Unit 3:

Power

The people who live in places impacted by human-made decisions have the power to speak out against environmental injustice.

Even though the case studies from this unit can be implemented on their own, it is recommended that at least one activity from Unit 1 and/or Unit 2 be completed prior to beginning one of these case studies.

Note: Each case study consists of a variety of resources - videos, newspaper articles, scholarly journal articles, scientific papers, etc. You do not need to use all of the resources included to complete the case study. There is a recommended reading assignment included that selects one or two sources from the list provided. The primary sources included in this curriculum are presented in their entirety, which may make some of them lengthy. At the teacher’s discretion, you may choose to read only a section of a selected resource to allow for whatever time constraints are present in the context of your classroom.

Each case study seeks to answer the following essential questions:

• Who is affected and how? Are they affected differently than other people?
• What is occurring in the environment that is causing this? What data do we need to understand?
• Who is in control of this situation? Who is making decisions and how?
• What power do the people most affected have? What actions were taken to address this problem?
• What are other actions we could take to solve problems like this? Are there solutions that would more equitably address this problem?
• How can I put what I’ve learned into action in my own life? What problems can I solve in my community?