Urban/Environmental Policy

This course is an overview of environmental law and policy. The course begins with a discussion of what we consider to be the environment and how those perceptions are created. The course then discusses how we regulate the environment, focusing on administrative law, case law, and constitutional concerns. Following this, the course focuses on the big environmental statutes: the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, and the National Environmental Policy Act. The course then turns to issues of climate change, waste, and natural resources management. The course also discusses the role that race and class play in environmentalism and environmental policy throughout these main topics. The course is structured for us, as a group, to learn about these issues and discuss them in small groups, during and outside of class.