meaning of community for sustainable development work
7. bio-diversity and its relationship to sustainable development
8. perspectives on the "Green Movement" or "Green Party" and its role in politics, local or global
9. perspectives on sustainable agriculture (local or elsewhere), and food security
10. perspectives on how to measure human development/progress
11. perspectives on how to measure economic development/progress (economic well-being)
12. perspectives on the gap between the richest 20% and the poorest 20% of the population and its relationship to sustainable development (national or global)
13. perspectives on access to resources and resource exploitation when comparing the global north and south.
14. perspectives on how to measure social development/progress (social indicators)
15. perspectives on how to measure cultural development/progress (cultural diversity, cultural oppression, cultural preservation)
16. perspectives on the best ways we can learn about sustainable development
17. perspectives on the best ways we can teach about sustainable development
18. perspectives on the role of the media and paths toward sustainable development
19. perspectives on consumption and its relationship to sustainable development
20. perspectives on the comparison of consumption between the global north and the global south
21. perspectives on international conventions and their role in working toward sustainable development
22. perspectives on national and/or international organizations and their role in working toward sustainable development

Sustainable Development for Facilitators, SoWo 381

Evaluation of Presentations for Understanding Community Knowledge

(Scale of 1-5, 5 representing the highest evaluation)

1. The facilitator provides an orientation to the geographic location and development problems/issues early in the presentation:

2. The facilitator demonstrates some understanding of the racial, ethnic, cultural, gender and socioeconomic diversity existing in the region, and a plan for how to use her/himself to further explore and understand the diversity available in the community:

3. The facilitator presents a plan for how he/she will engage with the community groups to learn about and understand the knowledge residents have of what makes their community vulnerable and/or potentially strong for moving toward sustainability:

4. The facilitator has thought through a proposal or approach for moving toward sustainability including the facilitators definition of what makes the effort sustainable development: (This may be combined with #3, depending on how the facilitator plans to work.)

5. The facilitator describes some sense of the potential barriers that must be overcome to gain acceptance as a working partner with the community to help them form goals, structures, projects, programs, etc. toward sustainable development.

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