Climate Change Policy Assignment 2: Adaptation

1) Submission instructions

1. You must submit your assignment electronically for both plagiarism checking and marking via the on-line links in the Assignment 2 area of the course website.
2. The submission deadline is 5 PM Monday, Week 14.
3. The assignment must be no more than 3000 words (not including references, tables and diagrams).
4. This assignment is worth 50% of your total mark.

 

ALWAYS KEEP A BACK-UP COPY OF YOUR ASSIGNMENT.

 

2) Questions

WHAT SHOULD BE THE ROLE FOR EACH OF THE THREE LEVELS OF GOVERNMENT IN AUSTRALIA IN HELPING QUEENSLAND ADAPT TO CLIMATE CHANGE?

 

Specifically:

1. What are the key climate change adaptation issues that need to be addressed in Queensland?
2. What powers* are granted to each level of government under the Australian Constitution and Queensland Local Government Act that could be used to address these issues?
3. What should be the role of the Commonwealth (national) government?
4. What should be the role of the Queensland state government?
5. What should be the role of the local governments in Queensland?
6. How could these three levels of government work together to develop and deliver more appropriate, effective and efficient climate change adaptation policies?
7. How would what you propose improve each step of the policy cycle?

 

* HINT, WITH REGARDS TO QUESTION 2:

• Sections 51 and 52 of the Australian Constitution give specific powers to the Commonwealth (e.g. Section 51 (xxix) gives it the power over external relations – this includes the power to enforce international treaties such as the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and Kyoto Protocol);
• All residual powers (those not specified for the Commonwealth) are given to the states, so they have a wide degree of freedom to act on climate change; and,
• The Constitution does not mention local governments but legislation such as the Queensland Local Government Act 2009 (sections 9 and 10) outlines their powers (Note: This legislation is currently being amended to give local governments more freedom over development decisions via the Local Government and Other Legislation Amendment Act 2012).

 

You should:

• Start by reading the textbook, the on-line notes and readings for all topics, and the documents listed in section 3 (below) of these instructions;
• Do a search of the academic literature using one of the many databases (the Griffith Library Search engine and Google Scholar are useful) and limit your search to peer-reviewed academic journal articles;
• Cite and use at least 12 peer reviewed academic journal articles in addition to the relevant policy documents and official reports in section 3 (below);
• Do not use unreliable on-line sources (such as Wikipedia, media reports or blogs) or marks will be deducted;
• Follow the writing guidelines below as well as chapters 1, 6 and 10 of your supporting text (Hay, I. Communicating in Geography and the Environmental Sciences. Oxford);
• Make sure that you know and follow the rules regarding academic misconduct;
• If you have not already done so for another course, complete the on-line Academic Integrity Tutorial via Learning@Griffith;
• Seek assistance from GELI if English is your second language; and,
• Find further help with essay writing at the library’s Self Help Resources.

 

3) Documents with useful ideas and information:

International

Antarctic Climate & Ecosystems Cooperative Research Centre. 2011. Government Coastal Planning Responses to Rising Sea Levels: Australia and Overseas. Technical Report. ACECRC: Hobart.

 

Ford, J., L. Berrang-Ford & J. Paterson. 2011. “A systematic review of observed climate change adaptation in developed nations.” Climatic Change. 106: 327–336.

 

HM Government. 2011. Climate Resilient Infrastructure: Preparing for a Changing Climate. DEFRA: London.

 

IPCC. 2012. Managing the Risks of Extreme Events and Disasters to Advance Climate Change Adaptation. A Special Report of Working Groups I and II of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. “Summary for Policymakers.”

 

IPCC. 2014. Climate Change 2014: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability. Contribution of Working Group 2 to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Chapter 25: Australasia.

 

Mathews, T. 2011. Climate Change Adaptation in Urban Systems: Strategies for Planning Regimes. Research Paper 32. Urban Research Program: Griffith University.

 

Smith, I., J. Dodson, B. Gleeson & P. Burton. 2010. Growing adaptively? Responding to climate change through regional spatial planning in England and Australia. Research Paper 31. Urban Research Program: Griffith University.

