EGLE Classroom: EnviroSchool

(Recorded 5/07/2024, 60 min)

Join the Office of the Great Lakes for an interactive session sharing the impactful results and lessons learned from the From Students to Stewards Initiative, a grant program that supports Place-, Project-, Problem-based (3P) learning around freshwater literacy. Discover successful strategies for institutionalizing 3P learning, access new tools and upcoming opportunities, and share your feedback on what resources you’d like to see next. 

From Students to Stewards funding has been a collaboration between EGLE, Michigan Department of Education, and the MiSTEM Network.   

View the resources referred to in the webinar, Helping Students Become Stewards with Education for Great Lakes Literacy

Speakers:
Katie Mika; Office of the Great Lakes, Great Lakes Stewardship Coordinator
Megan Schrauben; MiSTEM Network Executive Director
Meaghan Gass; Michigan SeaGrant Educator
Eileen Boekestein; EGLE Environmental Education Coordinator

(Recorded 2/08/2024, 60 min)

Discover how K-12 and nonformal educators can use the Michigan Environmental Justice Screening Tool (MiEJScreen) as a catalyst for place-based learning and civic engagement. EGLE Classroom and EGLE’s Office of the Environmental Justice Public Advocate will share how the tool was developed and how it can be used as a dynamic educational resource to foster environmental literacy, social awareness, and active citizenship with youth. You'll come away from this webinar with an understanding of how to navigate the tool, sample lessons for using it in the classroom, and ideas for transforming what you find into student-led action projects.

View the resources referred to in the webinar, Mapping for Justice: Using MiEJScreen to facilitate Place-based, Problem-based, Project-based Learning 

(Recorded 12/05/2023, 60 min)

Teaching about global issues like climate change can be hard, but taking a place-based approach can make even the biggest global challenges feel relevant. This EnviroSchool session will highlight some of the biggest climate challenges facing the Great Lakes region, as well as some of the major solutions being implemented in Michigan. Educators will learn about statewide efforts to support teaching of climate change education from EGLE, the Michigan Alliance for Environmental and Outdoor Education, and other statewide partners. You’ll also get access to some curated Michigan-specific climate change education resources including a newly updated MEECS Climate Change unit.

View the resources referred to in the webinar, Michigan-based Curriculum Connections for Climate Change Education

(Recorded 10/10/2023, 57 min)

Join EGLE Classroom as we explore how to empower young people as environmental stewards through the exciting world of citizen science. Learn how 'doing science' in the community both fosters deep understanding of the environment and actively contributes to real-world scientific research. Discover Michigan programs that your classroom, nature center, or youth program can participate in, and gain insights and tips for success from some of EGLE's scientific experts in air, water, and invasive species programs.

View the resources referred to in the webinar, Empowering Youth Through Citizen and Community Science

(Recorded 5/09/2023, 70 min)

The air we breathe has a huge impact on our health, so how can we know what’s in it? On the heels of Air Quality Awareness Week, we’ll be learning how EGLE’s Air Quality Division works to reduce existing outdoor air pollution and prevent the worsening of air quality through programs that evaluate, permit, monitor, and inspect sources of air emissions. Find out the differences between air quality monitoring and air quality modeling, explore the different types of air pollutants EGLE addresses, and learn how students can collect and engage with air quality data in their own communities.

View the resource referred to in this webinar, Clearing the Air around Air Quality Monitoring

(Recorded 4/13/2023, 61 min)

Approximately 1/3 of all food produced globally is wasted every year, leading to food insecurity, greenhouse gas emissions, and wasted use of agricultural lands. Much of that wasted food ends up in landfills, where it takes up valuable space and contributes to the production of methane gas. Learn how you can help prevent food insecurity, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and contribute to a healthier ecosystem by practicing the recommendations of EGLE’s Sustainable Food Management Hierarchy. Plus, learn how critical composting and food waste prevention programs are in large scale systems like schools and how you can get started in your own community

View the resource referred to in the webinar, Compost, Food Waste and You

(Recorded 3/15/2023, 60 min)

Geographic data helps tell a story and create intelligence about the world around us. Join EGLE’s Lead Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Analyst to discover how EGLE to develops innovative geospatial solutions that analyze and visualize data to inform decisions, streamline workflows, increase productivity, and tell our story in every EGLE Division. Learn how you can access Michigan data from EGLE’s Maps and Data portal that will bring environmental issues to life for your students, and how your students can collect, visualize, and analyze data of their own!

View the resources referred to in the webinar, What makes EGLE Spatial

(Recorded 2/21/2023, 48 min)

Join EGLE's Sustainability Unit as they share the EGLE programs that work toward meeting the goals of the Michigan Healthy Climate Plan. Learn how the programs EGLE funds catalyze energy transitions, sustainable development, and resilience in communities across the state.

View the resources referred to in the webinar, Charting Michigan's Course Toward Carbon Neutrality, Clean Energy, and Sustainability

(Recorded 1/18/2023, 78 min)

January is National Radon Action Month, so this month’s EnviroSchool will bring EGLE’s Radiological Protection team to EGLE Classroom! Learn about what radioactive materials are found in Michigan, both naturally occurring and at nuclear power facilities, and find out how EGLE staff monitor sites, educate communities, and prepare action plans to protect the public.

View the resources referred to in the webinar, Radioactive Michigan

(Recorded 12/6/2022, 71 min)

Are you looking for ways to reduce your trash output this holiday season? Come talk trash with staff from EGLE's Materials Management Division! Learn about what happens to trash after it gets picked up from your bin, what impacts trash can have on the environment, and what options you have for more sustainable waste management. We'd also love to hear from YOU about how you're reducing trash in your own classrooms and communities.

View the resources referred to in the webinar, Talking Trash

(Recorded 11/17/2022, 65 min)

Oil rigs, gas lines, and copper mines – Oh, my! Join our Geologists to learn how what’s underground impacts Michigan’s environment and economy. Journey through the Lower Peninsula’s glacial deposits and the Upper Peninsula’s ancient bedrock to find out how earth science is applied to environmental management and economic development. Learn how EGLE protects human health and the environment before, during, and after resource extraction, and stick around for a sneak peek at Michigan’s “Rock Library” in the U.P.!

View the resources referred to in the webinar, What's Underground

(Recorded 10/18/2022, 65 min)

2022 marks the 50th anniversary of the Clean Water Act, a piece of legislation that has transformed water quality in lakes, rivers, streams, and oceans across the United States. Learn the nuts and bolts of how the CWA does (or doesn’t) affect places like your school or home and how the structure of the Act has allowed it to respond to changing water quality challenges over time. Staff from EGLE’s Water Resources Division staff explain the unique ways the Clean Water Act affects Michigan and the Great Lakes, and you’ll walk away with an ocean of resources for integrating the CWA into your science and social studies curriculum.

View the resources referred to in the webinar, Dive into Learning about 50 Years of the Clean Water Act

(Recorded 9/21/2022, 74 min)

Learn how EGLE protects water quality throughout the “Urban Water Cycle.” Find out what EGLE staff do to protect water and human health in natural settings, as water moves through drinking water systems and into our homes. EGLE’s Drinking Water and Environmental Health Division, in partnership with the Department of Health and Human Services, will present an overview of the state’s role in protecting human and environmental health and will answer your questions about drinking water treatment, source water protection, and community engagement.

View the resources referred to in the webinar, Tap Into the Urban Water Cycle