ReNews an environmental studies program update
summer 2015
2014-2015 donors The Oregon Community Foundation James Stratton ‘79 Kelly Droege ‘98 Wayland Tan ‘13 Airenne Buffum ‘98 Cody Evers ‘11 Elizabeth Appel and David Kozak ‘88 Mary and Randall Kurzman ‘86 Sue and Reed Robertson ‘77 Karen Austin ‘59 Lynn and David Book Spencer Curtis ‘10 Britney VanCitters ‘14 Katie Ferra ‘14 Adam Haw ‘14 Garrett Miller ‘13 Katherine Taylor-Weiss and Neil Weiss
on the cover: “Hendricks” by sam moore
contents DIrector’s Note 2
Alan Dickman & Richard York
New Master’s Students 6 New Doctoral Students 8 2015 Ecotone 9 Faculty & Student Achievements 10 Alumni Updates & Achievements 12 Student Advising Center Update 14 Herbicides & Health 17 Taylor McHolm Tribal Climate Change Project Update 20 Carson Viles Environmental Science Institute Update 23 Dan Gavin Food Studies Program Update 23 Stephen Wooten 2014-2015 Environmental Leadership Program 24 Environmental Education Projects 26 Canopy Connections Restoring Connections
Community Engagement Projects 27 RestOregon Just Stories
Conservation Science in Action Projects Riparian Restoration Stream Stewardship
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Sustainable Practices Project 29 Sustainable Farms
contents 3
program director’s note Photo by: lauren hendricks
Dear members, alumni, and friends of the Environmental Studies Program: Fourteen years ago, in the spring of 2001, Dan Udovic, then Director of the Environmental Studies Program, included these future objectives in the executive summary of the self-study document prepared for the first ENVS Program review:
• Increase involvement of UO faculty in the ENVS program • Strengthen the graduate curriculum • Solidify the OSU, PSU, UO joint campus doctoral program • Improve participatory learning experiences for students • Create an Environmental Studies Center on campus
Today, in Spring of 2015, we are in the midst of our second program review. We now have two full-time career instructors who co-direct the Environmental Leadership Program and oversee undergraduate advising. With the addition of Sarah Wald (English) this year, we now have six tenure-track faculty with partial FTE in Environmental Studies and are delighted to be adding a seventh, Nicolae Morar (philosophy) beginning this summer. These follow the additions of Ted Toadvine (philosophy), Scott Bridgham (biology), Kari Norgaard (sociology) and Alan Dickman (biology) who have joined Peter Walker (geography) who was the sole tenure-track faculty member in Environmental Studies in 2001. And complementing the faculty with dedicated lines in ENVS is a group of eighteen core faculty whose dedication to ENVS is seen in their contributions to the
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program, if not in their official FTE assignment. The graduate curriculum now has a three-term core sequence offered every year, and for the past two years we’ve been able to add a fourth component which is a seminar on pedagogy that includes theory and tips for teaching with an awareness of diversity. With two more doctoral students joining us in the Fall of 2015, we will have our largest group of doctoral students ever at one time (fourteen) with focal departments in biology, economics, English, geography, sociology, and philosophy. We continue to accept only the number of masters students we can fund, and look forward to a new cohort of six exceptional students joining us in the fall. The Service Learning Program that was just getting off the ground fourteen years ago has matured into the Environmental Leadership Program that trains approximately 60 undergraduate students as well as a handful of graduate students each year. Under the skillful leadership of Katie Lynch and Peg Boulay, the ELP has become a national model for service learning in Environmental Studies. In recognition of Katie and Peg’s outstanding work for ELP, they were the recipients of the inaugural UO Sustainability Award for Excellence in Teaching. It is important to note that approximately half of ELP’s operating expenses comes from generous donations and grant funding, which shows how much the program is appreciated beyond the University. Other members of the ENVS community have also received recognition for their accomplishments. Ron Mitchell (political science and ENVS core faculty) received the UO Research Innovation Sustainability Award. Mark Cary (Associate Dean of the Honor’s College, and professor of History and ENVS) was honored with the Outstanding Faculty Advisor Award from the UO Division of Undergraduate Studies and All Campus Advising. Ted Toadvine was promoted to Full Professor and Erin Moore (Architecture) was promoted to Associate Professor with tenure. In a collaboration between ENVS and USDA Forest Service Pacific Northwest Research Station, under Kathy Lynn’s leadership, the Tribal Climate Change Project has had many notable accomplishments this past year, including co-organizing the 3rd Annual Climate Change and Indigenous Peoples (CCIP) Symposium in December 2014, and continues to further research on the impacts of climate change on indigenous peoples in the United States. Our faculty and students have also played central parts in organizing several other important conferences on campus this academic year, including Herbicides and Health, Race in the Anthropocene, and the Climate Change Research Symposium. The Food Studies Program which is allied with ENVS and is headed by Stephen Wooten (core ENVS faculty, international studies, and anthropology) hosted a series of well attended and inspiring “Food Talks” on diverse topics including the political ecology of pig farms in China, over-consumption dynamics and gourmand culture in the US, the shady side of Big Organic, and the food justice and sovereignty in Latin America and Canada. The program’s Graduate Specialization continues to attract top students, many of whom have benefitted from the program’s research grant initiative. Daniel Gavin, Associate Professor of Geography, was elected director of the Environmental Science director's note 5
photo by: Sam Moore Institute (ESI) in February 2015. Introduced in the 2014 issue of ReNEWS by founding director Scott Bridgham, ESI has a mission to promote interdisciplinary research and graduate education in the environmental sciences. Over the past year, three grants have been awarded to ESI members, totaling 2.6 million dollars. The ESI steering committee is continuing to explore ways to increase interdisciplinary graduate education, in particular through the Environmental Sciences, Studies, and Policy PhD degree. We often boast about the alumni of our doctoral and master’s degree programs who have found employment at institutions close and far including Oregon Institute of Technology, Humboldt State University, The Evergreen State College, Oberlin College, Ursinus College, University of Massachusetts at Amherst, Yale University, and others. So there is much to be proud of, but more to do, as well. Among the goals and needs listed in our current program review self-study is one that was on the list in 2001: to build an Environmental Studies Center on campus. Good things may be worth waiting for. We’re not giving up. There are other changes in the air, as well. RaDonna Koble (Aymong) who has been our hard-work-
