ENST 4000 – Seminar in Environmental Studies Fall 2013 Instructor: Dr. Emilie Cameron; [email protected] Tel: (613) 520-­‐2600 ext 6291 **Please note: I do not respond to emails on evenings and weekends** Tuesdays, 11:35am – 2:25pm, Southam 409; discussion groups A220 Seminars: Office Hours: Tuesdays, 2:30pm to 3:30pm, Loeb A301D, or by appointment T.A.: Anna Crawford; Email: [email protected] ENST 4000 is the “capstone” course in the Environmental Studies program. It is an opportunity to consolidate, deepen, and apply the knowledges you have developed in other courses and to think through how these knowledges might translate to environmental policy-­‐making, advocacy, activism, research, and governance. This year we will be focusing on the environmental impacts of mining, with particular emphasis on mining in Canada and by Canadian companies overseas. Mining is an increasingly important dimension of the Canadian economy, and changes to the ways in which mining is regulated and assessed in Canada are currently being implemented. We are all touched by mining, whether through the commodities we consume, the investments we make, the environmental and social impacts we experience, and/or the benefits we inherit. Mining also draws our attention to the complexity of environmental issues and the limits of conceptualizing them only in terms of the ecological. Mining raises issues of property and land tenure, processes of capital accumulation, the socio-­‐cultural and political-­‐economic dimensions of rurality and rural employment, international networks of trade and development, Indigenous claims to land and histories of colonialism, ecological and health impacts of mining waste, and our role in globalized consumption processes. Our goal this year will be to a) understand the political-­‐economic, regulatory, geographic, and historical contexts that give rise to current extractive activities, and within which those activities are governed and assessed; b) analyze the various interests shaping mineral development in Canada and overseas; c) understand the key ecological, social, and political impacts of mining and various strategies for mitigating these impacts; and d) come to terms with our own involvements and investments in mining, and possible avenues for progressive change. Discussion and participation are an important part of this class: be prepared to speak up, share ideas, and ask questions. Students will also be expected to read 30-­‐50 pages each week, to undertake research about a specific extractive project, and to discuss their findings with the class. Students can expect to develop their critical thinking, analytical, research, and writing skills as the course progresses. Course Outline All required readings are assembled in a course pack available at Octopus Books, 116 Third Ave in the Glebe. Optional readings can be found online through the Library (*) or on CULearn (CUL) September 10: Introduction and Overview Required Reading: 1 •
Bridge, G. 2009. Material Worlds: Natural Resources, Resource Geography and the Material Economy. Geography Compass 3(3): 1217-­‐1244. September 17: Mining and Capitalism **Reading Response #1 DUE** Required readings: • Huber, M. 2009. The use of gasoline: value, oil, and the “American way of life.” Antipode 41 (3): 465-­‐486. • Le Billon, P. 2006. Fatal Transactions: Conflict Diamonds and the (Anti)Terrorist Consumer. Antipode, 38, 778-­‐80. Optional readings: • * Schoenberger, E. 2011. Why is gold valuable? Nature, social power and the value of things, cultural geographies 18(1): 3-­‐24 • * Labban, M. 2010. Oil in Parallax: Scarcity, markets, and the financialization of accumulation, Geoforum 41 (4): 541-­‐552. September 24: Mining and the State Required readings: • Hart, R. and Hoogeveen, D. 2012. Introduction to the Legal Framework for Mining in Canada. http://www.miningwatch.ca/article/introduction-­‐legal-­‐framework-­‐mining-­‐canada • Bridge, G. 2004. Mapping the Bonanza: Geographies of Mining Investment in an Era of Neoliberal Reform. The Professional Geographer, 56, 406-­‐421. • Whyte, K. 2011. “Peter Munk: in conversation”, Macleans, July 27, 2011. Optional readings: • *Ferguson, J. 2005. Seeing Like An Oil Company: Space, Security, and Global Capital in Neoliberal Africa. American Anthropologist, 107 (3): 377-­‐382. • * Emel, J. & M. Huber. 2008. A risky business: Mining, rent and the neoliberalization of ‘‘risk”. Geoforum, 39, 1393-­‐1407. • * Campbell, B. 2013. The Petro-­‐Path Not Taken: Comparing Norway with Canada and Alberta’s Management of Petroleum Wealth. Ottaws: Canadian Center for Policy Alternatives, January 2013. • * Ontario Mining Act, http://www.mndm.gov.on.ca/en/mines-­‐and-­‐minerals/mining-­‐act • CUL – AANDC. 