Earth Activism

Note from Instructor 3/23/22. This syllabus is still under construction. The content and major assignments for all course materials and assignment are available through Week 8. If you find there are materials or content that you feel you need early on that are not accessible to you in this moment, please let me know.

Orienting Video for the Beginning of the Course (10:53) https://youtu.be/4emsUjXyCHs

Course Description:

What does it mean to act on behalf of and with the earth? What or who is the earth? How are we in solidarity with the earth, our local ecosystems, and the earth’s inhabitants, human and other-than-human? How do our religious beliefs, academic & scientific thinking, theology, and spiritual practices nourish or confine our relationship with what we call earth? How do we understand biodiversity and reckon with grief over species, climate, land and the cultural losses that result from earth’s destruction? How do we turn concern and grief into just action and transition to a new way of being and living in community?  In this course, we will consider these questions. We take into account our socially located individual and community identities, as well as examples from local to global eco-justice organizations and movements, to guide our study.

Course Objectives:

There will be many other texts and listening/viewing materials provided as links and files.

1) General Participation: 

  1. Invest in the course by establishing a regular and respectful online presence;
  2. Genuinely try to learn the concepts, principles, and material by reading and listening; collaborate in the spirit of learning critically and enthusiastically;
  3. Participate in online discussions. Respect other students' preparation by being prepared, having read and watched the assigned materials carefully and thoughtfully;
  4. Participate in Zoom meetings;
  5. Turn in all assignments in a timely fashion;
  6. Communicate with the instructor when you anticipate being unable to participate in discussions, Zoom meetings, or turning in assignments in a timely manner.

2)  Discussion Forums:

This same information is posted under the link “Online Discussions.”

Every week, you must post your own original response to the discussion questions by Wednesday night at Midnight MST.

This course relies heavily on online discussions. This is where much of the collective aspect of the course “takes place.” Here we share ideas, ask questions, and deepen our understanding of course concepts. Every week, I will post numerous questions related to the weekly topics. By no means are you expected to answer all of questions I post. Respond to the ones that make you want to answer. What I really want you to do is to respond critically and personally to the course materials and one another. My expectation is that you will participate in all discussion threads as often and as well as you are able.

Every week, you must post your own original response to the discussion questions by Wednesday night at midnight MST. I encourage you to post your original responses earlier than that. Even if you are not ready to post your own original answers to the questions early in the week, I nonetheless encourage you to log in to the course website early on, read your classmates' posts that have posted early, and respond to them. Ideally, participation in online discussions should be completed within the week assigned. Each week, the discussions will start on Monday and last through Sunday night. This allows us all to focus on the same issues at the same time. Being present in an online format requires you to make your presence known. 

3) Earthly Observations/Relations 

4) Zoom Meetings There are two of these scheduled.

5) Complete Initial and Final Learning Agreements

See link on Self-Grading and Evaluation/Grading

6) Three Short Essays (Equinox Essay: BEGIN AGAIN, May Day Essay: RELATE, Solstice Summation: IMAGINE).

These are three personal and critical reflections on yourself and your practices related to the course materials. See separate guidelines for these essays.

 

I am asking you to choose a more-than-human relation with whom to engage, someone/thing that might be fairly new or perhaps renewed relation to you. This could be anyone (I am using this language so we can think of the beyond human as actual relations) with whom it will be easy for you to establish a relationship in your environment. Obviously, I cannot tell you who this is, based on your ecosystem. I would prefer that you try something new, and not, for example, your pet. 

I'll give you some examples. I could choose a tree in my yard, or more broadly a local forested area. This might be a rich area for encounter given that we are going to be reading Finding the Mother Tree. My backyard and this area are also full of boulders and granite, so I might consider what it means to relate to rock and stone. We will begin this course during early spring, so perhaps there is something growing in your area that you would like to journey with for ten weeks. Perhaps there are birds. Perhaps you have a recalcitrant groundhog, as I do. The point is building a relationship, and working on this relationship, and reflecting on your worldview with the beyond-human. While this course is called Earth Activism, you may also choose the sky. or a visible planet or star, clouds. In other words, you don't have to be constricted in this relation to, strictly speaking, earth.

I am requiring you, then, to journal and reflect on how you encounter this one/these ones. At least on a weekly basis. Your mid-term and final reflections will incorporate these reflections and observations on your relationality with earth/their inhabitants, and how that informs your actions in the world and on this planet, with and for the earth. Finding the Mother Tree might serve as an inspiration for your writing. The author is so explicit in her descriptions of the soil, the trees, the roots, the mushrooms, the mycelial network. 

We will have two live video conference meetings by Zoom throughout the quarter: Week 2 and Week 8. The Zoom meeting will be 60 minutes long. Each time we meet by Zoom, there are two choices of time slots. You are required to sign up for one of these slots. All times are Mountain Standard Time (MST). Please adjust for your own time zone. I will share reminders, links, and more detailed information during the days before the scheduled Zoom meetings.

