As part of its STEM programming initiatives, Community Boating, Inc., the nation's oldest public sailing organization introduced an "Introduction to Microscopy" course merging principles of scientific investigation with analytical techniques using compound light microscopes. Boston's Charles River provided the environmental setting for…

The author, an instructor of lower division general education (G.E.) geography courses, describes how to incorporate high-impact practices into courses that allow for experiential and project-based learning. Often, these experiences can be framed through a service learning component, which provides students an opportunity to partner with the local…

This article describes how fifth grade students participated in a place-based environmental education initiative in West Michigan that supports teachers who want to involve their students in citizen science by protecting local water resources. Every year, Groundswell works with about 100 teachers at 30 schools to engage students in citizen science…

Aquaponics systems model aquaculture and hydroponics systems for food production. Aquponics allow cycle of nutrients as well as wastes and offers a sustainable option to the use of environmental resources. Aquaponics systems are also considered in education as a teaching tool which can be implemented into different grade levels. It's possible to…

The electrolysis of water to produce hydrogen is a critical step in many green chemistry processes. The key to the efficiency of water electrolysis is the synthesis of an appropriate electrocatalyst. Three-dimensional (3D) printing is an increasingly important part of many industrial processes. In this study, we propose an efficient laboratory…

The debate over the mechanisms responsible for the flow rates of simple tube siphons has received much attention in the physics education and general physics literature in the past decade. Particularly with regard to the driving mechanism for water siphons, some suggested explanations emphasize contributions, or lack thereof, from the atmospheric…

This study presents findings from a residential survey that examines education and outreach programs and their impacts on adoption of best management practices (BMPs). Findings indicate that specific exposure to the BMP through a place-based experience facilitated by a local organization (ecology action center--EAC) has a positive effect, but the…

This study describes how 19 middle-school science teachers responded to an engineering design task in the context of water quality and environmental science professional development (PD). The study relies on teacher created prototypes, presentations, graphic organizers, and qualitative memos to illustrate the challenges and successes of the PD. In…

Catalysis is not only one of the most crucial principles of Green Chemistry but also one of the most used industrial strategies to improve yields and to shift to more environmental-friendly processes. Due to the great importance of catalysis, we propose a laboratory activity related to heterogeneous catalysis courses (upper and undergraduate…

Water conservation in residential landscapes remains essential to mitigate projected global water shortages. Social media has seldom been used to drive engagement in conservation and may be an important channel for environmental change agents to communicate to clientele and promote behavior changes. We tested messages framed with real conservation…

At the Peugeot Center for Engineering Service in Developing Communities at Lipscomb University, seventeen years of experience have provided the foundation for a program that creates lasting impact. In comparison to other service learning or humanitarian engineering programs, the Peugeot Center is unique in that it achieves substantial impact on…

A two-week exercise on the Flint, MI water crisis was developed for high school and undergraduate students in introductory chemistry courses. During the first week of the exercise, students learn the chemistry of lead contamination while reviewing concepts learned previously in the course. During the second week, the students participate in…

As environmental education and sustainability education play a fundamental role in training citizens who are more aware of global change and more environmentally responsible, organic learning is a recommended alternative learning experience for young children. This article describes how one kindergarten class in South Korea applied organic…

Access to drinking water is becoming more limited as drought persists across continents. This article highlights a particularly impacted group of students due to increasing drought conditions and upstream river pollution near their reservation. While there are related water and modeling standards across the K-12 Next Generation Science Standards…

Refraction is a foundational concept within introductory physics. Physics students need a deep understanding of refraction, including Snell's Law, in order to progress towards more complex optics topics such as lenses and images. Unfortunately, many physics students obtain only a superficial understanding of refraction. Although many students can…