2013. Ring of Fire (Information for Minister). Briefing Document, Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada, 4 February 2013. October 1: Land, Resources, and Empire ** Reading Response #2 DUE ** Required readings: • Hall, R. 2013. Diamond Mining in Canada’s Northwest Territories: A Colonial Continuity, Antipode, 45(2): 376–393. • Blomley, N. 2003. Law, property, and the geography of violence: the frontier, the survey, and the grid. Annals of the Association of American Geographers, 93, 121-­‐141. • Lukacs, Martin. 2013. Indigenous rights are the best defence against Canada's resource rush. The Guardian (April 26, 2013). Optional readings: • CUL -­‐ Desbiens, C. 2004. Nation to Nation: Defining New Structures of Development in Northern Quebec, Economic Geography 80(4): 351–366. 2 •
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* Bernauer, W. 2012. Uranium Territory: Inuit campaign for referendum over mine in far north, The Dominion, July 2012. [http://www.dominionpaper.ca/articles/4532] * Harris C. 2004. ‘How did colonialism dispossess?’ Annals, Association of American Geographers, 94 (1): 165-­‐182. * Gordon T and Webber J R. 2008. Imperialism and resistance: Canadian mining companies in Latin America, Third World Quarterly 29(1):63–87 October 8: NO CLASS: Independent work on proposals October 15: Ring of Fire 1: Overview **Guest: Ramsey Hart, MiningWatch Canada** Required Readings: • CPAWS and Mining Watch. 2011. Letter to Peter Kent, Minister of Environment re: Cliffs Chromite Project in Ontario’s “Ring of Fire”. 3 May 2011. http://cpaws.org/uploads/2011-­‐05_letter_ringoffire.pdf • Kuyek, J. 2011. Economic analysis of the Ring of Fire chromite mining play. Ottawa: MiningWatch Canada. • Boyden, J. 2013. Building Something. NFB Interactive Website. http://hyperlocal.nfb.ca/#/hyperlocal/boyden/ October 22: Ring of Fire 2: Past and Present Mining Conflict in Northern Ontario Required Readings: • Macklem, P. 1997. The Impact of Treaty 9 on Natural Resource Development in Northern Ontario. In M. Asch (ed) Aboriginal and Treaty Rights in Canada: Essays on Law, Equity, and Respect for Difference. Vancouver: UBC Press, 97-­‐134. • Peerla, D. 2012. No Means No: The Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug and the Fight for Indigenous Resource Sovereignty. Optional Reading: • CUL Ariss, R. and Cutfeet, J. Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug First Nation: Mining, Consultation, Reconciliation, and Law, Indigenous Law Journal, 10(1): 1-­‐37. • * CBC. 2013. Chromite Crumbs? Interview with Stan Sudol, 3 September 2013 http://www.cbc.ca/superiormorning/episodes/2013/09/03/chromite-­‐crumbs/ October 29: NO CLASS (Reading Week) November 5: Ring of Fire 3: Ecology **Guests: Anna Crawford and Murray Richardson** **Proposals Due** Required Reading: • * Riley, J. 2011. Wetlands of the Hudson Bay Lowlands. Toronto: Nature Conservancy of Canada. Available online (**NOTE: Not in coursepack, available online**) http://www.mnr.gov.on.ca/stdprodconsume/groups/lr/@mnr/@farnorth/documents/document/stdpro
d_086879.pdf November 12: “Externalities”: Environmental, social, and health impacts of mining Required Readings: • Kirsch, S. 2010. Sustainable Mining, Dialectical Anthropology, 34(1): 87-­‐93. • Keeling, A. and Sandlos, J. 2009. Environmental Justice Goes Underground? Historical Notes from Canada’s Northern Mining Frontier, Environmental Justice, 2(3): 117-­‐125. 3 • MiningWatch. 2012. MiningWatch Canada Chromite Series Fact Sheets (1-­‐3) Optional Readings: • * Caine, K. and Krogman, N. 2010. Powerful or Just Plain Power-­‐Full? A Power Analysis of Impact and Benefit Agreements in Canada’s North, Organization and Environment 23 (1): 76 -­‐98. • * Robbins, P. 2011. Chapter 5, Political Ecology: A Critical Introduction, Hoboken, NJ: Wiley-­‐Blackwell, 103-­‐121. • * Keeling, A. 2010. ‘Born in an atomic test tube’: landscapes of cyclonic development at Uranium City, Saskatchewan, Canadian Geographer, 54: 228-­‐252 • * Coumans, C. 2010. Alternative Accountability Mechanisms and Mining: The Problems of Effective Impunity, Human Rights, and Agency, Canadian Journal of Development Studies, 30 (1-­‐2): 27-­‐48. •
* Newell, P. 2005. Citizenship, accountability and community: the limits of the CSR agenda, International Affairs, 81 (3): 541-­‐557. •