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ing and dependable office and budget manager for the past nine years is retiring in June, as is Matthew Dennis, the current Director of Graduate Studies, followed by me (Alan Dickman) at the end of this calendar year. Richard York (sociology) will take over as ENVS Director as of July, and Pat McDowell (geography) will be Director of Graduate Studies next year. As I, Alan, reflect on my nine years as program director, I realize once again that the best things about the job have been the people that I’ve gotten to work with: office staff, undergraduate and graduate students, and faculty. As the incoming Director, Richard, I am honored to take on my new role in our truly outstanding program, and I am grateful to the many people, especially Alan, who have done so much to build ENVS over the years. I look forward to the future, when I anticipate our program with continue to flourish and evolve, maintaining its high scholarly and pedagogical standards, ethical commitments to all those (human and non-human) with whom we share this world, and warm community. While many of the faces change from year to year, we think that those of you who were here in 2001 would find the same vibrant sense of community that was present then still here today. And that is much of what makes Environmental Studies at the University of Oregon, the special program that it is.
Sincerely,
Alan Dickman and adickman@uoregon.edu
Richard York rfyork@uoregon.edu
director's note 7
new master’s students
Nick Dreher
After growing up in the Philadelphia suburbs, I moved to Washington, DC where I majored in International Studies at American University. I graduated and then moved to Kampala, Uganda to work for an organization focused on youth development through soccer. While in Uganda, I became attracted to the way communities are shaped by access to food. I spent the next few years in Oakland, California working as a program assistant for a literacy education project. Living in Oakland, a city that simultaneously exhibits many of the promises and problems of the food system, I began to fully realize the important role food plays in a community. At University of Oregon, I’m exploring the role that social networks and relationships play in shaping the local food system, particularly how these relationships and networks influence the economic decision-making of members of the local food economy.
Lauren Hendricks
Growing up near the shore of Lake Superior in Duluth, Minnesota, I had access to amazing natural resources, but it wasn’t until late in my freshman year of undergrad at Colby College (Waterville, ME) that I realized that I could actually incorporate my love of the environment into my life beyond doing activities that took me outside. I also decided to pursue environmental engineering through a dual degree program with the Thayer School of Engineering at Dartmouth College (Hanover, NH). I graduated from Colby with a BA in 2011 and from Dartmouth with a BE in 2012. After graduating, I worked at an environmental consulting firm outside of DC, doing GIS analysis for US Air Force encroachment studies. At the University of Oregon, I am studying populations of four perennial wildflower species native to prairies in the Pacific Northwest to determine how they might respond to climate change.
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Deion Jones
Originally from Florida, food was always an obsession for my family growing up. My parents immigrated to the United States from Jamaica, and I would not trade my childhood of Jerk Chicken and breadfruit gracing my palate for anything else. I recall that no matter what hour it was, someone was always toiling away in the kitchen, preparing the next meal of the day. However, I was not immune to the occasional pang for eating what my friends ate: the pizza the burgers, the fries. Eating American by day and Jamaican by night, I found myself straddling between two cultures, both of which I struggled more than associated with. I am focused now on the interaction with identity through food of this in-between generation, and how Jamaicans in the United States maintain their Jamaican identity through the foods they eat, while still navigating through the larger American food culture.
Katrina Maggiulli
Born in Oregon, I grew up with the foothills of the Coast Range in my backyard, and the sprawling pastures of the Willamette Valley in the front. After graduating from Oregon State University in 2012 with a degree in English and writing, I took an internship with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service running visitor services programs for the Willamette Valley National Wildlife Refuge Complex. While working for the USFWS I became particularly interested in species-based issues involving management practices for threatened and endangered and invasive species. At UO my studies focus on the complex interrelationships between humans and other animals. Specifically I am taking an ecocritical lens to literary and filmic renditions of the human-animal hybrid, and looking at the anxieties produced by biotechnological advancements that blur species boundaries.
Dan Shtob
Having been born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, I was fortunate to have the opportunity to explore various cultures from a young age. As I started on my second path after working as an attorney in real estate and finance, then serving with the Peace Corps in Zambia, I found myself increasingly intrigued by the idiosyncratic and fascinating interactions between social systems, cultures, and different environments. I am focusing on how people’s relationships to place and sense of risk operate to influence their perspectives on climate change and environmental uncertainty, with an emphasis on uncertainty affecting coastlines and nearby communities.
Christopher Torres
A mountain San Diegan who equally enjoys the droning metronome of the ocean and the silent breath of the desert; a Californian through in through. Degrees in Philosophy and Conservation & Resource Studies from the University of California, Berkeley; class of 2012. Pursuing master’s degrees in both Philosophy and Environmental Studies; I’m a one trick armchair environmentalist. That being said, I’ve spent time 40 feet up in the canopy of the San Bernardino forests helping children see a part of the world they hardly get to enjoy; I’ve spent time driving double-decker buses through the San Diego Zoo sharing with visitors the wonder and richness of the Earth’s inhabitants and places. I spend my academic time puzzling over what it means to be environmentally and socially moral, puzzling over what it means to have always already been in and of the world. ENVS at the UO is a beautiful place to do that.
