Community Engagement & Applied Scholarship Assignment:
For this assignment you will take part in a form of community engagement and applied scholarship and
write up your experiences and findings in a ~2-page report.
Choose one of the three following methods for this assignment:
1. Service Learning: volunteer with an organization or group that focuses on environmental justice
issues. If you would like to choose this option but are having a hard time finding a volunteer
opportunity, let me know. This can be a one-time volunteer event, or an ongoing engagement. If
you are already involved in a volunteer opportunity like this, I encourage you to use it for this
project.
2. Site Visit: find local EJ groups (or events) and visit one of them, learn about what they focus on
and how they work towards environmental justice. This could be a visitor center at a land trust
or state park, an established organization like Groundwork Denver, or a singular event such as
an Earth Day march or workshop.
3. Internet Research & Engagement: research and engage with an environmental justice
organization online – this might involve interviewing activists or contributing to online activism
via research or letter-writing. For example, Conservation Colorado has an Online Action Center
with plenty of ideas.
After engaging in the option of your choice, write up a ~2-page report about your experiences. The
report should be double-spaced, 12-point font, normal 1-inch margins. Be sure to cite any sources you
use, including the organization, event, or site you were involved with for the project. It does not matter
which citation style you use, as long as you are consistent (e.g. if you use Chicago style, stick with
Chicago style throughout; if you use ASA style, stick with ASA style throughout).
The report should, (1) offer a brief summary of what you took part in and why you chose that option, (2)
a deep reflection of how this activity related to environmental justice and how you experienced
environmental justice through the activity, and (3) thoughts about and ideas for future actions
surrounding environmental justice.