* Shoebridge, P and Simons, M. Welcome to Pine Point. National Film Board, http://pinepoint.nfb.ca/#/pinepoint November 19: “Jobs vs. the Environment”: Assessing and Mitigating Impacts ** Reading Response #3 DUE ** Required Readings: • Li, F. 2009. Documenting Accountability: Environmental Impact Assessment in a Peruvian Mining Project, PoLAR: Political and Legal Anthropology Review, 32 (2): 218-­‐236 • Caine, K. and Krogman, N. 2010. Powerful or Just Plain Power-­‐Full? A Power Analysis of Impact and Benefit Agreements in Canada’s North, Organization and Environment 23 (1): 76 -­‐98. Optional Readings: • * Noble, B. and Birk, J. 2011. Comfort monitoring? Environmental assessment follow-­‐up under community–industry negotiated environmental agreements, Environmental Impact Assessment Review, 31 (1): 17-­‐24. • CUL Sinclair, A.J. and Diduck, A. 2009. Public Participation in Canadian Environmental Assessment: Enduring Challenges and Future Directions, in K.S. Hanna (ed), Environmental impact assessment process and practices in Canada, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 58-­‐82. • CUL Gibson, R. 2012. What would remain? Notes on the key substantive changes to federal environmental assessment in the proposed Canadian Environmental Assessment Act 2012 included in the omnibus budget implementation Bill C-­‐38. [Working draft], Accessible through Save Canada’s Environmental Laws, http://www.envirolawsmatter.ca/environmental_assessment • * Chalifour, N. 2010. Bringing Justice to Environmental Assessment: An Examination of the Kearl Oil Sands Joint Review Panel and the Health Concerns of the Community of Fort Chipewyan. Journal of Environmental Law and Practice, 21: 31-­‐64. • * Coumans, C. 2011. Occupying Spaces Created by Conflict: Anthropologists, Development NGOs, Responsible Investment, and Mining, Current Anthropology, 52(3): S29-­‐S40. • * Himley, M. 2012. Regularizing Extraction in Andean Peru: Mining and Social Mobilization in an Age of Corporate Social Responsibility, Antipode 45 (2): 394-­‐416. November 26: Political Change Required readings: • Smith, N. 2009. The Revolutionary Imperative, Antipode, 41 (1): 50-­‐65. • Gibson-­‐Graham, J. K. 1996. The End of Capitalism (as we knew it). Oxford: Blackwell, Chapter 11. 4 •
Chaloupka, W. 2003. There Must Be Some Way Out of Here: Strategy, Ethics, and Environmental Politics. In W. Magnusson and K. Shaw (eds) A Political Space: Reading the Global through Clayoquot Sound. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, pp. 67-­‐90. Optional readings: • * Anderson, Jon. 2004. Spatial Politics in Practice: The Style and Substance of Environmental Direct Action, Antipode, 36 (1): 106-­‐125 • * Koopman S. 2008. Imperialism within: Can the master’s tools bring down empire? Acme: An International E-­‐Journal for Critical Geographies 7(2):283–307 • CUL -­‐ Clapp, J and Dauvergne, P. 2005. Chapter 8, Paths to a Green World: The political economy of the global environment. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. • CUL -­‐ Nikiforuk, A. 2010. “Twelve Steps to Energy Sanity” in Tar Sands: Dirty Oil and the Future of a Continent, Vancouver: Greystone Books, pp 200-­‐205. December 3: Concluding thoughts, presentations, discussion ** Final Papers DUE in class, 11:35am ** • NO READING REQUIRED • Brief, informal presentation of papers Evaluation Participation (20%) • Participation is a crucial component of this class. Participation includes attendance, doing thorough and critical readings of the assigned materials, contributing effectively in class discussions, and responding to your peers’ presentations. Reading Responses (15%) • There are 3 reading responses due throughout the term (on Sept 17, Oct 1, and Nov 19). • Responses are due at the beginning of class and will not be accepted late. They should be no more 2 pages, double spaced, and should provide brief summaries of the reading(s) and your responses to the readings, including questions and concerns you will bring to class that day. Project Proposal (25%) ** DUE November 5, 11:35am ** • A proposal outlining your final assignment topic, approach, and key sources. • Proposals should include an annotated bibliography with at least 10 sources (minimum 7 academic sources, and minimum 5 sources from the list of required and optional course readings) • Proposals should be 6-­‐8 pages long. Details will be provided in class. Final Assignment (40%) ** DUE December 3, 11:35am** • You have a choice of writing a term paper or producing a literature review and fact sheet for your final project. Each must be based on academic references and must be 3000-­‐4000 words. • Final assignments must focus on some dimension of the proposed Ring of Fire development, or on some other aspect of mining in Northern Ontario. • Final assignments are due in class, at 11:35am, November 30, 2012. 