Geography: Global Environments & Cultures (A)

About GEOG 1760 A

Introduction to Geography from global, place-based, cultural, and socio-environmental perspectives.

Notes

Open to degree and PACE students System waitlisting enabled for this section.

Section Description

Pre-requisites: None
General Education: Satisfies the Diversity Category Two (D2), Social Science (S1) and Sustainability (SU) Catamount Core Curriculum requirements
Course Overview
This course offers an introduction to geography from global, regional, and place-based perspectives. We will examine changes arising from interactions between natural systems and human activities through four analytical modules: i) agroecology, ii) political ecologies of population and conservation, iii) geopolitics of extreme environments and energy transitions, and iv) geohumanistic approaches to toxic substances. Within each module, we will review key concepts that are likely familiar to students at this stage of learning, but that we re-examine from different perspectives. The course encourages students to think geographically about global processes and their many impacts. Although this is a required course for geography majors and highly recommended for geography minors, students of all interests and majors are welcome!

Learning Objectives
At the completion of this course, students will be able to:
• Develop an awareness of the diversity of individuals, cultures, communities and/or processes (D2).
• Understand and contextualize foundational concepts, theories, histories, frameworks and methods regarding the diversity of the human experience (D2).
• Analyze arguments, processes, and debates including multiple perspectives related to the diversity of the human experience (D2).
• Demonstrate the ability to recognize identity-related power dynamics at the individual, group, and/or systems levels and/or address diversity-related problems (D2).
• Draw on course topics, materials, and activities to describe how individuals, groups or institutions affect and interact with each other (S1).
• Identify and demonstrate understanding of theories of human behavior, experience, institutions, or social systems addressed in the course (S1).
• Recognize different methods and processes of systematic investigation in one or more case study examples of social science research (S1).
• Have an informed conversation about the multiple dimensions and complexity of sustainability (SU).
• Evaluate sustainability using an evidence-based disciplinary approach and integrate economic, ecological, and social perspectives (SU).
• Think critically about sustainability across a diversity of cultural values and across multiple scales of relevance from local to global (SU).
• As members of society, recognize and assess how sustainability impacts their lives and how their actions impact sustainability (SU).

Section Expectation

Required Course Materials
1. Required Texts: Students will be required to read the entirety of Dr. Natalie Koch’s book, Arid Empire: The Entangled Fates of Arizona and Arabia (2022, Verso, ISBN: 978-1-83976-369-4). Students will also be required to read the materials listed for each lecture day (due on the date listed). These readings will be posted in our course Brightspace (https:brightspace.uvm.edu) and will be organized by module folders.
2. Brightspace: Brightspace replaced Blackboard as UVM’s Learning Management System (LMS). For more information and support in using Brightspace, use this Knowledge Base article as a starting point: https://www.uvm.edu/it/kb/article/brightspace-for-students/.

Evaluation

Course Structure and Assessments
Attendance (7.5%): Ideally, students should join every class session. You can miss up to 3 classes for the entire semester without penalty to your grade (attendance will not be taken in the first week of classes as students finalize their schedules). This should cover most issues with unforeseen weather, illness, family or work emergencies, etc. Thus, DO NOT EMAIL PROF. NELSON about any of these types of reasons for class absences. If you miss a class, it is your responsibility to obtain notes from another student. Office hours are for working through specific questions and not an occasion for a professor to repeat an entire missed lecture. Please respect the instructor and your classmates by giving them your full attention when they are presenting. Attendance will be taken using the free iClicker Cloud App (which can be accessed using a phone or laptop) (https://www.iclicker.com/students/apps-and-remotes/apps). We will practice using the App during the first week of classes to address any technical issues that may arise.
Reading Checks (7.5%): After completing each assigned reading, students will complete short reading checks in Brightspace (Brightspace calls them quizzes, but they are not timed and are meant to help students review and prepare for lecture). The lowest 5 scores will be dropped.
Exams (75%): There will be one in-class exam per module and the final exam will cover Module 4 and serve as a comprehensive assessment of course material. The lowest exam score from Modules 1-3 will be dropped. The final exam is required. Exams will be part multiple choice, part fill-in-the-blank and part short essay. You are expected to be in class for all exams; missing an exam means failing the exam. If you cannot take an exam on the scheduled day, you should have your Dean of Students office contact Prof. Nelson regarding requests for accommodations. Students with registered learning accommodations through SAS should coordinate with the Exam Proctoring Center to schedule taking the Exams in the Center (please go ahead and book these dates and times now according to our course schedule!).
Reflective and Integrative Work (10%): There will be one short assignment for each module (see the deadlines in the course schedule). All of them must be completed.

Important Dates

Note: These dates may change before registration begins.

Courses may be cancelled due to low enrollment. Show your interest by enrolling.

Resources

• Parking
• PACE Course Pricing
• Textbooks