Environment General Courses (ENVIRON)

graduate level, taught in Durham

298.43. Public Policy Development and Analysis for Environmental Professionals

August 24 – October 7 (2 credits)
T/Th 2:15-3:30
LSRC A109

Professor Deborah Rigling Gallagher
e-mail: deb.gallagher@duke.edu
Office: LSRC A118B
Phone: 613-8138
Office Hours: T/Th 10-11:30

TA: Betsy Albright
e-mail: eaa8@duke.edu

Course Description: Much of an environmental professional’s career is centered on analyzing, designing and implementing environmental policies. To be effective, it is important to understand the origin of those policies. It is necessary to be familiar with how the policy agenda is set, to know which actors within and outside of government have roles in the policy development process, and to confront the political and economic context in which policies are designed and enacted. Finally, it is important to be familiar with the tools of policy analysis and to understand how policy decisions are made.
In this course students will learn about each of these topics through a process of active learning. Class participation and role-playing will be important tools. In the first part of the course students will examine the context for policy development through text readings and case studies. Students will then learn how to conduct policy analysis and have an opportunity to examine local environmental policy issues as the classroom becomes a forum for public debate and students play roles as analysts and advocates on two sides of an issue. Finally, students will analyze a set of environmental policy alternatives and present their findings in a summary memo to a decision maker.

Course Format: Lectures, discussions, in-class exercises, case studies and presentations.

Course Requirements: We all come to this course with varied backgrounds and experience and can learn much from each other. Students will be expected to read the assigned material and be prepared to participate in class enthusiastically. Prior to each class a series of questions will be provided to provoke discussion. In addition, assigned student groups will analyze a current local policy case and present their findings to an expert practitioner. Students will develop three individual policy memos on a current environmental policy issue. In these memos acquired policy analysis skills will be incrementally applied. There will be no midterm or final exam.
Finally, all students should also keep up with current policy issues by reading the newspaper. We may begin each class with a discussion of a critical environmental policy issue. A national newspaper, such as The New York Times, The Washington Post or The Wall Street Journal is a good source of information. Because we will focus on local environmental policy issues in this class, you should also read The Raleigh News and Observer or The Durham Herald Sun.

The course grade will be comprised of the following components:

Class Participation and Attendance (20%)
Policy Analysis Memo 1 (15%) Due September 16
Policy Analysis Memo 2 (20%) Due September 23
Group Policy Analysis Presentation (25%) Due October 5 and 7
Policy Analysis Memo 3 (20%) Due October 14

A Note on Late Assignments: If you have a very good reason for not being able to turn in an assignment on time, it will be considered, if you speak to me beforehand. Otherwise, your grade will be adjusted downward a grade for each day late.

Required Texts:
 John W. Kingdon. Agendas, Alternatives and Public Policies (2nd edition). New York:Addison-Wesley, 1997 (Kingdon)

 Bardach, Eugene. 2000. A Practical Guide to Policy Analysis: The Eightfold Path to More Effective Problem Solving (2nd Edition). Washington DC, CQ Press (Bardach).

Kennedy School of Government Cases:
 Breaking the Circle of Poisons: Senator Patrick Leahy and Pesticide Export Controls
 This Far and No Farther: The Rise and Fall of the Committee on Earth and Environmental Science
 Cleaning Up the Big Dirties: The Problem of Acid Rain
 Listening to the City: Rebuilding at New York’s World Trade Center Site

Online Course Readings

Course Outline

Part 1: The Context for Developing Public Policy
Week 1: What is Public Policy/The Policy Memo
Week 2: The Policy Process/Politics
Week 3: Actors and Agenda Setting

Part 2: Public Policy Analysis: Tools and Applications
Week 4: Conducting Policy Analysis: Problems and Alternatives
Week 5: Conducting Policy Analysis: Methods of Analysis
Week 6: Local Policy Case Presentations
Week 7: Conducting Policy Analysis: Data and Implementation
Week 8: Solutions, Stakeholders and Ethics

Detailed Course Schedule

Part I: The Context for Developing Public Policy

WEEK 1: What is Public Policy, Writing Policy Memos

August 24: Introduction to Course: What is Public Policy Analysis?
Readings:
 Bardach: Introduction
 Radin, Beryl A. 2003. “Reflections on Careers in Policy Analysis”. Journal of Policy Analysis and Management. 22:2, pages 299-312.
[Available on-line through Pro-quest].