5 Course Policies Laptops and Cellphones: Laptop and cellphone policies are designed to encourage a productive, engaging, and positive learning environment for all students. I understand that some students prefer to type notes rather than write notes using a pen and paper. Responsible use of laptops is permitted, although students are encouraged to put laptops away during class discussions and to take notes using pen and paper. Students using their laptops to check email, Facebook, or other non-­‐course related activities will be asked to leave their laptops at home. Cell phones are not permitted in class. If you are expecting an urgent call, please ensure the ringer is off and please step outside. Academic Integrity: Academic integrity is constituted by the five core fundamental values of honesty, trust, fairness, respect and responsibility (see www.academicintegrity.org). These values are central to the building, nurturing and sustaining of an academic community in which all members of the community will thrive. Students are reminded of the seriousness with which Carleton University treats academic dishonesty of any form, particularly plagiarism. Students should be familiar with the University’s Academic Integrity Policy (http://www2.carleton.ca/studentaffairs/academic-­‐integrity/), and should not hesitate to speak with the Instructor if you have any questions. It is your responsibility to familiarize yourself with the regulations concerning academic integrity and to ensure that your assignments conform to the principles of academic integrity. Lateness Policy: Late assignments will be deducted 3% per day, including weekends and holidays. All assignments are due at the start of class, on the date indicated in the Evaluation section. Late reading responses will not be accepted; they must be submitted at the beginning of class on the day the readings are to be discussed. All assignments must be handed in directly to the Instructor (email or drop box submissions will NOT be accepted unless pre-­‐arranged with the Instructor. In the case of late submission of assignments, emailed versions will be accepted on weekends and holidays as proof of submission, and paper versions must be provided to the instructor on the next business day). Students assume all risk for lost or missing materials. Please be sure to keep a back-­‐up electronic copy of all assignments. Extenuating Circumstances: Reasonable accommodations will be made for students with extenuating circumstances (i.e. out of your control). Any requests for deadline extensions for writing assignments must be made to the Instructor at least 5 business days prior to the deadline. In case of missed deadlines due to unforeseen circumstance, an official medical note (or other applicable formal documentation) must be provided within 5 days of the missed deadline in order to negotiate new deadlines. Missed presentations must be accompanied by the same documentation, using the same protocol outlined above, and will result in the re-­‐
scheduling of the presentation, or alternative arrangement, depending on the scheduled timing. With the proper documentation these accommodations will be considered, but will not be guaranteed. If no documentation is provided, the resulting grade of a missed assignment or presentation will be zero. Academic Accommodations for Students with Disabilities: The Paul Menton Centre for Students with Disabilities (PMC) provides services to students with Learning Disabilities (LD), psychiatric/mental health disabilities, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), chronic medical conditions, and impairments in mobility, hearing, and vision. If you have a disability requiring academic accommodations in this course, please contact PMC at 613-­‐520-­‐6608 or [email protected] for a formal evaluation. If you are already registered with the PMC, contact your PMC coordinator to send me your Letter of Accommodation at the beginning of the term, and no later than two weeks before the first in-­‐class scheduled test or exam requiring accommodation (if applicable). After requesting accommodation from PMC, meet with me to ensure accommodation arrangements are made. 6 Additional Resources: There are a variety of ways to get help if you are having difficulties with any of the course material, or managing to meet the requirements of a number of courses at once. The Instructor is here to facilitate your learning, so take advantage of your opportunities for interaction and ask for help when needed. You are especially encouraged to attend designated office hours. There are also a number of support services and resources on campus at your disposal, including: The Student Academic Success Centre (www.carleton.ca/sasc) to help you in achieving academic success in various aspects of your university program; The Writing Tutorial Service (www.carleton.ca/wts) to help you improve your writing skills; and The MacOdrum Library (www.library.carleton.ca) which offers library, research, learning, and IT support. 7