If you are not able to make the meeting slots, please be in touch with me.

If you have any questions about Zooming, PLEASE CONTACT the Iliff helpdesk (helpdesk@iliff.edu). 

Zoom Meeting #1 -Week 2 

Sign up for your chosen Zoom Meeting - you are able to add your name by clicking "Edit" adding your name, and then don't forget to SAVE.

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 6, NOON MST

Sign up: Julie Todd, Peggy Anderson, Susan Filene, Susan March, Kat Gonzales, Clyde McNeal, Blake Gibbins, Margaret (Meg) Anderson

THURSDAY, APRIL 7 6:30PM MST     THIS MEETING CANCELLED

Content: In this first Zoom meeting, we will get to know one another and engage some of the ideas we have encountered in these first two weeks of the course. It will be best to prepare yourself for the meeting by thinking about the following: Why are you in this course? How do you conceive of your relationship with the more-than-human on earth? Who on earth are you considering relating to at a deeper level throughout this quarter? 

Zoom #2 

Sign Up for your chosen Zoom Meeting

TUESDAY MAY 17 NOON MST

Sign up: Julie Todd, Peggy Anderson, Susan Filene, Susan March, Kat Gonzales, Clyde McNeal, Blake Gibbins, Margaret (Meg) Anderson, 

TUESDAY MAY 17 6PM MST

Sign up: Julie Todd, Eve Lyne, Jesse Van Horne, Brett McCourt

Content: In this Zoom meeting, we will be discussing the required course text Finding the Mother Tree: Discovering the Wisdom of the Forest.

Especially if you have not taken a course with me before, please watch the following video to help you to understand my rationale for student self-evaluation and grading. (9:06). This is an older video that may make a few contextual course references that may not seem relevant, but the descriptive content stands. If you have taken a course before with me before, then you know what to do and why I do it this way.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M2Poh2T1DkU (Links to an external site

LEARNING AGREEMENT: I will provide written feedback on assignments, but all students will evaluate their own work in the course and assign themselves a grade. The learning agreement is an informal learning contract, a narrative description of your intentions for fulfilling all of the course requirements as they are delineated in the syllabus (see the course requirements page, and the actual written assignment links, for more detailed information on many of these items):

By reading the syllabus and course assignments, you should be able to reflect upon what you will do. Describe how you will evaluate what you have done in each of these areas (participation, online discussions, zoom meetings, etc.) by the end of the course. In addition, address the following.

This document will essentially serve as a learning agreement between you and me, and with yourself. This learning contract can be as long or as short as you wish in order to communicate your intentions. You may not be completely sure of what you will do for all of your essays, but you can indicate where you are leaning. At the end of this narrative, please tell me what grade you intend to achieve.

By the last day of the quarter, and making reference to this first learning agreement, evaluate in writing how you think did in achieving your stated objectives and goals throughout the quarter, and whether or not you achieved the grade you anticipated. At the end of this reflection, you must give yourself a final grade.

As the instructor, I am responsible for assigning final grades. In almost all cases, I will assign the grade you give yourself. However, if you wildly overrate or underrate your work, we will enter into negotiations about the final grade.

Every week, you must post your own original response to the discussion questions by Wednesday night at Midnight MST.

This course relies heavily on online discussions. This is where much of the collective aspect of the course “takes place.” Here we share ideas, ask questions, and deepen our understanding of course concepts. Every week, I will post numerous questions related to the weekly topics. By no means are you expected to answer all of questions I post. Respond to the ones that make you want to answer. What I really want you to do is to respond critically and personally to the course materials and one another. My expectation is that you will participate in all discussion threads as often and as well as you are able.

Every week, you must post your own original response to the discussion questions by Wednesday night at midnight MST. I encourage you to post your original responses earlier than that. Even if you are not ready to post your own original answers to the questions early in the week, I nonetheless encourage you to log in to the course website early on, read your classmates' posts that have posted early, and respond to them. Ideally, participation in online discussions should be completed within the week assigned. Each week, the discussions will start on Monday and last through Sunday night. This allows us all to focus on the same issues at the same time. Being present in an online format requires you to make your presence known. 

Communications Policy: I will log on to the classroom most days. The discussion forum is generally the best place to ask most questions. If there is a question about class requirements or other questions that do not fit into a weekly discussion, I encourage you to use the internal Canvas communication system. If you need to contact me on an individual basis, please email me directly and I will try to reply within 24 hours. If you would like to arrange to communicate by Skype, Google, Zoom, or phone, please email me directly to set up an appointment.

If you need technical support for anything related to your laptop or device, how CANVAS works, how to do live video conferencing, you should contact the IT helpdesk at helpdesk@iliff.edu.

Degree Learning Goals: Please take some time to look over the Professional Degree Learning Goals (Links to an external site.) (MDiv, MASC, MAPSC) and the Academic Degree Learning Goals (Links to an external site.) (MTS, MA).

