Report Assignment
Part 1
During this course, many environmental issues will be examined in detail. The Final Report is a project that will give you an opportunity to focus on an area of interest to you. You will research and write an essay on an environmental issue position. The research essay will be written in stages with different assignments/tasks throughout this course.
To successfully complete Part 1, do the following:
1. Identify one environmental issue that has affected you or someone you know. The issue you choose will be the topic for your Final Report. For help in selecting topics, refer to the "Suggestions for Environmental Topics."
2. Complete the Final Report: Part 1 Outline as specified in the directions.
3. Write a complete introductory paragraph.
A minimum of three peer reviewed resources are required.
Suggestions for Environmental Topics
Choose one of the topics below for your final report.
Note, please make your position obvious, however, you should avoid personal pronouns in academic writing (i.e. I, me...)
• Oil drilling in the Arctic National Wife Refuge (ANWR) (for or against)
• The deforestation issue: Rainforests and ecological sustainability versus economic growth
• Renewable energy vs. nonrenewable energy
• Deforestation (for or against)
• Genetically modified food (for or against)
• Organic food (for or against)
• Overpopulation(for or against): Focus on environmental impacts!
• Wild fish versus farmed fish
• Controlled forest fires and how healthy they are for the environment and people
• Bottled water (for or against)
• Throw away life style (for or against)
• Hydraulic fracturing (for or against)
• Nuclear power (for or against)
• Animal factory farming: example: CAFOs (for or against)
• Recycling (for or against)
• Hybrid or Electrical Cars (for or against)
• Captive Populations: example: zoos, aquariums, etc. (for or against)
• Investing in "Glamorous Species" (for or against)
Report Part 1 Outline
Directions: For Part 1, youare required to write a complete introductory paragraph using the outline below. For the second, third, and fourth paragraphs, you need to write complete sentences that show the basic outline for the essay. By completing this outline,you will have a guide to refer to when finalizing your report.
Introductory Paragraph (Identify the thesis statement andwrite a complete paragraph explaining the topic in general.)
Thesis Sentence:
Paragraph:
Paragraph 2: Position (Write a topic sentence that supports your thesis and provides a transition between the paragraphs. Then, record at least three details that provide support for the topic sentence.)
Topic Sentence:
Detail A:
Detail B:
Detail C:
Paragraph 3: Opposition (To present a fair argument you need to research and outline some of the common positions that dispute your position(i.e. if you are for chocolate for your position, here you would be writing why chocolate is bad). Write a topic sentence that supports your thesis and provides a transition between the paragraphs. Then, record at least three details that provide support for the topic sentence.)
Topic Sentence:
Detail A:
Detail B:
Detail C:
Paragraph 4: Rebuttal(In the final paragraph you willmake a case as to why your position is correct versus the opposing position. Essentially, you will defend your side of the argument using examples and evidence to discount the opposition.Write a topic sentence that supports your thesis and provides a transition between the paragraphs. Then, record at least three details that provide support for the topic sentence.)
Topic Sentence:
Detail A:
Detail B:
Detail C:
Conclusion: (Record a concluding sentence below. This should be your thesis restated in different words.)
Concluding Sentence:
References
Grand Canyon University. (Ed.). (2015). Environmental Science: The Human Impact on Natural Resources.
Start your next reference here. Try to reference the textbook. If you end up not using the textbook be sure to delete the reference above. Also make sure to delete these instructions.