Anthropocene Discussion Questions

Define what is meant by the Anthropocene in your own words. What is ONE controversy surrounding this concept? Provide evidence for your answer from the readings (2-3 sentences)

Provide two different indicators or measurements of development, and describe what is the advantage and disadvantage of using each and why (what can it tell us or not tell us). (3-4 sentences)

What is Sustainability Science and how is it related to Sustainable Development? (2-3 sentences)

What is Traditional Ecological Knowledge/Indigenous knowledge and why is it important for sustainable development? (2-3 sentences)

Provide a definition of globalization from Blewitt. What is one benefit and one cost of globalization? (3-4) sentences)

What is the main argument of the Gómez-Baggethun & Naredo (2015) article and what evidence do they use to support it?  Do you agree or disagree with their argument? (3-4 sentences)

What is the precautionary principle and why is it important for sustainable development? Provide one example in your answer. (3-4 sentences)

Define what Miller (2013) means by “Universal” and “Procedural” Sustainability and describe how it relates to how Blewitt describes different approaches to sustainability (3-4 sentences). 

Part 2. Short Answer Questions (2 paragraphs or approximately 300-350 words). Answer 3 of 4 questions (8 points each, 24 points total)

9.  Describe two different Sustainable Development discourses/worldviews from the three main angles discussed in class and/or the four main divisions cited in Blewitt (Clapp & Dauvergne’s 2011 divisions, pages 43-44). Provide evidence for and against each discourse and how they relate to each other in terms of global socio-ecological change (environment & inequality). 

10. The 17 Sustainable Development Goals can produce tensions when setting a global goal but implementing them at the local level. Describe TWO potential tensions that could arise in implementing a SDG and provide an example for each. 

11. Choose an essay from All We Can Save Part 1, 2, or 3 that you didn’t read for the discussion forums. Summarize the essay and describe how it is related to at least one or more reading and topic discussed in class.  

12. Blewitt cites Ratner (2004) while considering sustainable development as a “dialogue of values” (pg. 39). What does he mean by this description of sustainability? What evidence exists to support this description and do you agree or not with it? Why or why not?

You must cite your sources in your answers using the author’s last name and year of publication. If there are two authors, use both last names. If there are more than two, use the first name et al., year (i.e. Blewitt, 2018; Gómez-Baggethun & Naredo, 2015; Hopwood et al., 2015). There are more details in the link below. 

You can also cite lecture, unless what is presented in lecture has an original source (a definition or statistic or figure from another source – then you cite it as (Lerner Lecture, 2021, citing Sterling et al., 2017).