History 492AH - S-Science for the People

Do you care about climate change, health inequalities, agricultural sustainability, food justice, GMOs, energy policy, scientific constructions of gender or any of the other myriad issues involving science and social justice confronting us today? Interested in a historical analysis of these issues that accounts for power and privilege? "Science for the People: 1970s and Today" is a hands-on exploration of the history of the radical 1970s-1980s group Science for the People (SftP), which employed Marxist analysis and non-hierarchical organizing methods to attack racism, sexism, classism, militarism, and corporate power in scientific research and policy.

Open to Seniors, Juniors & Sophomores only. The centerpiece of the course will be participation in a three-day conference (April 11-13) on the history of SftP and the present / future of science activism, where students will interact with veteran members of SftP along with historians and other scholars of science and technology in social context. Students will contribute in a meaningful way to the conference and will also have the opportunity to pursue a final research project on a related subject of their choice.