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new
doctoral students Keyyana Blount
I grew up in Southern Maryland, within the Chesapeake Bay watershed. With this dynamic estuary in my backyard, I quickly developed an interest in ecology and conservation. This interest lead me to Salisbury University where I received a B.A. in Environmental Studies, with a minor in Biology. While at Salisbury University, I completed a research internship with the EPA Atlantic Ecology Division Lab in Narragansett, RI. There I conducted field research on climate change effects on wetland plants under Dr. Elizabeth Watson. This research encouraged me to pursue graduate school at UO. My dissertation will examine carbon and nutrient dynamics, in estuarine wetlands, related to land use and restoration. Eventually, I hope to work at the interface between wetland science, policy and management to serve wetland restoration and climate change mitigation policies.
Sue Dockstader
I received my Master’s degree in 2012 from the University of Oregon in Environmental Studies. I love to hike, mushroom, and garden. I am interested in issues related to environmental justice and political ecology.
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}the
ecotone 2015
The ecotone is the journal of the Environmental Studies Program and is created by graduate
students at the University of Oregon. The journal provides a venue for communication and exchange within and beyond the Environmental Studies Program among undergraduate students, graduate students, faculty, staff, and alumni, and facilitates cross-campus dialogue between disciplines and departments. The Ecotone serves as a venue for sharing professional interests, discussing environmental concerns, and faciliating creative expression. The Ecotone is published annually and includes journal articles, nonfiction, fiction, poetry, photography, and other creative submissions. Turn to page 17 for a peek at this year’s Ecotone with doctoral student Taylor McHolm’s reflections on this year’s convocation. A digital version of The Ecotone is available on the Environmental Studies Program’s website, and if you would like a free hard copy of this year’s Ecotone, please contact us in one of three ways: by email: ecotoneuofo@gmail.com in person: 144 Columbia Hall University of Oregon Campus
by mail: The Ecotone Environmental Studies Program 5223 University of Oregon Eugene, OR 97403
ecotone information 11
faculty & student achievements core faculty Brendan Bohannan and Nicolae Morar (along with Stephen Dueppen of Anthropology) received a CAS grant to organize an international workshop entitled “Humans, Microbes, and their Interactions.”
Brendan Bohannan received a Fund for Faculty Excellence Award. Peg Boulay and Katie Lynch received the inaugural Excellence in Teaching award from
the UO Office of Sustainability for their work with the Environmental Leadership Program.
Mark Carey received the Outstanding Faculty Advisor Award presented by the Division of Undergraduate Studies and All Campus Advising.
Matthew Dennis was featured recently on the nationally-syndicated public radio program,
Back Story, with the American History Guys, in an interview entitled “Born Again: Religious Renewal in America.” The interview can be heard online at backstoryradio.org/shows/revival.
Stephanie LeMenager, David Vazquez, and Marsha Weisiger, with help from Sarah Wald, organized the “Rethinking Race in the Anthropocene” conference at UO in May 2015.
Katie Lynch was invited to join the Oregon Environmental Literacy Program Council. Ronald Mitchell received inaugural Research Innovation Award from UO Office of Sus-
tainability for his International Environmental Agreements Database project and organized the Fourth Annual UO Climate Change Research Symposium.
Kari Norgaard was featured on a San Fransico radio and TV program as part of the Com-
monwealth Club Climate Cognition series in May 2015 (climateone.org/audio/climate-cognition), was interviewed live in studio for Irish National Television Morning Edition Program in
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October 2014 (www.rte.ie/news/player/morning-edition/2014/1006/), and was a “Why Not Act on Climate Change” featured guest on The Joy Cardin Show in April 2015 (www.wpr.org/shows/ why-not-act-climate-change).
Ted Toadvine was promoted to Professor of Philosophy and Environmental Studies. Marsha Weisiger is the 2014-2015 recipient of the National Endowment for the Humanities Fellowship.
graduate students Lokyee Au is the UO Martin Luther King Jr. Student Essay Contest Winner and recipient of the Mary E. Russell Scholarship. Julie Bacon received the Environmental Studies Program GTF Teaching Award. Aylie Baker, Shane Hall, and Taylor McHolm (in conjunction with the Environmental Studies Program and Eugene NGO Beyond Toxics) organized the 2014 Convocation conference: “Herbicides and Community Health” featuring keynote speaker Tyrone Hayes. See page 17 for McHolm’s reflections on the event. Sierra Deutsch received the Sasakawa Young Leaders Fellowship Fund (Sylff) Graduate Fellowship for International Research
Andrew Dutterer received the Portland State University Oregon Summer Fellowship, was
part of the UO Graduate Student Research Forum Panel Winning Group, and was recently hired as the Executive Director of the Deschutes River Alliance.
Davita Flowers-Shanklin received the Mary E. Russell scholarship for academic merit as well as the Barker grant for summer 2014 research.
Christina Gooch is the 2015 Sue Samuelson Foodways Essay Competition Winner (American Folklore Society).
Deion Jones received a Donald and Coeta Barker Scholarship (ENVS) and Food Studies Graduate Research Grant.
Christopher Torres received a Donald and Coeta Barker Scholarship (ENVS). Lucas Nebert received the 2015/2016 Julie and Rocky Dixon Graduate Student Innovation
Award.
