Ask the Innovators: What should Green Chemistry Education look like?

[Constable01]

Educators are really busy and don’t have a lot of time for new curriculum development.  What are the roadmap incentives for an educator to find time to develop new curriculum?

[mkirchhoff]

An interdisciplinary approach to green chemistry is essential and is an integral part of the roadmap.  Chemistry informs, and is informed by, many other disciplines.  Collaborating across traditional disciplinary boundaries will enable students to see the contributions that multiple disciplines bring to the global challenges of sustainability.

[#3]

Excellent discussion and a lot of great points about demand for green chemistry, core curriculum needs etc.  A roadmap is a nice idea but has to be combined with an organizing strategy.  Roadmaps never succeed unless there is a movement or power (political, financial, social, etc).  Have those developing the roadmap thought about their model of change and how to organize/mobilize to implement the vision?

[haleyra]

In my experience, convincing current faculty members who are not in direct connection to green chemistry that it is important is a big challenge. For the ultimate goal of incorporating green chemistry into all chemistry classes, how do we reach those professors who have been around for a long time and will continue to be around?

[dcamike]

Do you have any suggestions for how best to engage industries to incentivize them to support and create demand for green chemistry education? What has worked with Pharma?

[laurahoch]

Getting STEM students engaged in shaping policy seems like a very important goal. Are you aware of any current initiatives to help increase STEM-student engagement with public policy? Is this something that has been included in the education roadmap?

[jhutch]

Based upon my experience, when starting a new program you have an incredible opportunity to design it with the end in mind.  That is to ask hard questions: What do you want your graduates to be able to do? How will graduates use those skills? Who are your stakeholders?  I would suggest thinking about these questions and defining learning outcomes.  I hope the roadmap will help you with your project.

[Previous Community Member]

Hi Jim!  I attended one of your educator workshops way back in 2006 (still have the lorax t shirt to prove it!)  and it was a game changer for my chemistry teaching.  I infused green chem in our one semester organic survey course, and developed a non majors course (called green goggles).  Thank you so much for all you do!  My question is what is this group doing to help build networks of green chem educators, as i often feel fairly isolated in my green chemistry teaching and practice.  Hello also to Mary -- we haven't met yet, but you are "right down the road" so to speak! Rich Gurney speaks very highly of your work!

[ejbeckman]

Because the roadmap describes a longer term vision, it should provide those educators who are already inclined towards creating curricular innovations to focus some of their efforts on green chemistry materials; hence we don’t need all educators to create de novo educational materials, but rather make sure that when new materials are created that they are effectively communicated to the community as a whole.

[jhutch]

There has been some thought about how to implement.  One important aspect is that we will need to do train the trainers workshops to help implement.  In addition, the roadmap will give stakeholders more confidence in the direction that green chemistry education is heading, which I think will lead to greater support from those stakeholders.