Communicating Environmental Science to Political Decision Makers: Summer Semester Workshop Midterm Briefings

Students in the Master of Public Administration program in Environmental Science and Policy presented their midterm workshop briefings on July 18, 2007.  As part of their coursework for their Workshop in Applied Earth Systems Management I, students examine a proposed but not yet enacted international, federal, state or local environmental law with an emphasis on management issues.  

Professor Steven Cohen, Director of the MPA ESP program, highlights the briefings as a means of teaching the students to deliver key messages in short amounts of time.  He focuses on the students’ abilities to explain complex topics in as simple terms as possible, avoiding jargon yet getting across the necessary scientific understanding at the core of the legislations and international agreements. 

The advisors for the summer workshop are both practitioners and professors. Ms. Kathy Callahan comes to the program with over 30 years of experience working with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) she is currently the US EPA Deputy Regional Administrator for Region 2 (New York, New Jersey, and others).  In addition to his role as the Director of the MPA ESP program, Dr. Cohen is also the Executive Director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University.  As an assistant professor in the Department of International and Public Affairs, Dr. Tanya Heikkila teaches Environmental Politics and Policy Management in addition to the workshop courses each semester.  Professor Heikkila’s research interests are in the fields of policy analysis and institutional theory, renewable and natural resource management and policy, and water governance issues.

Dr. Shahid Naeem, Chair of the Ecology, Evolution, and Environmental Biology Department at Columbia University, is also the Director of Science at the Center for Environmental Research and Conservation.  His research interests include how changes in the distribution and abundance of plants, animals, and microbes affect ecosystem functions and, by extension, how ecosystem services are affected. Ms. Andrea Schmitz is the Director of Environment, Health and Safety, Consolidated Edison Company of New York, Inc.  In her current role, she oversees Con Edison's Environmental Response Team (ERT), which provides around-the-clock response to environmental and safety incidents.

The following is a brief description of the five student projects presented during this summer’s midterm workshop briefings:

H.R. 21: The Ocean Conservation, Education, and National Strategy for the 21^st Century Act – Faculty Advisor: Kathy Callahan, US EPA Deputy Regional Administrator for Region 2

The legislation aims to address dramatic declines in the health and productivity of coastal and marine ecosystems of the United States.  The workshop group explained the scientific foundation behind ocean threats ranging from Global Climate Change to over fishing and by-catch.  The students demonstrated how this policy focused on integrating government policies and increasing communication between the many stakeholders involved as a means of improving the implementation of the policy. 

Senate Bill 309: Global Warming Pollution Reduction Act-Faculty Advisor: Steven Cohen, Director of the MPA ESP Program and Executive Director of the Earth Institute

The workshop group focusing on global warming tackled Senate Bill 309, which would serve as an amendment to the Clean Air Act of 1970. This group explained the concept of global climate change incorporating both anthropogenic influences of warming and potential problems caused by climate change.  They highlighted the bipartisan aspects of both the problem, and the solutions currently being considered by the government. 
 
The Great Lakes-St Lawrence River Basin Water Resources Compact -Faculty Advisor: Tanya Heikkila, Adjunct Professor

The Great Lakes-St Lawrence River Basin Water Resources Compact presentation focused on legislation pending in the New York State Assembly.   The students began then highlighted how this policy was an example of the precautionary principle.  It is an example of designing a policy to avoid future environmental degradation before it becomes a reality.  The students analyzed this unique, large scale, coordinated effort to protect the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence River before they become overly threatened.         

Conservation on Biological Diversity -Faculty Advisor: Shahid Naeem, Chair, Ecology, Evolution, and Environmental Biology Department

The midterm briefing on the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) examined the 1st global treaty to explicitly take comprehensive ecosystem based approach to biodiversity loss. It is a voluntary, international agreement ratified by 190 parties to preserve and protect biological diversity.  Although the scope of the CBD is extremely large in nature, the students were able to define both the nature of the CBD as well as the scientific reasoning behind both the importance of biological diversity and the loss and degradation of such diversity.

H.R. 1945 Energy for Our Future - Faculty Advisor: Andrea Schmitz, Director of Environment, Health and Safety for Consolidated Edison Company of New York, Inc.

The Energy for Our Future Act (HR 1945) was originally proposed in 2005 to “improve energy efficiency in the U.S.”  The four goals of the legislation are to: reduce gasoline usage in vehicles; reduce electricity usage in buildings; remove incentives for oil, gas and coal production and to expand renewable energy production.  The briefing presented the potential scientific problems that arise from current coal-fired power plants, from nitrogen oxide to mercury emissions, and of course the ever present increase in carbon dioxide emissions worldwide.  They also explained the working of such power plants as a means of explaining how they create energy.  The group also explained the importance of, and viability of alternative, renewable energy sources. 

For further information about the MPA ESP program please contact Louise Rosen at (212) 854-3142 or at lar46@columbia.edu.