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alumni
updates &
achievements Kevin Belanger (MS 2010) lives in Washington, D.C. and is now the bicycle and pedestrian
coordinator for the City of Rockville, Maryland. He is glad he gained such useful experience at UO and in the ENVS department to bring back home to the D.C. area.
Keats Conley (MS 2013) is continuing working toward her Ph.D. in Biology in Kelly Suther-
land’s laboratory. She recently published her ENVS Master’s research, entitled “Commercial fishers’ perceptions of jellyfish interference in the Northern California Current ”, in the ICES Journal of Marine Science.
Janet Fiskio (MA 2003, PhD 2009) received tenure at Oberlin College as an Assistant Pro-
fessor of Environmental Studies and Comparative American Studies and began an environmental justice collaboration between Oberlin students and Africatown, Alabama: http://news.oberlin.edu/ articles/seeking-environmental-justice-tar-sands-battleground/
Chris Jones (MS 2007) lives in Eugene. Chris works as an engineer for the Eugene Water &
Electric Board and runs trail ultramarathons.
Adam Novick (MS 2013) presented his thesis at the 2014 meeting of the American Anthropo-
logical Association, as part of a panel on “Inconvenient Knowledge”, and gave presentations at the 2014 meeting of the PNW Political Science Association, on “Tyranny of the majority? Refinements to a theory of regulatory risk to maintenance-dependent species on private land”; the 2014 meeting of the Association of American Geographers, on “Some truths and half-truths about ecosystem service markets, conservation banking, and neoliberal conservation”; a meeting of the UO Human/ Animal Research Interest Group, on “Some potential implications of disequilibrium ecology for conserving species through existence rights”; a meeting of the UO Science Policy Research Interest Group, on “The colorful and unresolved history of disequilibrium ecology”; and the 2015 meeting of the Oregon chapter of The Wildlife Society, on “Toward realizing Leopold’s vision of a new
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Photo by: lauren hendricks kind of people: Might maintenance-dependent species bring us to see each other as better than we think?”.
Julie Polhemus (MS 2002) lives in Eugene. Julie leads backpacking trips for the National Outdoor Leadership School and continues to dance with UO’s Dance Africa.
Raisa Saif (2012) works as a Sustainability Analyst at MetLife and supports the company’s corpo-
rate sustainability program. She focuses on key areas such as employee engagement, environmental data management, green building projects and supply chain management.
Raj Vable (MS 2012)—Building on the work of his MS, Raj set up a tea company named Young
Mountain Tea. The company works with remote Himalayan communities to grow high quality organic teas and sell them in the US. Come get your hot, fresh, and ethical tea at www.youngmountaintea.com!
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student advising center
update Photo by: lauren hendricks
The Environmental Studies Program launched the Student Advising
Center in Fall 2011. The team of student advisers answers questions from current and prospective undergraduate students, faculty and staff, and community members. Current students in the Program’s two undergraduate majors - Environmental Studies and Science - drop in for advice on anything and everything including major/minor/university requirements, registration issues, and practical learning opportunities such as internships and study abroad. Beyond the routine advising, students regularly visit the Center to share the stresses and successes of their college career. The Center strives to provide a personalized experience for the 600+ undergraduates who are part of the ENVS program, as well as cultivate a positive community for learning and growing. Finishing up its fourth year, the Center has a team of five undergraduate student advisers, with three more recently hired to replace graduating seniors. We greatly appreciate their dedication to the ENVS community, and wish our graduating seniors the best in their post-undergraduate endeavors!
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student advisors graduating seniors AShley adelman:
As a native of the Willamette Valley, I have enjoyed discovering the unique history of this lovely state. These last four years at the UO have supported my goal of connecting to the place I call home while sharing my knowledge along the way. Through various courses and participation in ELP’s Restoring Connections team, my undergraduate experience has exceeded my expectations! In the coming year, I plan to work on my permaculture certification while brushing up on my Spanish. With a goal of traveling to Costa Rica and going to graduate school, I am excited for what the future holds!
Cameron Church: Being the son of two Oregon alumni, and growing up just
outside Portland, I always knew I would end up at the University of Oregon. The allure of staying close to home, but still getting to experience a new and vibrant culture like the one found in Eugene, only furthered by interest in the school.Now, four years later, I recognize that I never could have imagined the impact both the Environmental Studies Program and my experience working as a student adviser would come to have on me. The students and faculty are brought together by their shared interest in environmental issues and their passion and expertise has continually made me challenge by own beliefs. Working for the program has given me an even more intimate understanding of environmental studies and has given me an indescribable appreciation for the work that goes into providing students with their educational opportunities. Being a student adviser requires patience, persistence, and above all compassion for the needs of every student that walks into the office. Now that my time as a student and adviser is coming to an end, I’m planning on teaching English abroad which again will require all of these characteristics and more. While I may be half a world away, I will always be grateful for the community and people of the Environmental Studies Program that have made the last four years unforgettable.
Willow Hamilton:
When I introduced myself for the first time to my FIG freshman year, I said “Hi. My name is Willow, I am from Bend, OR and I am painfully undeclared.” Little did I know, the suffering caused by my indecision would be resolved soon because I was registered for ENVS 201 that fall. Over the next few terms I proceeded to find a deep passion and gratification in studying the environment. I graduated this winter, and after completing the ENVS major, I find myself having a great sense of optimism for the future, and the drive to make a difference. I’ve found myself at home within the Environmental Studies community, both in the office and in class. Spending time with like-minded people helps relieve the crushing weight of our world’s injustice, and I am so grateful for that. If I could give any advice to incoming students, new advisers, or anyone who finds themselves active in the environmental community it would be this: Find other people who care about the world, and become friends with them. They will enrich your life in more ways than a college course ever could.