August 26: Writing Policy Memos
Readings:
 Bardach: Chapter 8, Appendix B
 O’ Hare, Michael. 2004. “Rhetoric: Memo to my students”. Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, 23:2, pp 365 – 375.
[Available on-line through Pro-quest].
 Introduction of local policy issues for group project and individual memos

WEEK 2: The Policy Process and the Role of Politics

August 31: The Policy Process
Readings:
 Kingdon Chapter 4
 Laswell, Harold D. 1971. Chapters 5 and 6 in A Pre-View of the Policy Sciences, New York: Elsevier. Available on-line: http://www.policysciences.org/

September 2: The Role of Politics
Readings:
 Stone, Deborah. 2002. “The Market and the Polis”. Chapter 2, pages 17-34, in Policy Paradox: The Art of Political Decision Making. New York: Norton.
[Available on Blackboard]
 Kingdon Chapter 7
 KSG Case: Cleaning Up the Big Dirties: The Problem of Acid Rain

WEEK 3: Actors and Agendas

September 7: Actors in the Policy Process
Readings:
 Kingdon Chapters 2-3

 KSG Case: This Far and No Farther: The Rise and Fall of the Committee on Earth and Environmental Sciences

September 9: Agenda Setting: Problems and Windows
Readings:
 Kingdon Chapters 5, 6 &8
 KSG Case: Breaking the Circle of Poisons: Senator Patrick Leahy and Pesticide Export Controls

Part II: Public Policy Analysis: Tools and Applications

WEEK 4: Conducting Policy Analysis: Problems and Alternatives

September 14: Defining Problems
Readings:
 Bardach: Chapters 1-3
 Guess, George M.; Farnham, Paul G. 2000. “Problem Identification and Structuring”, Chapter 2, pages 21-64, in Cases in Public Policy Analysis. Washington, DC: Georgetown University Press. [available on Blackboard]

September 16: Developing Alternatives Policy Memo 1 due before class begins
Reading:
 Bardach Chapter 4

 In-Class Exercise on Problems and Alternatives

WEEK 5: Conducting Policy Analysis: Methods of Analysis

September 21: Criteria and Alternatives Matrices
Reading:
 Bardach Chapters 5-7

 In-Class Exercise on Criteria Development

September 23: Case Study Analysis Policy Memo 2 due before class begins
Readings:
 Tellis, Winston. 1997. “Application of a Case Study Methodology”. The Qualitative Report, 3:3. http://www.nova.edu/ssss/QR/QR3-3/tellis2.html

 Gallagher, Deborah Rigling (2004 ). “Building Environmental Management Systems Focused on Sustainability: The Influence of Employees, Company Leaders and External Stakeholders”, in New Horizons in Research in Sustainable Organizations: Emerging Ideas, Approaches and Tools for Practitioners and Researchers, edited by Mark Starik. Sheffield: Greenleaf Publishing. [available on Blackboard]

WEEK 6: Conducting Policy Analysis: Implementation and Data Gathering

September 28: Implementation
 Guess, George M.; Farnham, Paul G. 2000. “Forecasting Institutional Effects on Public Policy Performance”, Chapter 3, pages 65-131 in Cases in Public Policy Analysis. Washington, DC: Georgetown University Press.
[available on Blackboard]

September 30: Solutions and Stakeholders Policy Memo 3 due before class begins
Readings:
 Bardach: Appendix B
 Shulock, Nancy. 1999. “The Paradox of Policy Analysis: If it is Not Used, Why Do We Produce So Much?” Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, Volume 18, Number 2, 226-244. [Available on-line through Pro-quest]
 KSG Case: Listening to the City: Rebuilding at New York’s World Trade Center Site

WEEK 7: Local Policy Issue Presentations in Class

October 5: Case 1: Stormwater Management Policies: 2004 NC Legislation
October 7: Case 2: Sprawl: Chatham County’s 2004 Compact Community Ordinance.

Policy on Making Up Graded Work

The course policy for making up a graded exercise missed due to a short-term illness will be consistent with the university policy, which is to be adopted by the faculty councils of Arts and Sciences and Pratt School of Engineering early in the fall semester, 2003. Until that time, if you are unable to complete academic work (tests, exams, papers or scheduled graded assignments) as a result of short-term illness, you should speak with me, ideally before your absence

Nicholas School Honor Code

All activities of Nicholas School students, including those in this course, are governed by the Duke Community Standard:
The Duke Community Standard
Duke University is a community of scholars and learners, committed to the principles of honesty, trustworthiness, fairness, and respect for others. Students share with faculty and staff the responsibility for promoting a climate of integrity. As citizens of this community, students are expected to adhere to these fundamental values at all times, in both their academic and non-academic endeavors.
The Pledge
Students affirm their commitment to uphold the values of the Duke University community by signing a pledge that states:

1. I will not lie, cheat, or steal in my academic endeavors, nor will I accept the actions of those who do.

2. I will conduct myself responsibly and honorably in all my activities as a Duke student.