Fall 2005

Professor: Tom Thornton (Thomas.Thornton@trincoll.edu, x 4118)

Mentor: Sanjog Rupakheti (Sanjog.Rupakheti@trincoll.edu, x 2675)

Meetings: Wednesday, 1:15-3:55 pm,

Office: McCook 208

Office Hours: Tuesday/Thursday 10-11 am; Wednesday 10-11 am; and many other times by appointment

Blackboard Website: http://bb.trincoll.edu

OVERVIEW

                Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired signifies, in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed. The world in arms is not spending money alone. It is spending the sweat of its laborers, the genius of its scientists, the hopes of its children... This is not a way of life at all, in any true sense. Under the cloud of threatening war, it is humanity hanging from a cross of iron. -- Former U.S. President, Dwight D. Eisenhower, in a speech on April 16, 1953

States have long had to prioritize their spending, choosing between domestic programs (“butter”) and military expenditures (“guns”).  How has globalization (broadly defined as unprecedented economic, cultural, and human interconnections and flows across world regions) changed this calculus?  Today guns (i.e., weapons) and butter (i.e., foods) are major global commodities, produced and traded by transnational corporations and other entities on a massive scale in ways that transcend national boundaries and reshape local communities.  This course examines a variety of key foods and weapons that are traded globally today.  We look at the evolution of these products and the forces that have shaped them as global commodities and cultural artifacts.  To supplement our reading, we also will use exciting new technologies (e.g., GIS mapping) to analyze global flows and networks of key commodities. 

            This seminar also features a community learning initiative, designed to provide a variety of opportunities for you to engage aspects of globalization in the context of greater Hartford’s own local food and weapons economies (once considered America’s breadbasket and arsenal, respectively).  In addition to field trips to local food and weapons institutions, students will conduct research on key aspects of the local and global food and weapons systems. 

TEXTS

            We will draw our readings from the following sources, which (save for the CR) are available for purchase at the TC bookstore:

1. Alternatives to Economic Globalization (AEG), edited by John Cavanagh and Jerry Mander, is a response to what the authors perceive to be the unhealthy, underexamined orthodoxy of globalization.
2. The No-Nonsense Guide to Globalization (NNG-Globalization) by Wayne Ellwood is a succinct primer on globalization concepts, institutions, and themes.
3. The No-Nonsense Guide to the Arms Trade (NNG-Arms) by Gideon Burrows is a primer on the global trafficking in weapons and its impacts.
4. Changes in the Land: Indians, Colonists, and the Ecology of New England by William Cronon examines the evolution of the New England landscape and economy from an ecological and cultural perspective, emphasizing Native and immigrant roles.
5. Citizenship Papers by Wendell Berry is a collection of essays examining what it means to be a citizen in the new global economy.
6. Civic Agriculture: Reconnecting Farm, Food, and Community (Civic Agriculture) by Thomas A. Lyson is a primer on how to build community food systems within a global economy in order to enhance civic engagement and security.
7. Stolen Harvest: The Hijacking of the Global Food Supply (Stolen Harvest) by Vandana Shiva is a strong critique of globalizing corporate agriculture and its deleterious effects on local food systems.   
8. Salmon Nation: People and Fish at the Edge (Salmon Nation) compiled by Ecotrust features  multidimensional analyses of the rise and fall of wild pacific salmon in the Pacific Northwest bioregion and beyond.
9. Small Arms Survey 2005: Weapons at War (Small Arms Survey) by the Graduate Institute of International Studies, Geneva, is a detailed examination of the effects of the small arms trade on economic and human security in various areas of the world.
10. Course Reader (CR).  This collection of articles, chapters, and reports on pertinent issues will be available via BLACKBOARD (our internet tool for course support) under the Course Documents menu.

            These texts will be supplemented with additional resources, including films.

COMPETENCIES

            To help students to become effective, lifelong learners and public intellectuals, this course emphasizes competencies in six areas: 1) written communication through papers, essay exams, and on-line exercises; 2) oral communication through structured seminar discussions, presentations, and ethnographic projects; 3) computer usage and information literacy through ethnographic, GIS, and library research projects, online responses, and web resources; 4) responsible academic/community behavior through active participation, class attendance and conduct, community learning and leadership, and awareness of responsibilities; 5) critical thinking through analytical presentations, discussions, writing and online response exercises, community learning initiatives, and ethnographic research; and 6) quantitative reasoning through analysis of statistics, spatial data, and other variables relevant to understanding processes of globalization. 