Adrian Robins: My plans post-graduation involve a one-way ticket to Eastern Asia and that’s about it. While I’m looking forward to whatever this adventure brings me, I’ll miss the Environmental Studies Program and all of the people there who’ve taught and inspired me these past five years. All the best to the new Student Advisers!
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student advisors continuing
Justin Culman:
As my love for nature is furthered with the wonderful outdoor opportunities at the UO, I still have a special place in my heart for a night-in binge watching Netflix. Growing up in Denver, Colorado fits with my love of the outdoors and my educational focus as a double major in Environmental Science and Geography. During the winter months I am a ski bum in the Colorado Rocky Mountains, while during the summer I enjoy hiking, camping, and more recently rock climbing. Eugene is the perfect fit for excelling my interests and am looking forward to the new opportunities to come!
new student advisors Madeline Cowen:
A small island about the size of Manhattan fixates itself in the heart of the Puget Sound. It inhabits around 10,000 of the most interesting people you’ll find in the Seattle area and I’m proud to call it my hometown. Growing up on Vashon Island gave me the tools to think progressively and with imagination but also the urge to leave. With that, I have found a passion for travel. Combined with a love for language I hope that by majoring in Environmental Studies, I am able offer a medium to people who are unaware of issues. Other than that, I enjoy playing volleyball, hiking, biking, and drinking tea!
Will Dickerson:
The intention that carries me through this life is a constant striving to exist as a force of healing for the earth and the community of creation. In all that I do I hope to consciously express a paradigm of ecology; living in a way that helps people and communities reevaluate and reconnect with themselves and the earth to expand our sense of self to include the family of all life. I believe in working together, staying mindful, and living from the grounded center of the heart! I try to always remember this in my work as a student of Environmental Studies. Academically (and personally) my interests are in deep ecology and perennial philosophy, human-plant relationships (how we can learn from plants), eco-psychology, environmental activism, and the intersections between religion and the environment. With my degree I plan on working to create spaces that provide an outlet for and inspire people to connect with themselves and the earth in love, respect, and communion.
Leslie Gotuaco: I have a crazy love for animals; especially jaguars and
primates. I’m currently an Environmental Science and Anthropology double major and my ultimate goal is to use behavioral research to help conservation efforts. I’m always looking for adventures, new places to explore, photography, and of course, anything I can learn about animals.
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herbicides & health
2015 Environmental Studies Convocation with Tyrone Hayes
by Taylor mcholm
Over the weekend of October 24th-25th, 2014, undergraduates, graduate students, pro-
fessors, local activists and community members gathered to consider the impacts of aerial herbicide spray application on community and ecosystem health. The “Herbicides and Health” symposium and Environmental Studies program’s convocation was grounded by the visit of Professor Tyrone Hayes, a professor of integrative biology at the University of California, Berkeley. Hayes’s work has focused primarily on the impacts of the herbicide atrazine on the reproductive capacities and sexual development of frogs. Hayes’s research has shown that the widely-used chemical has the capacity to cause hermaphroditism in frogs, frequently causing ovum to develop within the testes of frogs that are genetically marked as male. The findings have caused many to question the safety of the chemical, which has been banned in Europe, where the makers of the chemical compound, Syngenta, are located. This, of course, raises a number of questions, both obvious and less immediate. Together with Aylie Baker and Shane Hall, graduate students in the Environmental Studies program, and Lisa Arkin, Executive Director of Beyond Toxics, I had the good fortune to take part in the events as both a participant and organizer in order to contemplate some of these questions. Hayes’s work and the potential health impacts on humans have been well documented, as a result of numerous articles published in both academic and popular publications. Despite the documented impacts, atrazine use is not restricted in the United States, and Oregon in particular has some of the most lax laws for preventing harmful exposure. Such impacts have been experienced first-hand throughout Oregon, where private timber operations are not required to establish buffer zones between their lots and the surrounding land, water and communities. The rural community of Triangle Lake, for example, has been involved in the debate for years, as local timber farmers depend on the use of the herbicide to manage their farms. Many residents have reported debilitating illness and concern for students at the local elementary school, which backs up to a timber lot that is often logged and sprayed to reduce competition for the newly planted saplings in the freshly cut lots.