Incompletes:  If incompletes are allowed in this course, see the Master's Student Handbook (Links to an external site.) for Policies and Procedures.

Pass/Fail:  Masters students wishing to take the class pass/fail should discuss this with the instructor by the second class session.

Academic Integrity and Community Covenant:  All students are expected to abide by Iliff’s statement on Academic Integrity, as published in the Masters Student Handbook (Links to an external site.), or the Joint PhD Statement on Academic Honesty, as published in the Joint PhD Student Handbook (Links to an external site.), as appropriate.  All participants in this class are expected to be familiar with Iliff’s Community Covenant (Links to an external site.).

Core Values: As a community, Iliff strives to live by this set of Core Values (Links to an external site.).

Accommodations:  Iliff engages in a collaborative effort with students with disabilities to reasonably accommodate student needs.   Students are encouraged to contact their assigned advisor to initiate the process of requesting accommodations.  The advising center can be contacted at advising@iliff.edu or by phone at 303-765-1146. 

Writing Lab:  Grammar and organization are important for all written assignments.  Additional help is available from the Iliff Writing Lab (Links to an external site.), which is available for students of any level who need help beginning an assignment, organizing thoughts, or reviewing a final draft. 

Inclusive Language:  It is expected that all course participants will use inclusive language in speaking and writing, and will use terms that do not create barriers to classroom community. 

Julie Todd, Ph.D.

E-mail: jtodd@iliff.edu

John Wesley Iliff Senior Lecturer in Justice and Peace Studies

Dr. Julie Todd

Dr. Julie Todd is a scholar-activist living in Lawrence, Massachusetts. She received her Ph.D. in 2012 from University of Denver-Iliff School of Theology Joint Program in Religious and Theological Studies. As John Wesley Iliff Senior Lecturer in Justice & Peace Studies, she teaches all of her courses in online and hybrid formats, and primarily teaches courses in the area of justice and peace. Her scholarship focuses on social change theory and praxis, violence and (non)violence, and matters of privilege, oppression and solidarity across axes of difference.

She is a published essayist and poet on matters of justice-seeking and the spiritual life. She is the author of three books:  a rewrite of her dissertation titled Struggling with (Non)violence, a book of her own personal writings called 50: thorns & blossoms, and Nothing About Us Without Us: LGBTQ Liberation & the United Methodist Church. All of these publications are available for purchase on her website (Links to an external site.). 

She is also a trained herbalist and aromatherapist, working with other creatives & healers in Lawrence, MA on collective healing projects. She is the owner of her own business called JustJulie (Links to an external site.). 

DateDayDetails
Mar 28, 2022MonWeek One Reading & Listening/Viewing Materialsdue by 07:00AM
Mar 29, 2022TueEquinox Essay: BEGIN AGAINdue by 05:59AM
Mar 31, 2022ThuWeek One Discussiondue by 05:59AM
Apr 04, 2022MonWeek Two Reading & Listening/Viewing Materialsdue by 07:00AM
Apr 07, 2022ThuWeek Two Discussiondue by 05:59AM
Apr 10, 2022SunInitial Learning Agreementdue by 05:59AM
Apr 11, 2022MonWeek Three Reading & Listening/Viewing Materialsdue by 07:00AM
Apr 14, 2022ThuWeek Three Discussiondue by 05:59AM
Apr 18, 2022MonWeek Four Reading & Listening/Viewing Materialsdue by 07:00AM
Apr 21, 2022ThuWeek Four Discussiondue by 05:59AM
Apr 25, 2022MonWeek Five Reading & Listening/Viewing Materialsdue by 07:00AM
Apr 28, 2022ThuWeek Five Discussiondue by 05:59AM
May 02, 2022MonWeek Six Reading & Listening/Viewing Materialsdue by 07:00AM
May 05, 2022ThuWeek Six Discussiondue by 05:59AM
May 08, 2022SunMay Day Essay: RELATEdue by 05:59AM
May 09, 2022MonWeek Seven Reading & Listening/Viewing Materialsdue by 07:00AM
May 12, 2022ThuWeek Seven Discussiondue by 05:59AM
May 16, 2022MonWeek Eight Reading & Listening/Viewing Materialsdue by 07:00AM
May 19, 2022ThuWeek Eight Discussiondue by 05:59AM
May 23, 2022MonWeek Nine Reading & Listening/Viewing Materialsdue by 07:00AM
May 26, 2022ThuWeek Nine Discussiondue by 05:59AM
May 30, 2022MonWeek Ten Reading & Listening/Viewing Materialsdue by 07:00AM
Jun 02, 2022ThuWeek Ten Discussiondue by 05:59AM
Jun 04, 2022SatFinal Self-Evaluation & Gradedue by 05:59AM
Jun 04, 2022SatEmergent Earth Relating: A Reflectiondue by 05:59AM