LINKING-TO-LIFE TERM PROJECT OVERVIEW
(worth a total of 60 pts)

	Part A Your Ecological Footprint  ( 5 pts)
	Part B Thinking More Deeply   (10 pts)
	Part C Film Review Discussion Posts (10 pts)
	Part D Final Project Report  ( 35 pts)

#1.  The most critical element of your Final Project Report (PART D) is how accurately and effectively you link your project topic and question to our GC 170A course material!  There are many questions you could pursue as you explore your topic this semester, but do not get sidetracked on an issue that doesn't link directly to one of our class topics. 

For example, if you are interested in the FOOD topic, do not get diverted into exploring  issues of flood quality or nutrition, health issues, harmful ingredients, toxics, etc. --While these issues are important, there are not related directly to our course topics.  Important food topics that ARE related to our course might be the reasons why vegetarians have a much lower carbon footprint than meat eaters, or the amount of energy needed to transport the food products in our grocery stores from their place of origin.

#2.  To assist you in focusing on topics related to the course that are also linked to your life, we will start out with PART A -- calculating your ECOLOGICAL FOOTPRINT -- (a simple and fun way to earn the first 5 points of the term project!    In fact, depending on what you end of doing for your project, you may end up calculating your footprint several times during the semester.  The calculation for PART A will be a baseline with which you can compare, especially if you repeat your footprint calculation one or more times in the future

FOOTPRINT CALCULATOR
http://www.footprintnetwork.org/en/index.php/GFN/page/calculators/

When you are done, your results will be displayed on the screen in a box that looks like the image below.  MAKE A SCREEN SHOT of this image and be sure you save it  in a doc  (indicating the date you calculated your footprint).  You will use this in class and mayb need to refer back to later in the semester as your project evolves.

The Term Project involves the following parts:

1. PART A:  YOUR ECOLOGICAL FOOTPRINT -- To get you started on how things you do in your everyday life link up to many of the issues we'll be covering in this class, your first assignemnt you involve calculating your Ecological Footprint.

2. PART B:  THINKING MORE DEEPLY -- In this part of the project, you will think about issuses related to how science works and begin to explore an idea for your term project topic.  For ideas, review the suggested project catagories below -- or come up with your own topic.  The objective of this part of the project is to begin formulating a question that you will investigate for your project.  (some examples will be given to guide you).

3. PART C:  FILM REVIEW & DISCUSSION -- For this part of the project you will view one (or more) of the full-length films to be posted in D2L.  You will aso watch two (or more) of the shorter videos. The films will give you background information (and probably raise some issues) about consumerism, sustainability, and the environment.  Hopefully they will also spark some ideas on what you might want to learn about or investigate for your personal project.  (some examples will be given to guide you).

4. PART D:   FINAL REPORT -- For this part of the project you will collect the data or inforamtion you need, analyze and interpret it by organizing your supporting information, and draw conclusions based on the supporting information. You will then design ways to present your findings visually and summarize your findings in a your final project report. (some examples will be given to guide you).

SUGGESTED PROJECT CATEGORIES
See category choices below or devise your own.

PROJECT CATEGORY	Earth's Global Environment	Energy Conservation	Transportation Options	Water Sustainability	Food & the Environment	Artistic Expression / Advocacy	GC-Savvy Consumerism, Sustainability & Business
POSSIBLE QUESTIONS You are encouraged to come up with your OWN question to investigate! But if you like, you may use one of these suggestions.	How do human's impact the environment in different parts of the world? Are there global examples of sustainable practices? What is my response to the "Home" film: "Listen  . . .to this extraordinary story and decide what you want to do with it."	Where does my energy come from? How can I lower my carbon footprint -- why should I?  Is solar energy viable for me? Will energy policies work? Does our local utility have a "green power" program?	Can I find a "dream car" that balances performance, fuel economy, cost, and "crashworthiness"? What's the most sustainable form of transportation for my needs? What's the most promising type of alternative fuel vehicle? What are + and - of travel by plane vs., train, vs. auto?	Where does my water come from? What are Tucson & Phoenix water managers doing to address sustainability? How is climate change exacerbating the future of water in the arid West -- and the world? What's the connection between energy & water supplies?	How does food production impact global change? How far does my food travel to get to me?   Why does meat add so much CO2? How are food production and deforestation linked? Which Tucson supermarkets provide the most food choices?	Can science and art be linked? How can my art, writing, or poetry express my views on the environment? What does the SGC textbook cover "say" to me about Global Change? Is there an advocacy group that resonates with me?	How can I make "global change savvy" consumer choices? Can a business be run sustainably? Can Energy Star labels help me find "green" electronics and appliances? How can I detect and avoid "greenwashing"?
SUGGESTED FILMS & VIDEOS highlighting = full length movie bold = key short video	HOME Acid Test:  Ocean Acidification sea level rise: Tuvalu: the Sinking Feeling & Tracking Greenland's Glaciers	Kilowatt Ours: a Plan to Re-energize America The Story of Cap & Trade	Who Killed the Electric Car? Understanding Car Crashes, It's Basic Physics	An American  Nile & Last Oasis (Cadillac Desert Episodes)	FRESH - the Movie The Story of Bottled Water Cheeseburger Footprint	Photographic Artist Chris Jordan Earth: Art of a Changing World Midway. Message from the Gyre	The Story of Stuff The Story of Electronics The Interface Road to Sustainability

NOTE:  OTHER CATEGORIES OR ACTIVITIES ARE POSSIBLE!
Devise a category or activity of your own along the lines of the examples posted above!
Then  email Dr H to see if it will be acceptable for this assignment.