Time Schedule:
Patrick John Christie
SMA 550
Seattle Campus
Examination of various aspects of marine studies. Content varies, depending upon the interests of the faculty and students. Intended for the joint participation by the faculty and advanced students in the investigation of selected topics. One or more groups are organized each quarter.
Class description
For Fall 2007:
The world’s oceans are under increasing pressure. Rates of extraction of resources, poorly managed global trade, degraded key habitats, ecosystem shifts due to climate change are in the mainstream news on a regular basis. The impacts of human on this vast ecosystem are now apparent everywhere on earth. The stakes are high as we now know that the ocean is a key mediator of the earth’s climate, the source of much of the protein for a large portion of the earth’s coastal population, and home to biodiversity on the brink of precipitous decline. There is considerable debate as to how to move forward. Paradigms of ocean management that were influential from the 1970s until the 1990s, are now being replaced with “ecosystem-based” approaches. While considerable funding is being focused on these issues, the governance challenges to manage such large areas is overwhelming for many institutions and local dynamics are being overlooked. How institutions respond to the challenge will largely determine whether these new visions are successful or overly ambitious. This course will explore the extent of the change in ocean condition. Create a typology for understanding historic and current ocean policy processes and agreements. And study these emerging ecosystem-based approaches. Students and the professor will explore the literature and correspond through Voice-Over-Internet (SKYPE) discussions with world experts in leading UN agencies such as the Food and Agriculture Organization, large Non-Governmental Agencies such as The Nature Conservancy and World Wildlife Fund, and a US Agency for International Development (USAID)-supported project and domestic NGO in the Philippines. Through the professor’s professional relationships with individuals in these agencies, students will come to learn about the rapidly evolving world of ocean management and conservation. Cases from around the world, but primarily from the developing or tropical world, will be considered.
Student learning goals
Students will learn how to critically and consistently analyze policy articles and reports.
General method of instruction
The readings will be interdisciplinary. The class will consist of lectures by the Professor Christie, discussions with members of international agencies, and discussion of key articles and reports. Students will develop reports on key approaches and programs using a consistent format and typology to encourage comparative analysis among cases. Students will be expected to search for key articles and reports and facilitate discussions with fellow students. The course will be run as an advanced-level undergraduate and graduate seminar.
Recommended preparation
None.
Class assignments and grading
Course assignments and grading: Assignment Percentage of grade Participation in weekly discussions 50% Co-facilitation of discussion 10% Literature review term paper 40%
Students will receive a participation grade for each class meeting based on their demonstrated mastery of readings and constructive contribution to discussion. No mid-term or final exam will be given. A literature review term paper (15-20 pages, single spaced) will be prepared on a topic related to ecosystem-based approaches to ocean management. Upper level undergraduate and graduate students will be enrolled in this course and their term paper assignment will be tailored to each group’s status, with graduate students expected to include more references and write a slightly longer paper.
Quality of analysis and meaningful participation in class.
