Activity Collection
Bioregion Discipline Show all
Environmental Studies
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Bioregion Topical Vocabulary Show all
Cycles & Systems
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Afghan Poppies, Climate Change and War: Thinking Systemically About Us and Them
Karen Litfin, University of Washington-Seattle Campus
This contemplative practice inquires into the complex web of interdependencies linking global climate change, the War on Terror, Afghan poppy production, opiate addiction, and food security through the lens of systems theory. The exercise challenges students to consider these linkages not only conceptually but also somatically and emotionally.
Bioregion Scale: Global, National/Continental, Local Community/Watershed
Bioregion Topical Vocabulary: Civil Society & Governance, Human Impact & Footprint, Promising Pedagogies:Reflective & Contemplative Practice, Civic Engagement & Service Learning, Future Studies & Visioning, Sustainability Concepts & Practices, Promising Pedagogies:Case Studies, Cultures & Religions, Food Systems & Agriculture, Ethics & Values, Pollution & Waste, Natural Resources, Climate Change, Social & Environmental Justice, Human Health & Wellbeing, Lifestyles & Consumption, Cycles & Systems
A Game-Based Social Resilience Workshop: Thinking about Communal Response to Change
Joli Sandoz, The Evergreen State College
Social resilience is the capacity of a social entity to learn and adapt to sudden or gradual change, while continuing to fulfill the entity's purpose or function. This integrative and experiential workshop prompts students to apply previous learning about social resilience, social equity, social dilemma, and governance by experiencing several ways to approach a collective action problem in equitable resource distribution and management. The collective problem is modeled in the form of a card game that requires players to manage 12 plots of commonly-held crop and forest land under various conditions.
Bioregion Topical Vocabulary: Ethics & Values, Climate Change, Natural Resources, Human Impact & Footprint, Social & Environmental Justice, Sustainability Concepts & Practices, Cycles & Systems, Ecosystem Health
Using Case Studies, Mind mapping, and Social Media to Explore Climate Justice and Build Science Communication Skills
Woody Moses, Highline Community College
Students engage in a mind mapping activity about climate gentrification in Miami to learn about climate justice as well as how the climate systems and human systems interact with each other. Students then identify their own climate justice issue and complete an annotated bibliography of climate justice case studies related to that issue to prepare a post for Instagram. The activity ends with a final case study about the Lummi nation, who were able to effect change through a lawsuit against coal trains.
Bioregion Scale: Global, Local Community/Watershed, Campus
Bioregion Topical Vocabulary: Promising Pedagogies:Civic Engagement & Service Learning, Case Studies, Cycles & Systems, Social & Environmental Justice, Climate Justice, Climate Change
Afghan Poppies, Climate Change and US Heroin: Thinking Systemically About Us and Them
Karen Litfin, University of Washington-Seattle Campus
This very simple contemplative exercise is rooted in my "Person/Planet Politics" approach, which invites students to into an experiential relationship with a global socioecological phenomenon: in this instance, Afghan poppy production. It can be adapted to a range of courses and a range of topics within those courses. The basic question is: "Who am I in relation to this?"
Bioregion Scale: Local Community/Watershed, Regional, Global, National/Continental
Bioregion Topical Vocabulary: Ecosystem Health, Promising Pedagogies:Case Studies, Reflective & Contemplative Practice, Lifestyles & Consumption, Human Health & Wellbeing, Human Impact & Footprint, Social & Environmental Justice, Climate Change, Ethics & Values, Food Systems & Agriculture, Cycles & Systems
Mapping Stormwater Runoff Infrastructure for the City of Bothell
Robert Turner, University of Washington-Bothell Campus
Term-long course activity for student groups to map the flow of stormwater runoff on newly developed or altered properties in and for the City of Bothell.
Bioregion Scale: Local Community/Watershed
Bioregion Topical Vocabulary: Promising Pedagogies:Civic Engagement & Service Learning, Pollution & Waste, Design & Planning, Water & Watersheds, Cycles & Systems
Using Debates to Engage Students in Sustainability Controversies and Conundrums
Robert Turner, University of Washington-Bothell Campus
A primary feature of this "Water and Sustainability" course is a series of 10 debates on controversial sustainability topics. Each student in the course participates in one of the debates.
Bioregion Scale: Regional, Local Community/Watershed, Global
Bioregion Topical Vocabulary: Cycles & Systems, Promising Pedagogies:Case Studies, Sustainability Concepts & Practices, Water & Watersheds, Ecosystem Health
The High Cost of High Tech: Environmental and Human Costs of Metals
Carla Whittington, Highline Community College
Students conduct independent research on metal and metal ores resources, including exploring the human and environmental costs of metal mining, consumption, disposal, and recycling. A series of worksheets, completed outside of class, guide students in examining their own use and consumption of metals, learn the true importance of metals in their lives, and the impact of resource consumption to the human community.
Bioregion Scale: Global
Bioregion Topical Vocabulary: Cycles & Systems, Pollution & Waste
Indigenous Food Relationships: Sociological Impacts on the Coast Salish People
Ane Berrett, Nothwest Indian College
In this unit, students will analyze the macro level of societal influences which have interrupted micro level ecological relationship between plant and man. Sociological concepts such as sub culture, dominant culture, stages of historical change (Hunter Gatherer societies to Technological societies), stratification and poverty will be addressed through the sociological perspective. Students will experience solutions of sustainability which are interdependent with local place and people. Learning activities involve using the "citizen's argument," oral presentations, portfolio creation, written reflections and experiential service learning projects.
Bioregion Scale: Home/Backyard, Local Community/Watershed, Regional
Bioregion Topical Vocabulary: Cultures & Religions, Sense of Place, Lifestyles & Consumption, Human Impact & Footprint, Cycles & Systems, Food Systems & Agriculture
Reflective Writing in response to Invasive Species Removal
Karen Harding, Pierce College at Puyallup
This activities provided reflective writing prompts to be used in conjunction with a service learning project in a science course (Restoration Ecology).
Bioregion Scale: Campus
Bioregion Topical Vocabulary: Ecosystem Health, Sustainability Concepts & Practices, Human Impact & Footprint, Cycles & Systems, Natural Resources, Promising Pedagogies:Reflective & Contemplative Practice, Sense of Place, Promising Pedagogies:Civic Engagement & Service Learning
Sally Salivates Seashells by the Seashore- Ocean Acidification and the Effect on Sea Shells
Rus Higley, Highline Community College, and Vanessa Hunt, Central Washington University
In this lesson we review "Acids and Bases" taught in a previous lesson and, through a scientific method, will look at the impact of an acid on different types of shells. Students will reinforce previous learning of scientific principles including acids/basis and will develop a real experiment using the scientific method.
Bioregion Scale: Global
Bioregion Topical Vocabulary: Ecosystem Health, Cycles & Systems, Climate Change, Water & Watersheds