American Public Policy This course examines the functioning of the entire United States political system, with an emphasis on the policies or outcomes of this political system. The first part of the course will examine the context in which policy is made (e.g., history, capitalism, liberalism). The second part of the course will focus on the policy-making process. We will examine the major stages of the policy process: agenda setting, policy formulation, adoption, implementation, and evaluation. The third and final part of the course will focus on specific policy areas, such as education policy and health care policy.

American Environmental Politics In this seminar we will examine various aspects of environmental politics in the United States. Topics to be covered include how society seeks to influence environmental policy (through public opinion, voting and interest groups,) and how policy is made through Congress, the executive branch, the courts, collaboration, and through the states. Policy case studies will vary from year to year.  Students will write a major research paper on an aspect of U.S. environmental politics.

Conservation and Environmental Policy This course examines conservation and environmental policy in the United States. In order to better understand the current nature of the conservation and environmental policy process, we will begin by tracing the development of past ideas, institutions, and policies related to this policy arena. We will then focus on contemporary conservation and environmental politics and policy making—gridlock in Congress, interest group pressure, the role of the courts and the president, and a move away from national policy making—toward the states, collaboration, and civil society.

The New West: From Reagan to Burning Man The U.S. West since 1976 has been transformed by economic, social, political, and environmental forces. Immigration, amenity tourism, climate change, globalization, technology, political change, and economic booms and busts have remade a region once defined by isolated rural communities, extractive industries, “natural landscapes,” and filmmakers’ imaginations.   In this course we will draw from history and politics to make sense of conflicts over public lands, water, fire, energy, Native sovereignty, racial inequality, rural gentrification, urbanization, and sprawl. Short papers will culminate in a historical policy brief on current challenges in the West.

Water: From Fish to PFAS  In this team-taught course we will focus on water in the U.S. from the perspectives of natural science and policy. Three general themes, two of which map onto major environmental laws, will guide the course: clean water (Clean Water Act), drinking water (Safe Drinking Water Act), and dams. We will examine questions of human / non-human equity concerns throughout the course, from pollutants (e.g., PFAS and lead) to aquatic ecosystem health. Students will engage in major experiential, societally-connected projects. A major goal of the course will be to demonstrate the interplay of different ways of knowing.

Christopher Klyza

Reviews and ratings for Christopher Klyza at Middlebury College.Christopher Klyza teaches American Public Policy, American Environ Politics, Conservation & Env Policy and more.  Explore top rated instructors and find the best for you.Is Christopher Klyza good ? Find out on MiddCourses.

This course covers national policymaking in the U.S. by closely studying agriculture, healthcare, and education—you read one book per policy issue. Klyza is a clear lecturer and a fair grader. We had one midterm, a final, and multiple papers. 

I think this course was very helpful in terms of learning about the shaping of environmental policy in the U.S. and serves as a good foundation for future studies in environmental policy and ES majors.

This seminar is very heavy on reading, and classes are structured around discussions of that reading. The final is a 25 page paper that allows for an exploration of any env policy topic that interests you. Professor Klyza is very knowledgable about both class content and helping provide resources during the process of writing the research paper.