Group Project or Independent Research Paper

All students are required to participate in a group project or to complete an independent research paper.  

Group Project: Environmental issues are multidisciplinary and frequently involve participation on a project team. I encourage you to develop a group project that will draw on the expertise and interests of students in the class. Past projects include:

• Energy audit of Reed (hard copy available on request)
• Whether biodegradable plates and utensils would be a cost-effective alternative to our existing dinnerware (available on Moodle)
• The economic benefits of Hoyt Arboretum (available on Moodle)

Group projects can vary from a report that everyone contributes to researching and writing to separate reports that are connected by a common theme. The three projects described above are an example of the first approach. The second approach was used to examine energy use at Reed and included a paper on energy conservation at other campuses and a paper reviewing the environmental psychology literature on energy conservation. The students researched and wrote their reports independently, but integrated their findings in the paper's introduction and conclusion.

The requirements for the group projects will vary from project to project.  I will provide clear feedback on my expectations for each group project after the groups have been formed.

Independent research paper:  Students are also welcome to research a topic on their own. The final paper should be approximately 10-15 pages long (double-spaced) and should focus on a recent policy issue in environmental economics.  Students should speak with me as soon as possible about their topic.  

I. Proposal: Due October 1st  

A 1-2 page double-spaced proposal.  The group project proposal should include a brief description of the group project and what tasks each group member will complete. The independent research paper should include a short bibliography with 3-5 citations.

II.  Literature Review: Due November 12th  

A literature review should be turned in by students completing either a group project or an independent research paper. The requirements for the group projects will vary from project to project.  I will provide clear feedback on my expectations for each group project after the groups have been formed.  

IV. Paper (Final Draft): Hard copies of the final paper are due at the start of the final exam (Thursday, December 18th at 9am).