herbicides & health 19
Like many environmental issues concerning the health of ecosystems and communities, the debate around the issue of chemical spraying has typically relied upon the insight and knowledge produced by biologists like Hayes and other members of the scientific community using water samples and human urine and tissue analysis to determine both the levels of atrazine exposure and its impacts. As we began to plan the event, we wanted to expand the understanding of the problem and utilize the interdisciplinary nature of the Environmental Studies program and its strong focus on environmental justice and the humanities in addition to the hard sciences. Thus, we planned a series of events aimed at both academics and the larger community, particularly those invested in all sides of the issue. One of the less immediate issues, and one that has not been widely discussed in either academia or beyond, are the sexual and gender politics involved in the use of the term “intersex” and “hermaphrodite” as categories of the unnatural. Hayes’s work suggests that the problem of exposure to atrazine can produce the deleterious formation of both sexual organs in a single individual, and thereby threaten the reproductive capacities – and ultimately the species as a whole – of exposed frogs. In the first of our three events, Professor Elizabeth Reis, Department Head of Women and Gender Studies, brought this issue to our attention and demonstrated the ways that hermaphroditism and intersexuality in humans has historically been met with fear, as they are viewed as unnatural aberrations. What, then, are the potential consequences of relying upon solid gender categories to make claims about ecosystem health? Is a stable binary of sex and gender reified by the scientific language, which requires such stability vis-à-vis variable and control groups? Personally, as a result of the questions raised by Professor Reis and the lively discussion that ensued, I find that the use of these “objective” scientific signifiers naturalize social categories. Professor Hayes noted that these are simply the terms available to him as a scientist, and that his use of them for frogs is not loaded with the kinds of social problems that accompany the terms when referring to people. What we must consider are the ways in which objectivity in science is socially produced, meaning that an aperspectival “view from nowhere” is not possible. As humans our frames for understanding are socially produced, and conversely our scientific understanding produces social views. It is precisely the work of the interdisciplinary scholarship in environmental studies to suss out these intersections and consider the social elements of the sciences and the scientific elements of the social. The discussion between Professor Reis and Professor Hayes began precisely this project, and it is clear that far more work needs to be done in this specific arena. Following Professor Hayes’s keynote address, about 100 students, community members and professors gathered at the Triangle Lake grange for a “Witness to Action” assembly. The goal of the event was to allow community members to share their stories and experiences of exposure – and use – of atrazine in a decentered environment in which the focus was conversation, not monologic lecturing and passive listening. Community members who have experienced (and continue to experience) health problems related to exposure were able to meet, raising consciousness. They also established a broader community with residents of Gold Beach who were able to meet and talk with those of Triangle Lake to share their best-practices for effecting change and developing a community-based movement. Also in attendance, and leading one of the many small group presentations and workshops throughout the day, were local timber farmers who use the chemical to manage
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their forests and in many ways depend on its use for their own livelihood. To me, the most important and impactful moment of the weekend happened here, and it was the result of a fortuitous delay. Because the bus bringing students and community members from Eugene out to Triangle Lake was late, residents of Triangle Lake – both timber farmers and residents who oppose the aerial spraying – were alone together at the grange with nothing to do but talk to one another. Of course, the conversation was tense and emotional and passionate, yet numerous people came up to me throughout the day to tell me that in all of the years of town hall meetings, scientific testing and public debate that has largely divided the community, this was the first time that they had an opportunity to actually sit down and talk to one another about their concerns and motivations. While many of them recognized each other and knew the names of everyone in the room, they had never actually met one another. Being able to sit and talk gave them all a new perspective on an issue. Other presentations and workshops focused on such things as citizen science, the basic tenets of the environmental justice movement in the United States, and a space to learn how to write effective letters to media and government to effect change. Attendants learned about how they can take air and water samples to document the presence of herbicides and pesticides. Others went on a short hike to view the local watershed and the history of its restoration. They also had the ability to sit side-by-side with Professor Hayes as participants, rather than audience members. In all, the three days of Professor Hayes’s visit and the Herbicide and Community Health symposium demonstrated the possibilities for truly interdisciplinary work. The sciences, social sciences, arts and humanities were all present and made essential and meaningful contributions to a more complete understanding of a complicated and contentious issue.
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the tribal climate change project
update
by carson viles
The Tribal Climate Change Project (TCCP) is a collaboration between the University of
Oregon Environmental Studies Program and the USDA Forest Service Pacific Northwest Research Station. Current research is focused on examining the impacts of climate change that are already affecting indigenous peoples in the United States, and specifically, how ensuring tribal sovereignty and self-determination in the face of climate change is vital to tribal culture, health and resilience. In 2014, TCCP researcher Kirsten Vinyeta and TCCP Coordinator Kathy Lynn co-authored a report with Kyle Powys Whyte from Michigan State University on gendered vulnerability and resilience to climate change among indigenous communities in the United States. This report—to be published in 2015—explores the gendered risks and opportunities in addressing climate change and the struggles and opportunities facing indigenous people as they work to maintain their cultural gender roles, and contextualizes climate impacts within a broader discourse of colonization of the Americas. More information about the Tribal Climate Change Project and ongoing research can be found at: http://tribalclimate.uoregon.edu/. The TCCP also co-organized the 3rd Annual Climate Change and Indigenous Peoples (CCIP) Symposium in December 2014. This symposium featured Patricia Cochran, Executive Director of the Alaska Native Science Commission and noted Indigenous scholar, as keynote speaker. The conference brought Indigenous students from across the U.S. to present their research, including Conor Handley from Humboldt State University, Paulette Blanchard from the University of Oklahoma, Kamala Anthony from the University of Hawaii, and Erica Lee from the University of Saskatchewan. The conference also featured research of University of Oregon students who had enrolled in
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the 2014 Climate Change and Indigenous Peoples Conference special courses designed to address climate and indigenous peoples’ issues. More information can be found at: ccip.uoregon.edu. Also in 2014, Kathy Lynn and TCCP research assistant Carson Viles helped to establish the Climate and Traditional Knowledges Workgroup—an ad hoc group of indigenous persons, staff of indigenous governments and organizations, and experts with experience working with issues concerning traditional knowledges—and contributed to the Guidelines for Considering Traditional Knowledges in Climate Change Initiatives. The Guidelines are intended to provide guidance to tribes, federal agencies and others as they enter into collaborations involving traditional knowledges. While traditional knowledges can play an important role in broadening understanding of climate change impacts and contributing to climate change science, there are risks to tribes and knowledge holders, including the misappropriation or misuse of traditional knowledges. The Guidelines seek to address these risks by offering guidance to tribes, traditional knowledges holders, federal agencies, and others. In addition to the report, the CTKW has developed a website, annotated bibliography, and discussion board to promote consideration of these issues. The Guidelines and accompanying resources can be found here: https://climatetkw.wordpress.com Under a separate collaboration with the USDA Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management, Kirsten Vinyeta and Kathy Lynn conducted an evaluation of the effectiveness of tribal-federal relations under the Northwest Forest Plan (NWFP). The report assesses the federal-tribal relationship under the NWFP, and presents case studies that provide voices from tribes about their experience tribal climate change project
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and perspectives on how their rights and interests are being affected by federal policy. Key findings focus on the need to align tribal and federal visions on what constitutes consultation, the need to ensure that agency staff are culturally competent and informed on treaty rights, other tribal rights, the federal trust responsibility, and the history of federal-tribal relations, and the need to ensure that tribal needs, knowledge and experiences are shaping tribal and federal forest management practices.
