Politics 101-A: Special Topic in Politics - Introductory Level: Introduction to Environmental Racism

Racism is at the core of how environmental science is practiced, and the ways it informs policy. This course is focused on the historical intersections of science, policy, technology, values, and power that have influenced environmental decision-making that have led to racist outcomes within the "environmentalism" narrative. We will be reading and engaging with academic texts and popular media sources that critically reflect on structures like colonialism, imperialism, segregation, eugenics, gender etc. that have defined environmentalism globally. The first part of the course will engage with the histories of environmental racism in the US and in and around Walla Walla. The second part of the course will focus on cases from India, North Africa, Australia, Brazil, etc. that critically examine the interaction between race, caste, ethnicity, religion, and class with environmental discourses at the international level. This will be a writing intensive course and the goal will be to critically reflect on the links between politics and the environment.