Academia & Institutional
To prepare students pursuing the sciences for sustainable practices in industry, Green Chemistry education is essential in academia. Green Chemistry is making its way into the undergraduate and graduate level curriculum. Beyond Benign is partnering with academic and educational organizations to bring Green Chemistry education to academic institutions across the country and worldwide.
Green Chemistry Commitment Summit
Over 60 chemistry department members from colleges and universities in New England and throughout the United States joined Beyond Benign in our initial public launch of the Green Chemistry Commitment draft at EPA Region 1 Headquarters in Boston on January 10, 2012. Beyond Benign has teamed up with an exceptional advisory board consisting of 11 faculty members from 10 different U.S. academic institutions. The board members have worked closely with Beyond Benign staff throughout the fall of 2011 to create the first draft of the Green Chemistry Commitment.
The Green Chemistry Commitment is designed for higher educational institutions in order to provide a platform for changing the education of chemists. Colleges and universities will sign-on to commit to changing curriculum, laboratory exercises, course materials, methods and research practices.
Executive Director Amy Cannon moderated the day filled with presentations and discussions about the text, levels of commitment, stakeholder engagement and commitment resources. Supporting staff and members of the advisory board shared their knowledge and experience of integrating green chemistry into curriculum, working with other faculty and administrators and incorporating green chemistry into sustainability initiatives on campus.
The draft is now open for comment from the greater chemistry community. Feedback will be gathered and used to create next steps for finalizing the Commitment. All input will be gathered and incorporated in to a revised version, with an anticipated launch of the Green Chemistry Commitment in the fall of 2012. Feedback submissions will be accepted from now through March 1, 2012, please send comments to comments(at)greenchemistrycommitment.org.
For additional information about the Green Chemistry Commitment and PowerPoint presentations from the Summit please visit the website:
www.greenchemistrycommitment.org
From Chemical & Engineering News:
The Ivory Tower Goes Green
September 8, 2008
Corinne Marasco
A FEW YEARS AGO one of Irv Levy's students told him she wanted to write her organic chemistry research paper on green chemistry. Levy was skeptical. He didn't think green chemistry sounded like "real chemistry." "It sounded like touchy-feely tree hugging," he recalls. "I recommended that she consider another topic, but she insisted." So he reluctantly agreed. Read more of the article "The Ivory Tower Goes Green" in Chemical and Engineering News...
21st Century Chemistry
Much effort has been made by individual teachers, educators and professors to introduce green chemistry concepts into lecture courses, substitute green chemistry laboratory exercises in place of traditional toxic labs, and use green chemistry as a research framework. This effort has been effective at creating individual leaders in the green chemistry educational movement. However, a widespread, systematic method for implementing green chemistry throughout educational institutions does not yet exist.
The Green Chemistry Commitment is designed for higher educational institutions in order to provide a platform for changing the education of chemists. Colleges and universities will sign-on to commit to changing curriculum, laboratory exercises, course materials, methods and research practices. As a non-profit organization who partners regularly with colleges and universities to advance green chemistry, Beyond Benign is well poised to lead this program, through collaboration with academic partners.
Our Current Initiatives in Academia
Beyond Benign is currently involved with the following projects:
- Green Chemistry Education Network: The GCEdNet is a group of educators across the country that share Green Chemistry resources.
- Green Chemistry Science Licensure Course: An introductory course for science teachers as part of a science licensure program.
- Green Chemistry Curriculum Development: As part of an initiative to bring Green Chemistry to a wider audience, Beyond Benign has partnered with industrial partners to expand Green Chemistry in the undergraduate curricula.
Capacities
Beyond Benign partners with organizations to develop comprehensive programs and materials for Green Chemistry education, working in the following capacities:
- Program Development: We work with faculty and administrators to guide the implementation of Green Chemistry courses and programs.
- Course Development and Facilitation: We develop Green Chemistry courses for various academic levels and will facilitate the running of the course.
- Curriculum Development & Implementation: We develop curriculum tailored to the institution's needs and help deliver it to the institution's target audience.
- Student Fellowship Program: We work with undergraduate and graduate students and their mentors and advisors on Green Chemistry research and educational topics to enhance student learning and to increase students' involvement in the field of Green Chemistry.