Photo by: nick dreher
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other program updates environmental science institute update
By Dan Gavin
started the position of director of the Environmental Science Institute (ESI) in February 2015. Introduced in the 2014 issue of ReNews by founding director Scott Bridgham, ESI has a mission to promote interdisciplinary research and graduate education in the environmental sciences. Members are primarily from the departments of Anthropology, Biology, Geological Sciences, and Geography, and the goal of ESI is to increase cross-disciplinary research and graduate education among these departments. Over the past year three grants have been awarded to ESI members, totaling 2.6 million dollars. The ESI steering committee is continuing to explore ways to increase interdisciplinary graduate education, in particular through the Environmental Sciences, Studies, and Policy PhD degree. ESI members are looking forward to making more progress on this in the next academic year. ESI’s web page is esi.uoregon.edu.
Daniel Gavin, Associate Professor of Geography,
food studies program update
By Stephen Wooten The Food Studies Program has been deepening its roots and showing signs of exciting new growth. This academic year the program hosted a series of well attended and inspiring “Food Talks” on diverse topics, including the political ecology of pig farms in China, over-consumption dynamics and gourmand culture in the US, the shady side of Big Organic, and food justice and sovereignty in Latin America and Canada. The program’s Graduate Specialization continues to attract top students, many of whom have benefitted from the program’s research grant initiative. This spring saw the approval of a new undergraduate general education course called “Introduction to Food Studies,” which will become a cornerstone of the emerging minor in Food Studies. For more information on UO Food Studies please visit: http://foodstudies.uoregon.edu.
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environmental leadership program 2014-2015
This year, the Environmental Leadership Program featured 7 exciting projects. You can learn more about these projects by visiting the teams’ websites: http://envs.uoregon.edu/elp_program/projects/currentprojects/.
photo by: Lauren Rapp
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elp 2014-2015 categories environmental education projects
In our Environmental Education projects, students develop, implement and share transformative learning experiences for children in nature. Students create scientifically rigorous curricula, teach programs in classrooms and conduct field trip activities.
community engagement projects
In our Community Engagement projects, students collect and share information with different audiences using creative methods, such as interpretive signs, social media, technical assistance documents, and oral histories. Students build communication skills and influence environmental issues through conversations within the community.
conservation science in action projects
In our Conservation Science in Action (CSA) projects, students assist community partners by completing hands-on restoration projects, creating assessments and management plans, or acquiring and analyzing needed environmental data.
sustainable practices projects
In our Sustainable Practices projects, students implement solutions that address and integrate concerns regarding environmental health, social equity and economic success. Example projects include renewable energy, waste prevention and recycling, alternative transportation, sustainable business, and organic agriculture.
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environmental education projects
Left to Right: Micaela Hyams, Amelia Remington, Nick Sloss, Sam Bates, Nicole Hendrix, Elie Lewis, Forrest Hirsh, Laura Buckmaster. Not pictured: Tim Chen (Project Manager) and Katie Lynch (Project Director).
Canopy Connections 2015 The Pacific Northwest is home to some magnificent old-growth forests. Unfortunately, many local children have never had the opportunity to explore this enchanting ecosystem firsthand. To address this, the ELP has worked in partnership with the H.J. Andrews Experimental Forest and the Pacific Tree Climbing Institute since 2007 to offer Canopy Connections. In this project, UO students develop and then implement day-long field trips for local middle-schoolers – including a 90-ft. climb into the canopy of an old-growth tree and activities exploring the understory. The team’s mission is to help children build a personal connection to this magnificent place, with the end goal of inspiring an ethic of care and stewardship. This year, the team focused on “nurturing naturalists” and highlighted the importance of sensory awareness and keen observation – for both science and writing. The fieldtrip integrated compass and map-reading skills, field journaling, and exploring biodiversity and succession through observing different plots. The team visited classrooms in April, and led nine full day field trips in May. Springfield High School students joined our program this year too – helping us out on the pilot and then throughout the spring. This project was generously funded by a gift from Steve Ellis.
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Left to Right: Luke Holladay, Alicia Kirsten (Project Manager), Roslyn Braun, Kerry Sheehan, Ashley Adelman (back row), Kiki Kruse, Zoie Wesenberg. Not pictured: Katie Lynch (Project Director).
Restoring Connections 2015 Restoring Connections is a new six-year partnership with Mt. Pisgah Arboretum and Adams Elementary School. The underlying goal of this project is to develop a place-based, experiential environmental education curriculum for elementary school children as they move from kindergarten to fifth grade. By giving children repeated opportunities to visit Mt. Pisgah and participate in restoration work, we will help them restore their connection to the natural places where they live, while they help restore the land. In this first pilot year, the team developed an in-class lesson and an all-day field trip for over 200 children in grade K-2. Journaling, sit spots, species identification, drawing, and restoration projects inspired and encouraged children to become explorers and gain a sense of personal responsibility for the stewardship of the natural world. This project was generously funded by a gift from the Luvaas Family Foundation of the Oregon Community Foundation.
