Paper details:
This will be an ongoing paper until December 2020. However, I have several dates (more like check-in) to turn in papers. Step one and two are already done and that paper is attached (Rsmith_Community-Based……) I want to continue working on the issues statement and transition into steps three, four, and five. The issue I chose is on the Portland (Oregon) Residential Infill Project. ——- The purpose of this assignment is to explore civic engagement through the lens of an issue you care about. We want to know who is taking action, how, and why? What are they doing? Why did they choose that path? Why did they engage to begin with? We’re interested in the problem (like city budgeting for public safety, or farmworkers’ rights, or access to pre-K education, or … ?) and two or more of the people doing something about it. So your work will have two parts: your issue statement, and the stories of those who are working to make things better. By the end of week 8, you’ll write a paper and record a short audio + PowerPoint presentation on your findings. This term will go quickly, and the cadence of the assignment means you have something due in weeks 4, 6, and 8. Each part of the assignment leads to the next part. Here are all the steps: ???? STEP 1 Choose an issue. This focuses your work: civic engagement to do what? What is the problem that civic engagement can help solve? Big issues, like environmental justice, are too much for us to tackle in one term. A narrower focus within environmental justice might be the cleanup of the lower Willamette superfund site, the route of the Jordan Cove LNG pipeline, or air pollution in the Dalles. Depending on the resources available and their level of detail, you might find that something like air pollution in the Dalles is too narrow (there is a detailed OregonLive series, but not individual interviews or dialogues, or a depth of different perspectives available to the online researcher). Rather, if you’re interested in air pollution in the Dalles, consider researching air pollution regulation across Oregon as it relates to communities of color and low-income communities. That is, do some investigation to make sure there is enough to work with on your issue, but not so much that you’re quickly overwhelmed. An investigative series like this ProPublica Local Reporting Network piece on timber taxes in Oregon is a good example of a well-packaged issue. Choose something you’re passionate about, are curious about, interested in. ???? STEP 2 Explain the issue you’ve chosen in a 250-500 word statement and upload in Word doc to assignment dropbox here CBL Issue Statement Due Week 4 by Sunday, October 25th. It doesn’t need to have all of the components listed under “issue statement” in the outline below, but you’ll need those at the outline stage, so you can include them here if you have them figured out. I’ll review it, and offer some comments. The goal here is to check in, and provide guidance as needed. Feel free to include any questions, hesitations, or enthusiasms; no need to stop at 500 words if you have more to say. ???? STEP 3 Research your issue, and draft an outline of your paper, due to the D2L dropbox by the end of week 6 (Sunday, November 8). Your outline should be 4-5 pages, structured like this: —– I. Introduction (be sure to define civic engagement somewhere in here, and give your reader a roadmap for the rest of the paper) II. Issue statement Describe the problem Where does this happen? Geographical boundaries, jurisdictional boundaries, or? Who is responsible? This might be federal, state, local, everyone, some combination Who can help fix? This might be federal, state, regional, local or tribal governments, nonprofits, individuals, community groups, others, some combination III. Story 1: one of the individuals you’ve chosen to highlight Their name and role (who do they work for, volunteer for, or lead?) Their background What motivates them, or why they work on their (your) issue What they’re doing to make change; where they’re engaging; how they’re engaging Using 2+ class readings, discuss the individual’s actions related to our course themes (institutional design, social capital, equity, leadership) Other information. Is there more they want to do? Resources they need? A different approach they would take if given a time machine? Other perspectives? Other notes? IV. Story 2: (same guidance as story 1) V. Conclusion —– You can learn about your issue and the people working on it in a few different ways (a) conduct interviews yourself via phone or videoconference. This will be super rewarding! As a student, you’re in a special spot, where you can interview like a journalist who isn’t going to publish. You can learn about what community leaders are doing, and why. Email me if you’re considering an interview or two and I can provide some guidance and sample questions; or (b) entirely through online research. Use with reliable sources, and cite according to APA guidelines. Generally, we cite any information that is not common knowledge. If you’re not sure whether or not a piece of information is common knowledge, go ahead and cite it just in case. If you’re not sure if a source is reliable, see if you can fact check or verify the information through a different source, or look for your source’s system for editing (most major news outlets publish their approach). There is a variety of outstanding written, film, and audio interviews archived online. We’re looking for discussions that have detail, depth, and insight. Terry Gross’ Fresh Air on NPR has many great examples; to give you an idea what might help answer the questions in this assignment, skim the transcript (or listen to) Gross’ most recent show with Jennifer Finney Boylen. While Gross and Finney Boylen are talking about being transgender and dogs, they’re also talking about what made Finney Boylen the engaged citizen that she is. What is her background? How did she grow up? How does she engage in public life? How is she going about trying to make a difference in the world? This is just one of many examples from Fresh Air. OPB has great Oregon interviews, and there are many, many more from so many sources. For this assignment, you’re in search of interviews or dialogues that reveal a subject’s civic identity, and share how they’re working to make a difference in your chosen issue area. Another kind of media to seek out are the many events and conversations broadcast (and usually recorded) by community organizations, governments, and others. For example, the Oregon Community Foundation recently launched a conversations series; a link for the first, a Facebook Live with three Latinx advocacy organizations, is here. This is just one more example to give you an idea of the kinds of resources that will work well for crafting stories.
