Assignments

Final Paper

> Overview

Through readings, discussions and field trips, this class has taken an in-depth look at many aspects of Baltimore 's food systems. We have reviewed a variety of strategies currently being implemented in Baltimore and elsewhere to help improve food system healthfulness and/or environmental sustainability. This final assignment is the students' chance to examine in depth a new or expanded intervention or policy.

The purpose of the assignment is both to learn about the intervention/policy and relevant literature, and also to critically evaluate it. We emphasize that every intervention/policy has strengths and limitations; this paper is not an advocacy piece, but rather, a considered review of the opportunity. Indeed, we would argue that it would be inappropriate to advocate for a change without first critically assessing the possible limitations, unintended consequences, and information gaps.

The papers should be 12-20 pages double-spaced. Be sure to include all the listed elements, and to use section headers to highlight them, as we use them in grading. Due: Session 16.

> Paper Components

1. Description of the concern you plan to address, including background, magnitude, key determinants.

2. Short overview of relevant existing interventions and community resources/strengths.

3. Proposed intervention or policy.

Note that the intervention or policy you propose may have multiple components; however, for the purposes of this paper, we request that you focus the bulk of the discussion in-depth on one central element. You can include an outline the range of other components and how they fit together. Also, in choosing interventions, consider tradeoffs between broad/general strategies with broad, general results, vs. focused strategies with more limited but potentially more direct results.

• Describe the intervention/policy and state its goals concisely in bullet form
• Review relevant literature. Non-peer reviewed sources may be used to supplement peer-reviewed sources.
• Use literature and critical thought to discuss your strategy in terms of the following criteria.* Where information is not available, you may speculate.
  • Effectiveness
  • Feasibility
  • Cost feasibility
  • Sustainability
  • Ethical acceptability
  • Political will
  • Social will
  • Potential for unintended benefits
  • Potential for unintended risks
• Summarize key barriers and what it would take to institute your proposed intervention
• Optional: briefly suggest an evaluation strategy

4. Discussion and conclusions, including a discussion of implications beyond Baltimore.

* From the Intervention Decision Matrix ( Fowler CJ & Dannenberg AL, 1995. Revised 1998, 2000, & 2003 Johns Hopkins University ). See the earlier version for further details on most of the above criteria. Students are not required to address all the questions she lists.

> Note

It is an option to do this project in cooperation with an organization, to aid them in their work. You may change some project parameters based on their needs -- with prior approval from us. If you are not doing the project on behalf of an organization, we ask that you gather the relevant information using publicly available sources, and not request information from area organization staff, who are generally quite busy.