 

 

 

 

 

National

Australian Academy of Science. (AAS). 2015. The Science of Climate Change: Questions and Answers. AAS: Canberra.

Australian Government. 2010. Adapting to Climate Change in Australia: An Australian Government Position Paper. DCC: Canberra.

 

Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) & Bureau of Meteorology (BoM). 2014. State of the Climate. CSIRO: Canberra.

 

Council of Australian Governments (COAG). 2007. National Climate Change Adaptation Framework. COAG: Canberra.

 

Department of Climate Change (DCC). 2009. Climate Change Risks to Australia’s Coasts: A first pass national assessment. DCC: Canberra.

 

Head, B. 2008. “Wicked Problems in Public Policy.” Public Policy. 3(2): 101-118.

 

Productivity Commission. 2012. Barriers to Effective Climate Change Adaptation. Canberra.

 

State & Regional

Howes, M., D. Grant-Smith, K. Reis, K. Bosomworth, P. Tangney, M. Heazle, D.  McEvoy & P. Burton. 2013. Rethinking Disaster Risk Management and Climate Change Adaptation: Final Report. National Climate Change Adaptation Facility, Griffith University: Brisbane.

 

Queensland Government. 2014. Regional Planning. DSDIP: Brisbane.

 

Steele, W. & B. Gleeson. 2009. Planning in climate change: Towards a relational framework for action. Research Paper 26. Urban Research Program: Griffith University.

 

Local

Local Government Association of Queensland (LGAQ). 2007. Adapting to climate change, a Queensland local government guide. LGAQ, Brisbane.

 

Coastal Councils. 2010. Climate Change Adaptation Plan. Report Commissioned by the Hunter and Central Coast Regional Environmental Management Strategy: Newcastle.

 

City of Gold Coast (CGC). 2009. Climate Change Strategy 2009-14. DCC & GCCC: Southport.

 

CGC. 2009. Gold Coast Flood Maps. Southport.

 

Gympie Chamber of Commerce. 2010. Gympie Central Business District: Flood Sub Plan. (Public Version). Gympie.

 

 

Howes, M & A. Dedekorkut-Howes. 2013. “The Paradox of Paradise: Declining government responses to the increasing risks of climate change on the Gold Coast.” State of Australian Cities Conference, 26-29 November, Sydney.

 

Howes, M. & A. Dedekorkut-Howes. 2010. “From White Shoes to Waders: Climate change adaptation and government on the Gold Coast.” Australasian Political Studies Association Conference, 27-29 September, Melbourne University: Melbourne.

 

4) Writing Introductions

A good introduction should:

1. Grab the attention of the reader;
2. Clearly state the question to be answered or topic to be discussed;
3. Tell the reader why this subject is important;
4. Outline what the essay will cover and in what order; and,
5. Summarise the argument to be made.

Example

Pressure groups are sometimes portrayed as a dangerous and destabilising component of Australian politics. Such a view is often used as a basis for the curtailment of their democratic right to protest. This essay will analyse the purpose of pressure groups and the reasons why they form. The paper is divided into three main sections. Section one will explain the purpose of pressure groups. The second section will then consider why they form. Finally, the Wilderness Society (TWS) will be used as a case study to illustrate the general points made. It will be argued that far from being something to fear, pressure groups play a vital role in identifying urgent issues that the government needs to address.

 

5) Writing the Main Body of the Essay

Remember that the purpose of any assignment is to be read. It is an indication of your skills in research, analysis, communication and creative thinking. The following points are suggestions that might help you through the writing process.

 

Don’t just recount what others have said:

• Use your understanding of climate change policy to identify and analyse the relevant features of the policy;

• Construct an argument that answers the questions using the peer-reviewed academic journal articles from your database search as a support;
• Don’t use too many quotations; and,
• Don’t just link up quoted passages with a sentence or two.

 

Language & layout:

• Use clear headings for each section;
• Check the meaning of words before using them;
• Avoid over-using colons, dashes & semi-colons;
• Make sure you know the proper use of similar terms (e.g. their, there & they’re);
• Each paragraph should cover one main point;
• Paragraphs should flow on from each other; and,
• Only include diagrams, tables or quotes if they are relevant.

