Jointly Writing an Interdisciplinary Islandsebook

Individual paper and book chapter: explanation of the assignment /

Jointly writing an interdisciplinary islandseBook

Introduction

During the coming months we are going to jointly write an interdisciplinary eBook about island sustainability on differentislands around the globe. This document contains an explanation of the assignment and the assessment criteria for the individual paper and the book chapter. Writing the eBook will be both an individual and a group effort. The writing the eBook will consist of four phases (Figure 1):

Preparation: Each person develops a preliminary research question and decides on the island and topic she/he wants to focus on.
Writing individual papers: Each person will write an individual paper on a specific island anda specific topic.
Writing book chapters: The individual papers will be combinedinto a book chapter on the same island.
eBook: The book chapters will be combined into an eBook.

Figure 1. Four phases of writing the eBook.

Phase 1: Preparation (preliminary research question, decide upon island and topic)

Before you start writing your paper, think about on which island and topic you want to focus. You might consider using the following documents to help you decide on which island and topic you want to focus your paper (please make sure enough literature is available):

The students of last year have composed an extensive eBook (see blackboard).
The national geographic traveler has composed a panel of 522 experts that surveyed 111 islands around the globe (website orpdf version).
It might also be helpful to have a look at the website of the 2014 UN conference on Small Island Developing States.

The broad topics you can choose from can be found inTable 1. A list of keywords which you can use to look for literature and narrow down your research question. After the second lecture you should indicate your preference for a topic and island onblackboard. Based on your responses, groups of approximately 4-6 students will be formed (taking disciplinary background and preference into account as much as possible). People that provide a clear motivation for a topic take precedence. It might occur that two students in the same group will focus on the same topic but since the topics are very broad, this won’t be a problem.

Table 1. Topicsfor book chapters and individual papers.

Topic / Possible keywords (not an extensive list!)
Well-being / Well-being (subjective/objective), quality of life, human needs, Human Development Index (HDI), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), capabilities, freedom, health, access to education, literacy rate, suicide rate, (un)employment rate, gender equality, obesity, food insecurity, social welfare, etc.
Politics / Governance, form of government, international relations, divided islands, governance, security, island state borders, external affairs, power relations with outside actors (states, NGO’s, multinational companies), etc.
Culture / Identity, art, literature, oral traditions, music, film, globalization, imagology, representation, cultural diversity, homogenization, migration, demography, gender, cultural evolution, etc.
Economy / Self-sufficiency, MIRAB (migration, remittances, aid, bureaucracy), development, economic diversification, sectoral contribution to GDP, balance of trade (import/export), import dependency, resource curse, pollution taxes, household income, informal labor, transportation system, etc.
Tourism / Images, representation, eco-tourism, diving tourism, resorts, number of tourists relative to population, community integration, etc.
Agriculture / Food self-sufficiency, conservation agriculture, food security/sovereignty, nutrition, (over) fishing, agro-ecology, urban food gardening, comparative advantage, diets, Indirect Land Use Change (ILUC), soil erosion, etc.
Biodiversity / Nature conservation, species invasions, endemism, (marine) protected areas, extinction/extirpation, terrestrial/aquatic ecosystems, habitat fragmentation, etc.
Energy / Energy self-sufficiency, renewable energy, green energy, wind energy, solar energy, biofuels, energy subsidies, etc.
Water / Water quality, water quantity, fresh water, ground water shortage, water pollution, drought, desertification, water equity, etc.
Climate / Climate change mitigation/adaptation, cyclone activity, storm shelters, sea-level rise, etc.
Waste / Waste management, municipal solid waste, Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions, Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), air pollution, water pollution, recycling, hazardous waste, sustainable waste management, waste treatment, toxicity, life cycle assessment, landfill, etc.

Phase 2: Writing an individual paper (case-study on a specific island and topic)

For the individual paper assignment you will do a case-study on a specific island regarding a central topic (see separate document on blackboard ‘layout for individual paper’ for more details). Although this is an individual assignment make sure to keep regular contact with your fellow group members.

Phase 3:Combining the individual papers into a book chapter

Thebook chapter consists of an introduction, a conclusion, and the peer-reviewed individual papers. Editing the book chapter isajointresponsibility of all group members. However, it is highly recommended to appoint one or two persons in the group as a chair person (main editor). Since we will combine the book chapters into an eBook it is necessary that the style of all chapters is identical (see document ‘lay-out for book chapter’ on blackboard for more details). The structure of the book chapter should be as follows:

Front page
Abstract
Introduction to chapter
Peer-reviewed individual papers (without reference lists)
Chapter conclusion and discussion
Reference list of all literature cited in the chapter (alphabetical order, APA style)

Phase 4: Symposium and eBook

During the symposium each group will present their main findings to the audience and a jury (approximately 15-20 min. per group). The aim of the symposium is to learn from each other. The presentations will not be graded. The eBook will be sent to all authors after the symposium.

Assessment

The individual paper will be graded at the same moment as the book chapter. The papers should comply to all standards that are required for an academic paper. In addition, the paper should comply to some specific requirements. Two separate assessment forms will be used for the individual paper and the book chapter (see tables on following pages).

Assessment criteria for individual paper

Table 2. Assessment criteriafor the individual paper. More information about the Dutch grading scale can be found here:

Introduction

Introduction to the island and topic
Are central research question(s) and problem statement(s) clearly presented?
Is the relevance clearly explained?

/ 1-10 / 15%
Comments
Analysis of island and topic

Critical reflection on the current state of the island regarding the chosen topic
Critical reflection on ‘islandness’: isolation/connectivity, boundedness, resilience/vulnerability, remoteness (core/periphery), etc. based on theory (including the lectures and corresponding literature)

/ 1-10 / 45%
Comments
Conclusion

Answer to central research question(s)
Does the conclusion follow logically from previous sections?
Clear take home message including future challenges/opportunities (what lessons can be learnt from the island?)

/ 1-10 / 15%
Comments
Structure and style

Structure of the paper (e.g. information presented in a logical way, structure clearly indicated, consistency of information)
Academic writing style (grammar, spelling, readability, etc.)

In-text citations (correct, consistent).
Layout as indicated in document ‘layout for individual paper’ and consistent

/ 1-10 / 15%
Comments
The ISLANDS factor

Originality, creativity, curiosity, enthusiasm, out-of-the-island thinking
Visualizations (e.g. figures, tables, graphs etc.)
Integration ofinsights from social sciences, natural sciences, humanities

/ 1-10 / 10%
Comments

Assessment criteria for book chapter (group assignment)

Table 3. Assessment criteria for the book chapter. More information about the Dutch grading scale can be found here:

Abstract and introduction

Does the abstract provide a concise summary of the main points of the book chapter?
Is the introduction clear? (aim of the chapter, relevance, central questions, etc.)
Is a common framework created?

/ 1-10 / 30%
Comments
Integrated discussion andconclusion

Do the authors provide an integrated analysis of biophysical and sociocultural processes that have shaped the island and its biological and cultural communities?
Are the individual papers connected into an integrated discussion and conclusion?
Do the authors reflect critically on insights from the individual papers and theory (lectures and literature)?
What lessons can be learnt when bringing insights from the individual case-studies together?
Do the authors reflect on ‘islandness’?

/ 1-10 / 30%
Comments
Structure and style

Structure of the paper (e.g. information presented in a logical way, structure clearly indicated, consistency of information)