Outline Critiques and Revisions

Starter: Read Bekkah Kuster's example conclusion from her thesis (see below) and jot down what you notice about what she includes in her conclusion. How could she have developed her conclusion further? It is a bit on the short side!

Class Biz

1. Completed outlines are due the beginning of class on Monday!
2. SPAM 2 meetings and the form need to be completed by next Friday, 2/10 @ 3:30 pm
3. Next Week's Objectives/Benchmarks
4. Done with your outline early?  Email it to me and your Senior Project Advisor, then come conference with me so we can move you to writing early!

Outline Critiques
Do the outline critique process outlined in the document linked above!

Outline Work Time

• GOAL:  Finish all sections of your outline!

HOMEWORK:

• Finish your outline, share/email it to Ashley and your Senior Project Advisor by the start of class on Monday. 

Bekkah Kuster's Example Conclusion  (this one is a bit on the short side and could use development. Check out the other thesis examples on my senior project page for more ideas on conclusions!)

Research Question: What energy strategies from U.S. cities and countries around the world would be most effective at reducing greenhouse gas emissions?

Part IV: Conclusion
The results of this research show that there are three essential strategies that must be taken to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and successfully transition to a clean energy nation. These are collaboration, ambitious goals, and policy. The research also shows that these steps must be taken together, in a coordinated manner, as each helps to ensure the success of the other. The combination of these strategies has proven to be successful in countries around the world including Germany and Denmark. The fact that they have also been successful in some U.S. cities and states, like Greensburg, Kansas and Vermont, proves their universal applicability.

This research has also shown that we need to shift the mindset of citizenry to value long-term successes over short-term profit. Denmark and Germany both experienced events (e.g. Chernobyl) that made clear the dangers and unsustainability of non-renewable energy sources.  Greensburg also experienced a catastrophic event that similarly made undeniable the need for transition to renewables. It is apparent from these three histories that significant change is only made when the current system is clearly no longer viable.  

Yet, more than citizen pressure was required to make these transformations possible; governmental will, persistence and skill were also essential. This is illustrated by the experience of the Gulf states after the BP oil disaster. While they also experienced an environmental catastrophe, intentional governmental action (such as acknowledging the need for change, promoting a vision, and providing resources and opportunities for structural change) to promote systemic change did not occur.  

At this time, we can no longer wait for such events to spark this change in consciousness and political will. Changes can sometimes occur in particular settings without the need for catalytic events. Yet for transition to occur at a national level, which is now a practical necessity, the will -- both popular and governmental -- must be engendered in some other way.  This is a critical area demanding further research. Once approaches are developed to address this challenge, the strategies of collaboration, ambitious goals and policy will be significantly more powerful.