FORMAT, REQUIREMENTS, ASSESSMENT, EXPECTATIONS

            This course is a seminar, not a lecture course.  For our purposes, a seminar means “a meeting for learning.”  Students must be prepared to participate in, lead, and debrief classroom discussions each week.

Requirements

1.       Weekly On-line Exercises (~30%): A discussion question or brief ethnographic or reflective writing assignment will be posted on BLACKBOARD  nearly each week along with deadlines for responses.  These exercises are designed to: stimulate critical thinking, enhance writing skills, prime seminar discussions, and help you apply, analyze, synthesize, and evaluate key texts and themes in the course.  Members of the class are encouraged to read each other’s responses to questions after posting.  Students will be graded on the percentage of responses they complete over the course of the term.  Although individual responses will not be graded, we will reject unsatisfactory postings and advise you via email of your essay’s shortcomings and how to resubmit it for credit.  Essays should be about 250-500 words, polished, and well organized.  Late submissions will not be accepted without prior approval.

2.      Weekly Talking Points, Participation, Discussion Leadership, and Attendance (~20%):  Talking Points worksheets (questions, comments, quotes, etc. for discussion based on the readings) are to be turned in to the instructor each week.  Being a discussant means being prepared to listen, to contribute, and to debrief, and the Talking Points you prepare should enhance your participation, while at the same time giving discussion leaders some direction and the instructor some feedback.  Discussion leaders/debriefers are chosen, sometimes spontaneously, by the instructor to manage or conclude class discussions .  On occasion students will be expected to attend campus or local events; in such cases students will be notified in advance and alternative arrangements (such as videotaping, etc.) may be made if they absolutely cannot attend. 

3.      Research Projects (~30%):  Two short research papers will be assigned.  More details on this assignment will be given in separate handouts. 

4.      Community Learning Initiative (~20%):  As a community learning initiative (CLI) course, students will be expected to participate in a small project in the community and report on the results in an appropriate forum.  More details on this assignment will be forthcoming. Elements of the CLI projects will be combined to produce a seminar publication at the end of the term.

Assessment

            The above percentages give you a guide as to how various components of your grade should be weighted.  Ultimately, however, your final grade will be based on a written self assessment that you will compile, and with which your instructor and mentor must concur.  Late assignments will be credited, unless other arrangements are made in advance with the instructor.  Also, be aware of your responsibilities for academic integrity and intellectual honesty according to The Trinity College Student Integrity Contract.

Expectations

            To be an effective participant in class, it is important to keep up with the readings because they provide an important basis for what is covered in class.  For seminars to succeed students must attend class and prepare assignments in a timely manner.   Students are also expected to abide by the following principles of discussion:

1. Prepare “Talking Points” as you read and engage course materials to help you comprehend, connect, and assess the readings and put key ideas, questions, and concepts into play for discussion.
2. Listen actively—Try to understand and analyze others’ opinions as they are spoken; ask questions to clarify and further your understanding.  Don’t just sit passively “waiting your turn” or thinking about your own responses.  Reflective silence is not a problem—Do not feel the need to “jump in” for fear of silence.
3. Respond constructively—Imagine what kind of role you are playing in responding to others; for example, do you wish to: 1) comprehend their analysis by paraphrasing or analyzing it; 2) extend their analysis by applying it new situations; 3) synthesize or link it with other concepts, issues, or arguments (especially those raised by others in the class and by the texts, which we share) through comparison, etc.; 4) evaluate it against relevant criteria.  You may even consider using these “cognitive verbs” in framing your responses to other discussants. Do not engage in ad hominem or personal attacks.
4. Agreement or Disagreement is not necessarily the goal—Comprehending, analyzing, synthesizing, and evaluating important concepts, theories, and perspectives are the main objectives of discussion. 

COURSE SCHEDULE (Not Etched in Stone)