What is desertification?
Choose a specific location currently affected by desertification to research (Not a location that has been a desert for a long time.  Choose a location currently affected by desertification.  Example, if you are looking at the Sahara, the location associated with it currently undergoing desertification would be the outlying Sahel.)
Where is it located
What climatic region is it associated with (Koppen system)
What type of climate was it associated with in the past (ie. what was the region like thousands of years ago, what changes has it gone through)
What is the proposed scientific reason for the desertification taking place here, what factors are contributing (ie. human, development, climatic, etc.)
Who/what is the encroachment affecting (ie. are there people living there, plant, animal, etc)
To what extent is the affect (ie. how badly are people/organisms affected, why is it a problem, how fast, etc. – good place to include some statistical analysis/numbers)
What steps, if any, are being done to deal with or combat the desertification process taking place, or how are the people coping with it?
Paper must be at least 3 pages (text) typed, double spaced, 12 font, MLA or APA format.  Maximum 6 pages (text), may be more if pictures are included.  You should use 4 or more legitimate sources of information.  Legitimate sources include; scientific journals, academic sites usually ending in .edu, government sites like USGS or usually ending in .gov, news sources such as the BBC, etc.  You should be able to discern good information, but if you are in doubt about using something feel free to ask.  DO NOT copy information or cut and paste, avoid quoting and anything referenced should be cited in your ‘Works Cited’ section, even pictures.  Be concise and make sure you hit all the key aspects above.  I have supplied the grading rubric I will be using to grade them below.

Make sure you use a word processing program such as MS Word so you can spell/grammar check your papers before submitting them.  If you are using a Mac, make sure you convert the file to a format accessible by Blackboard (ie. .doc, .pdf, .rtf) – DO NOT submit as .pages, .num, .htm, etc.

*Be very careful not to plagiarize, and cite all resources referenced under a Works Cited section at the end.

Click on ‘Assignment 3 Desertification’ link at the top of the page to access the submission page.