Part 2: Resources for developing teaching activities

During the winter and spring of 2021, eleven 2YC geoscience faculty members -- including six SAGE 2YC Change Agents -- participated in the NSF-funded project URGE: Unlearning Racism in Geoscience. One aspect of this project was putting ideas into action. In a previous Musing ("Part 1"), we assembled a collection of teaching activities for incorporating diversity, equity, and inclusion in geoscience courses. In addition, here we present a list of resources that we are using, planning to use, or thinking about using to develop additional teaching activities.

• Native Case Studies featuring environmental studies, including geology: culturally relevant case studies on key issues for Indigenous nations. You can also search the Native case studies collection by theme, such as climate change, energy, or environmental justice.
• Oral history of the Great Earthquake in the PNW: Mega-quakes have periodically rocked North America's Pacific Northwest. Indigenous people have known this for centuries, conveying their knowledge through storytelling. Geologists have only recognized it since 1984.
• Indigenous knowledge of Rivers: Researchers in New Zealand recognize that Indigenous Knowledge is "accurate, rigorous, and precise, and can help geomorphologists see landscapes in a new, richer way."
• Why lakes and rivers should have the same rights as humans: Native American legal scholar Kelsey Leonard's TED talk, explaining "why granting lakes and rivers legal 'personhood' -- giving them the same legal rights as humans -- is the first step to protecting our bodies of water and fundamentally transforming how we value this vital resource."
• Indigenous hydraulic system in Bogota: "Complex hydraulic systems built by the Muisca people helped define the vibrant urban wetlands of Colombia's capital city."
• Flood risks to low income homes to triple by 2050: "By 2050, researchers say, more than 25,000 affordable housing units are expected to see coastal flooding at least once in a typical year — up from 7,700 just 20 years ago, with the largest number of at-risk housing units in three states: New Jersey, New York and Massachusetts.... The study, published inEnvironmental Research Letters, ... adds to a growing body of research showing the disproportionate impacts climate change is having on low-income, disadvantaged and minority communities across the country."
• Sewage failures in rural impoverished regions: an African American MacArthur genius awardee is "bringing attention to failing water and waste sanitation infrastructure in rural areas and its role in perpetuating health and socioeconomic disparities."
• Unequal impact: The deep links between racism and climate change: "Climate change is the result of a legacy of extraction, of colonialism, of slavery.... I think about the slave quarters. I think about people who got the worst food, the worst health care, the worst treatment, and then when freed, were given lands that were eventually surrounded by things like petrochemical industries. The idea of killing black people of indigenous people, all of that has a long, long history that is centered on capitalism and the extraction of our land and our labor in this country."
• Racist "redlining" practices increased climate burden on minority neighborhoods: "Groundbreaking research on the intersection of climate change and segregation reveals how racist banking practices banned by Congress 52 years ago continue to shape how black and lower-income Americans experience the effects of global warming."
• An Iterative Course-Based Soil Lead Research and Partnering Model to Address Systemic Racism and the Enduring Legacy of Redlining: Faculty members at Wittenberg University and community leaders in Springfield, Ohio, developed a course-based research experience focused on the environmental injustice impacts of redlining.
• An Eye in the Sky Tracks Air Pollution Inequality in US Cities: "In a new study, Demetillo et al. monitored NO₂ across 52 major U.S. cities in neighborhoods with population densities greater than 1,000 people per square mile. The researchers measured near-daily NO₂ concentrations using the satellite-mounted Tropospheric Monitoring Instrument, or TROPOMI, over cities representing 130 million residents. The instrument collects data at a finer spatial resolution than previously possible and allows for intracity comparisons across neighborhoods.
• Sci and Tell in the Classroom: AGU is building this collection of stories about scientists and their work, searchable by scientist, domain of interest (e.g. Earth science, astronomy, natural hazards), where they work (e.g. industry, government), and special topics, such as career path, career advice, or social identity.
• Racial Equity & Social Justice Resources for the Sustainability in Higher Education Community: "This collection of racial equity and social justice (RESJ) resources was initiated by the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee of the AASHE Advisory Council to highlight the vital work of the many incredible people and organizations who have been doing powerful work to bring attention to issues of racial and social justice."
• Marie Tharp: Uncovering the Secrets of the Ocean Floor: "Helen Czerski tells the story of how the maps of one of history's finest cartographers shifted our view of the planet." 
• What's Behind a Name? This blog post explores the implications of who we choose to honor by naming things after them (streets, awards, ....) and what messages we send in making those choices. 
• These articles expose the racist beliefs of two famous early geoscientists: 
  • The Darker Side of John Wesley Powell (published in Scientific American)
  • Maury for Modern Times: Navigating a Racist Legacy in Ocean Science (published in Oceanography magazine)
• Earth is Calling: "An inspiring look at careers in geosciences," featuring a diverse array of voices and perspectives.
• Gage: "Founded by 500 Women Scientists, Gage is a global search platform where [anyone] seeking brilliant voices in science can discover women and gender minorities in STEMM." 
• Our SAGE 2YC page on science identity includes links to dozens of resources highlighting underrepresented communities in geoscience / STEM as well as suggestions for developing your students' science identities. 

Do you have a resource you are thinking about developing into a teaching activity that incorporates diversity, equity, inclusion, justice, access, or belonging in the geosciences? If so, please tell us about it in the comments!