Speakers

• Sept 15 -- Craig Saunders, host of Toronto's EJ pub night and freelance science and environment writer
• Sept 23 -- Judith McKenzie, author of Environmental Politics in Canada
• Oct 6 -- Saul Chernos, Toronto freelance environmental writer
• Oct 16 (Friday) -- Helen Caldicott, author of If You Love this Planet and Nuclear Power is not the Answer -- Here's a recent video
• Oct 20 -- Short class / reading week / catch up

September

Sept 8 -- Introductions

• Background and current status of Environmental Journalism ( Download Powerpoint )
  • Research and reading resources
• Get organized
  • -- Select areas of interest
  • -- Form groups for class
• Reading --
  • -- Top environmental issues in Parliament -- Four major bills coming up / Sustainability, climate, species at risk, renewable energy
  • -- The Tragedy of Delay -- Opinion piece about Canada's failure to meet Kyoto climate standards
  • -- Cold Warriors, award winning Canadian Geographic article
  • -- Chapter 1 of Wyss book
  • -- Chapter 1 of McKenzie
  • -- Browe reading notes for this class
• Assignment-- Environmental History / Using historical resources, esp. Pro-Quest databases or other newspaper sources, explore an environmental issue before Silent Spring (before 1964). See the Environmental History Timeline for ideas about events and issues. Be sure to use a variety of appropriate search terms, such as: public health, conservation, preservation of nature, smoke abatement, municipal housekeeping, occupational disease, air pollution and water pollution.
  • Your assignment should describe three articles:
    • Headline, byline, date, publication
    • How was the event reported?
    • Who were the authorities cited?
    • What approach was used? (positivistic science, sensationalism, political partisanship, etc)
    • Your conclusions / comparisons concerning how issue is handled today
  • Turn in assignment by email by 9 am Monday Sept. 14
    

Sept 15 - Topic - Environmental History and political theory

• Reading & discussion -- Wyss, Ch. 2, History of Environmental communications;
  • McKenzie introduction & Ch 1 and Ch 2 Environmentalism as a social movement ,
    
• Prepare for guest lecturer
• Special projects: Anyone covering Sept. 20-22 Canadian Wind Energy Association? (Toronto) -- Press credentials limited to 5 students

Sept 22 - Topic - Canadian environmental movements

• Prepare for guest lecturer -- Judith McKenzie, University of Guelph, author of "Environmental Politics in Canada"
• Reading & discussion -- McKenzie Ch 3 government role, Ch 4 Natural Resources
• Special projects: Sept. 24 - 27, Youth Conference for Sustainabile Leadership (Guelph)

Sept 29 - Topic - Climate Science

• Reading & discussion -- Wyss Chs 3 - 4 Understanding Risk, Understanding Science
  • Also Communicating on Climate Change by Bud Ward (Downloadable pdf)

October

Oct 6 - Topic - Interviewing skills

• Special projects: Prepare for trip to Society of Environmental Journalists conference Madison Wisconsin

Oct 13 - Topic - Comparing notes from SEJ conference -

• Writing critiques
• Reading & discussion / Orwell especially.
• Assignment: Write introduction for Dr Caldicott
• Special projects

Oct 20 - Topic - Environmental regulation

• Individual sessions
• Reading list to be posted
• ,Wyss Ch. 9 Short news stories;

Oct 27 - Topic - Writing about natural resources

• Risk Communication Guide (free pdf download)
• Environmental Communication History (wiki)
• Environental Science Regulatory basics (by Kovarik)
• Reading & discussion -- Reading & discussion -- Wyss Ch. 5, interviews, Ch. 6 - 7 Regulators and advocates;

November

Nov 3 - Topic - Structural issues, health and security

• Writing critique
• Research --CAR / Enviro-data
• Reading & discussion -- Wyss Ch. 10 Longer news stories; McKenzie Ch 5 Health and Security

Nov 10 - Topic - International environmental issues

• Writing critique
  • Multi-level marketing - Green Cleaning products -- See Shaklee site, Competition Bureau's What Does Green Really Mean? and the (US) FTC's "Sorting out green advertising claims" ... You may also want to read up on Pyramid Schemes in order to learn how to evaluate whether or not a company is using unethical marketing tactics.
  • Multi-level lead -- Port Hope & Radiation -- See Northumberland article
  • Transitions -- Future climate - from one source to a report
• Reading & discussion -- Wyss Ch 8, Reporting tools, climate report
• News University -- Covering climate change, covering drinking water www.newsu.org

Nov 17 - Topic - Public opinion and the environment

• Challenge -- Three pollution stories - asbestos, dioxin, ozone
• Three pollutants - Asbestos, dioxin, ozone
  • Handout -- Media and Science by David Rall
• Guest lecturer: David Egilman, Prof. of Public Health, Brown University
• Covering science - 20 essential points (From Sherry Seethaler's Lies, Damned Lies and Science)
• Seven warning signs of vodoo science
• Climate Change as a special case
  • SEJ - Covering Climate Change
  • Al Jazeera English - Climate reporting
  • New York Times - Dot Earth
• Assignment: Reading & discussion -- Wyss Ch. 12 Public Opinion
• Special projects: content analysis (assignment)

Nov 24 - Topic - Training and environmental journalism

• Writing critique
• Reading & discussion -- Wyss Ch 15 -- Fairness and advocacy
• Prepare for guest lecturer
• Special projects:

December

Dec 8 - The Future of Environmental Journalism

• Last critiques
• Reading & discussion -- Wyss Ch 16 - Future of Environmental Journalism
• Prepare for guest lecturer
• Special projects: