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In 2023, the American Chemical Society (ACS) updated its Guidelines for Bachelor’s Degree Programs to formally integrate the tenets of green chemistry into its approval process for chemistry curricula. A key change was expanding the expectation that programs incorporate case studies that connect chemistry to real-world decision-making, including environmental impact, human health, regulation, and industry practice. It was a significant step forward for embedding sustainability into chemistry education—one that aligns closely with Beyond Benign’s mission to equip educators with the tools and support they need to teach green chemistry.
As David Laviska, Portfolio Manager for Green Chemistry & Sustainability in Education at the ACS Green Chemistry Institute (ACS GCI), explains, “The ACS Guidelines make it clear that students need relevant, digestible examples drawn from the global chemistry enterprise. Providing context for chemical principles that emphasizes relevance and value to society helps students stay engaged with the learning process.”
Recognizing that educators would need practical tools to meet these new expectations, Beyond Benign partnered with ACS GCI to co-develop a template for creating case studies suitable for classroom teaching. Created by a team of experienced faculty collaborators, the template provides a flexible, classroom-ready framework that enables educators to create and share meaningful case studies grounded in green chemistry and sustainability, advancing the ACS guidelines while accelerating both Beyond Benign’s and the ACS GCI’s efforts to transform chemistry education.
Why Case Studies Matter in Green Chemistry
For educators, case studies are one of the most effective ways to bring chemistry to life. Unlike traditional problem sets, they anchor scientific concepts in real-world decision-making—connecting chemistry to energy, medicine, agriculture, climate change, and environmental justice.
“Case studies offer context for the chemistry content students are learning, ideally allowing them to make connections between what they’re learning and real life,” said Dr. Jennifer Tripp, Assistant Professor of Chemistry at the University of San Francisco. “They can also illustrate ideas such as climate change and environmental justice that many students are already passionate about.”
For many students, case studies also change how they view chemistry itself. Instead of seeing the field only through the lens of pollution or industrial hazards, real-world examples reveal chemistry as a tool for problem-solving and sustainability.
“Hopefully, students will learn that chemists are also concerned about things they are concerned about,” Jennifer said, “and will be able to see how chemistry can be used to solve some of the world’s most pressing problems.”
Dr. Tom Umile, Associate Teaching Professor at Villanova University, has seen an overwhelmingly positive response in his classrooms. “Students absolutely love examples of how one might apply what they learn to the real world,” he said. “Historically, chemistry has had something of a bad reputation… Green chemistry case studies provide students with examples of chemistry doing something good in the world.”
By grounding learning in relevance and purpose, case studies help students see themselves as future contributors—not just observers—in science.
Origin Story: From Idea to Collaboration
The case study template began as a familiar idea with a new purpose. Both Dr. Jennifer Tripp and Dr. Tom Umile trace their green chemistry teaching roots back to working with Dr. Mike Cann, co-author of the influential Real-World Cases in Green Chemistry volumes published by the ACS GCI. For years, those books—based on innovative chemistries featured in the ACS Green Chemistry Challenge Awards—helped educators introduce sustainability concepts through real-world examples.
“I have taught out of Mike’s case study books for years, and while they tell some great success stories, they’re getting a bit dated,” Jennifer said. “A few years ago, I got in touch with Tom, and together we proposed a third volume of case studies.”
But after discussing the idea with Dr. David Laviska at ACS GCI, the vision expanded. Rather than publish more narrative-style, static case studies, they saw an opportunity to build a tool that would help many more educators create their own. “We realized that what educators might find more immediately useful is an easy-to-use tool for quickly and easily creating their own teachable case studies,” Tom said.
Based on the obvious alignment of goals between the ACS GCI and Beyond Benign, David and Dr. Amy Cannon, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Beyond Benign, decided to collaborate and co-sponsor the development of this new Case Study tool.
According to Amy, “Access to high-quality resources is traditionally a key barrier for STEM reform initiatives.” The case study template project provides an essential tool to bring green chemistry to life for students and engage them in practical learning experiences.”
For Beyond Benign, the partnership aligned with a shared goal: to scale the adoption of green chemistry by empowering educators. “Partnerships like this are necessary to elevate and expand green chemistry,” Amy added. “By working with ACS GCI and educators, we can support change across institutions and communities.”
A Practical Tool Built for Real Classrooms
The new Green Chemistry Case Study Template was built with a clear purpose: to make it easier for educators to meet the ACS approval guidelines while strengthening real-world chemistry education. Rather than starting from scratch, instructors now have a framework that guides them through selecting a topic, building narrative context, integrating core chemistry concepts, and assessing student learning.
“Teaching with case studies is not optional anymore,” said Tom Umile. “The ACS is telling us in no uncertain terms that the next generation of chemists must be exposed to case studies of effective applications of green chemistry… At some point, we’re all going to need to start making our own.”
That’s where the template offers value. It’s structured enough to simplify the process, but flexible enough to adapt to different courses and teaching styles. As David Laviska explains, “The template provides a flexible scaffold that sets a pathway with guidelines while allowing for creativity and personalization for instructors.”
Importantly, the template also encourages sharing. Educators can contribute their case studies to the Green Chemistry Teaching and Learning Community (GCTLC), helping expand access to practical, real-world teaching materials.
What Comes Next
The Green Chemistry Case Study Template is available from the Green Chemistry Teaching and Learning Community (GCTLC) and the ACS GCI, where educators can download it, adapt it to their courses, and share their own case studies with peers. The project team also plans to continue building example case studies that model how to use the template effectively, helping more faculty gain confidence in teaching real-world applications of green chemistry.
At its core, the template is more than a resource; it’s an invitation to collaborate. By sharing examples from different institutions, industries, and regions, educators can highlight new stories of sustainable science and expand what chemistry education looks like today.