 

6) Writing Conclusions

A good conclusion should:

1. Draw together all the points raised;
2. Not introduce new arguments that haven’t appeared in the essay;
3. Summarise the findings and restate the argument; and,
4. When read together with the introduction provide an overall summary of the essay.

 

Example

This essay has shown that the purpose of pressure groups is two-fold: first, to have their concerns or interests placed on the political agenda and, second, to elicit a supportive response from government. It has been demonstrated that pressure groups form when enough individuals become concerned about the apparent neglect of an issue or interest by government. TWS, for example, formed in response to the lack of adequate environmental protection in Tasmania. Such groups actually assist the operation of good government by putting urgent issues on the political agenda for action.

 

7) Referencing

Use the in-text Harvard system outlined in chapter 10 of Hay, I. 2012. Communicating in Geography and the Environmental Sciences. 4^th edition. Oxford University Press. Marks will be deducted if you do not use this system correctly.

 

8) Plagiarism

Plagiarism is the use of others people’s words or ideas without proper academic citations and quotation marks or indenting. It is a very serious breach of academic conventions and university regulations.

 

Consider this quote:

It has been noted that the number interest groups has tended to increase.

This tendency to a proliferation of pressure groups is evident in any free society. One direct cause of this growth in the extent and intensity of activity by such groups is the fact that governments have slowly but steadily extended their involvement in, and regulation of the economy and society (Jaensch 1997, 343).

 

If the passage is not indented, then it is plagiarism, even though the reference is given:

It has been noted that the number interest groups has tended to increase. This tendency to a proliferation of pressure groups is evident in any free society. One direct cause of this growth in the extent and intensity of activity by such groups is the fact that governments have slowly but steadily extended their involvement in, and regulation of the economy and society (Jaensch 1997, 343).

 

If you give a close paraphrasing it is also plagiarism (changes underlined):

It has been noted that the number interest groups has tended to increase. This tendency of proliferation by pressure groups is evident in all free societies. A direct cause of this growth by such groups is the fact that governments have steadily extended their involvement in, and regulation of our economy and society (Jaensch 1997, 343).

 

If no citation is given, then it is plagiarism:

It has been noted that the number interest groups has tended to increase. This tendency to a proliferation of pressure groups is evident in any free society. One direct cause of this growth in the extent and intensity of activity by such groups is the fact that governments have slowly but steadily extended their involvement in, and regulation of the economy and society.

 

 

If paraphrased and no citation, then it is plagiarism:

It has been noted that the number interest groups has tended to increase. This tendency of proliferation by pressure groups is evident in all free societies. A direct cause of this growth by such groups is the fact that governments have steadily extended their involvement in, and regulation of our economy and society.

 

The rules also apply to shorter quotes of sentences, remember the example:

Interest groups are an important part of Australian politics. “An interest group is a formal or informal group of people with common interests, attitudes or aims – for example, a commercial, church or rural interest”(Jaensch 1997, 341).

 

Omitting the quotation marks is plagiarism:

Interest groups are an important part of Australian politics. An interest group is a formal or informal group of people with common interests, attitudes or aims – for example, a commercial, church or rural interest (Jaensch 1997, 341).

 

Omitting the citation is plagiarism:

Interest groups are an important part of Australian politics. An interest group is a formal or informal group of people with common interests, attitudes or aims – for example, a commercial, church or rural interest.

 

The rules also apply to phrases, remember the example:

Interest groups are an important part of Australian politics. One definition suggests that interest groups are “a formal or informal group of people with common interests, attitudes or aims” (Jaensch 1997, 341).

 

Omitting the quotations is still plagiarism:

Interest groups are an important part of Australian politics. One definition suggests that interest groups are a formal or informal group of people with common interests, attitudes or aims (Jaensch 1997, 341).

 

Omitting the reference is plagiarism:

Interest groups are an important part of Australian politics. One definition suggests that interest groups are a formal or informal group of people with common interests, attitudes or aims.

 

Close paraphrasing, even with the citation is plagiarism:

Interest groups are an important part of Australian politics. One definition suggests that interest groups are a more formal or less formal group of people with similar interests, attitudes or aims (Jaensch 1997, 341).