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community engagement projects
Left to Right: Jalen Buchalter, Alicia Ly, Megan Ott, Caitlin Yamaguchi, Emma Crabtree, Trevor Bruffey. Not pictured: Davita Shanklin-Flowers (Project Manager), Peg Boulay (Project Director).
Restoregon 2015 This team embarked on a photographic journey to explore these questions: 1) why and how do we restore nature?, 2) how does nature restore us?, and 3) how can we restore a deep connection between people and planet? The students learned photography and post-processing techniques from professional and amateur photographers. They visited restoration projects and other unique places to capture compelling images. To create their exhibit, they contemplated themes of beauty, harm and healing. They shared their work at Townshend’s Tea House, Eugene’s First Friday Artwalk, and UO’s Museum of Natural and Cultural History. This project was generously funded in part by a gift from a private donor.
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Left to Right: Arica Sears, Rowan Hardenbrook, Hope Tejedas, Marla Waters, Alex Deck, Emma Sloan, Lauren Rapp, Laura Nausieda, Aylie Baker (Project Manager), Arielle Shamash. Not pictured: Katie Lynch (Project Director).
Just Stories: Documenting Environmental Justice This new team documented communities in action – telling the important stories of community response and resistance to pesticide exposure in the state of Oregon. Team members learned how to conduct interviews, and use photography, video and audio to tell stories in a compelling and ethical way that supports the vision of justice as articulated by communities on the ground. In winter, the team interviewed community members in Cedar Valley, OR to create a 20-minute documentary, Drift: A Community Seeking Justice. During spring, the team spoke with women who are leaders in their communities in responding to pesticide drift to learn about their visions of change. Together they curated an online gallery to showcase these stories. The team shared their film at the Public Interest Environmental Law Conference, and organized screenings and panel discussions in communities around OR. In all events, they shared their vision and process of community-centered media making as a catalyst for meaninguful change on environmental justice issues. This project was generously funded in part by a gift from a private donor.
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conservation science in action projects
Left to Right: Kate Ortiz, Anthony Kollmorgan, Shannon Keener, Kenny Quillan, Fred Hutchison, Sam Huck, Ashlynn McGraw. Not pictured: Davita Shanklin-Flowers (Project Manager), Peg Boulay (Project Director).
Riparian Restoration 2015 Whitewater Ranch is a sustainably-managed Christmas tree farm, diversified with forestry, blueberry and row crop plantings. The mission of the ranch is to provide quality agricultural products grown “with respect to the land and animals around them.� With the overall goals of providing shaded cool water for fish and diverse flowers for pollinators, the Riparian Restoration team helped implement, then maintain and monitor a pilot riparian planting project at Goose Creek. The team collected additonal environmental data, planned a larger restoration project and wrote a grant application. This project was generously funded in part by a gift from a private donor.
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Left to Right: Alex Ode, Maura Kanner, Ryan Nord, Jonathan S. Bergan, Trevor Norman, Jason Nagro, Trysta Wickett, Autumn Gardner. Not pictured: Maya Rommwatt (Project Manager), Peg Boulay (Project Director).
Stream Stewardship 2015 Monitoring and assessment data are critical for guiding restoration planning and parks management. In partnership with the McKenzie Watershed Council, Lane County Parks, and McKenzie River Trust, the Stream Stewardship Team monitored the success of past riparian plantings, conducted baseline surveys for a current restoration project and conducted fish surveys at Berggren Watershed Conservation Area. At Vickery Park, they mapped vegetative communities, documented invasive plant species populations, mapped and measured oak trees, and made management recommendations to inform future actions such as invasives control, oak conservation, and location of recreational trails. This project was generously funded in part by a gift from a private donor.
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sustainable practices projects
Left to Right: Will Dickerson, Alex Burgdorfer, Wilson Hui, Zoe Lavier-Fisher, Ashleigh Angel, Madison Cheek, Brady Chiongbian, Emma Porricolo, Réna Nénot (kneeling), Deion Jones (Project Manager). Not pictured: Peg Boulay (Project Director).
Sustainable Farms 2015 The Berggren Demonstration Farm is a 30-acre working farm that showcases river-friendly farming and humane livestock management practices and that provides technical and other support for local small farms. In partnership with Cascade Pacific Resource Conservation + Development and McKenzie River Trust, the team assisted with vegetable production tasks and other farm work – from moving livestock between pastures to planting crops to harvesting crops to market. In addition, they researched and propsed a drip-irrigation system for a 0.5-acre field. They summarized helpful information that can assist other farms in doing a similar irrigation project.
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about the
contributors photo by: Aylie Baker
Aylie Baker is a second year Environmental Studies master’s student. Alan Dickman is core faculty and was the Director of the Environmental Studies Program from 2006 to 2015.
Nick Dreher is a first year Environmental Studies master’s student. Dan Gavin is participating faculty and the Director of the Environmental Science Institute. Lauren Hendricks is a first year Environmental Studies master’s student. Taylor McHolm is a PhD candidate in the Environmental Sciences, Studies, and Policy program with a focal department in English.
Sam Moore is a second year Environmental Studies master's student. Lauren Rapp is an Environmental Studies major at the University of Oregon. Carson Viles is a researcher for the Tribal Climate Change Project and a 2013 graduate from the Environmental Studies Program.
Stephen Wooten is core faculty and the Food Studies Program Coordinator. Richard York is core faculty and the current Director of the Environmental Studies Program.
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University of Oregon Environmental Studies Program 5223 University of Oregon Eugene, OR 97403-5223