Write an essay summarizing the history of climate change science, politics, and policy in the American context.

Write an essay summarizing the history of climate change science, politics, and policy in the American context. Questions to consider: How did the scientific understanding of the problem of global warming/climate change evolve in the post-WWII period? Who were the key individuals who brought concern about the long-term threat of global warming to the U.S. government? What events did they set in motion? When and how did opposition coalesce to question scientific certainty about global warming? Who was behind this opposition? How did the debate over climate change reflect the growing polarization in American society over environmentalism? What policies did they bring about, or fail to bring about? Is climate change related to the larger “ecological crisis” identified by many environmentalists in the 1960s and 1970s, or is it a unique and unprecedented environmental problem in American history?

Write an essay about a philosophical question of your choice related to material from Module 3.

Write an essay about a philosophical question of your choice related to material from Module 3. How will I do that? Review the assigned reading from Module 3. From those materials, formulate a conceptual research question and write an essay that answers the question. Note: Students who have difficulty developing a conceptual question may write about the following prompt; students who write in response to the suggested prompt will not receive credit for the “Thesis” portion of this essay’s grade. If all nations on Earth were to accept emissions restrictions as a means of mitigating climate change then it would almost certainly follow that the economic and infrastructure development of third-world nations would suffer as a result. Is it fair that third-world development should suffer or lag as a result of climate change mitigation efforts? Fair or unfair, would third-world nations be justified in refusing to accept such restrictions? Why or why not? In preparation for writing your essay, write down an answer to the philosophical question. After you have an answer, write down your reasons for believing that answer. Next, imagine how an opponent might disagree with one or more of your reasons and write those objections down. Finally, in a single sentence write down why you don’t accept the objections. Once you have written all of this down–you should have around 10 sentences or so–you will have an outline for your essay. (You don’t have to turn in your outline; it’s just incredibly useful to write one.) Expand on your outline to complete your essay. Support your reasons with references to the literature; use examples to illustrate your points; make clear the connections between all of your ideas. When you are done, submit your essay through the link above. How long does it have to be? Your essay should be a minimum of 1250 words and no more than 1750 words. The words should be English ones (mostly) that are arranged into complete sentences. How will I format the essay? The essay itself must be written and submitted as a Microsoft Word document (file extension *.doc or *.docx), posted through Blackboard (on this page). Essays not submitted through Blackboard in this format will not be accepted. How will I be graded? Essays may earn up to 25 points. See the Essay Grading Rubric (on the “Required Assignments” page) for information about how your essay should be structured. Within one week after I return essays with comments, students may submit revisions for up to five points of additional credit. Students who visit the Writing Center and obtain a signed note may take an additional week. Why am I doing this? The purpose of this assignment is to assess your understanding of the course material and to show you how you can engage long-standing philosophical debates.