Workshop

The ACS Green and Sustainable Chemistry Summer School (GSCSS) is a highly selective week-long program for graduate students and postdoctoral chemists and engineers. Each year, approximately 60 exceptional students from North, Central, and South America and the Caribbean are selected from a large pool of applicants and gather for this fully funded once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. The American Chemical Society pays for all eligible travel and program costs.

Organized and hosted by the Green Chemistry Institute since 2003, the summer school typically features more than a dozen expert instructors who share knowledge and skills from across a broad spectrum of topics directly relevant to green chemistry and sustainability. Throughout the program, students attend lectures and interactive study/project sessions, present posters about their own research, hold discussions, and spend time networking both with each other and the GSCSS faculty. Alumni of this program have gone on to become leaders in many green chemistry and sustainability-related fields and provide participants with an extensive network of professional contacts.  

This free, virtual workshop is designed to help educators effectively adapt and implement a new case study that examines the various considerations and factors driving greener innovations in the metal plating industry. One of the primary chemicals used in this sector is PFAS, which acts as a fume suppressant to control chromic acid mist during the chrome plating process. While PFAS reduces exposure to the known health hazard of hexavalent chromium, its health and environmental impacts raise significant concerns, underscoring the need for greener alternatives.

The case study focuses on the design of a new non-PFAS, non-PFOS fume suppressant, applying the 12 principles of green chemistry. It explores the implementation of this greener product in real-world applications within the metal plating industry.

This resource is ideal for educators seeking to enhance their curriculum with real-world applications that align with the academic and professional guidelines for undergraduate programs, such as those set by the American Chemical Society. Participants will learn effective strategies for using the case study to illustrate to their students the critical interplay of chemical, environmental health, regulatory, and business considerations in the design of chemical products and processes, fostering a deeper understanding of the factors influencing greener innovations.

During the 1.5-hour session, facilitators will guide participants through the resources, offer practical strategies for adaptation and implementation, and create opportunities for educators to share insights. The workshop will feature group-based learning, discussions, networking opportunities, and a Q&A session. Don't miss this opportunity to expand your teaching toolkit, engage with peers, and inspire the next generation of green chemists.

Workshop Goals:

• Educate participants on the interplay of the different factors influencing greener innovations including chemical, environmental health, business and regulatory considerations
• Guide participants on practical approaches to effectively incorporate the case study materials into their curriculum.
• Empower participants to adapt and implement the case study resources and expand their professional network.

📚 Register TODAY for the Bioenergy Research and Education Bridge Program (BRIDGES) Bioenergy 101 Virtual Workshop on Thursday, October 17, 2024, from 6:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.

Build knowledge and engage your high school, community & technical college, and university students with free high quality instructional materials in renewable energy based on national laboratory research!

Developed by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), Idaho National Laboratory, and Argonne National Laboratory, BRIDGES provides an opportunity for educators and students to learn about and prepare for the next generation of clean energy technologies. In addition, case studies represent actual DOE national laboratory research that will assist students to strengthen their research skills, improve their critical thinking, along with opening a world of new potential career opportunities.

Are you a program director for a sustainability or sustainability-related degree program? Is your five-year curriculum review looming… and maybe that process isnʻt working for you?  We know that sustainability degrees are different: interdisciplinary, community-engaged, career-oriented, justice-focused, and integrating climate literacy and resilience in the rapidly changing field of sustainability education.

In AY 2024-2025, AASHE will host a cohort of program directors who will work together to evaluate and update their sustainability programs using new program standards collaboratively developed by scores of stakeholders in the sustainability education community. This peer cohort will pilot program learning outcomes integrating the key competencies in sustainability framework, and the best practices that support them. Participants will complete their own program evaluation while working with other directors to further develop dynamic, context-sensitive guidance for the field. This work was developed by the pathways towards accreditation initiative and the Sustainability Education Community of Practice at the Global Council for Science and the Environment (GCSE). 

The Program Directors Cohort will be facilitated by Krista Hiser, convener of the Sustainability Education Accreditation Commission and will include additional guest facilitators and experts.

This free, virtual workshop for Green Chemistry Commitment (GCC) signers aims to help educators effectively adapt and implement the ChemFORWARD module, which focuses on chemical hazard assessment and safer alternatives, into their curriculum materials. Chemical Hazard Assessment is a critical component when designing safer chemicals and coming up with safer alternatives to toxic and hazardous chemicals.

The ChemFORWARD module helps instructors teach students how to use the ChemFORWARD platform to obtain hazard information for specific chemicals, identify safer chemicals to replace chemicals of concern in research and product formulations and avoid regrettable substitutions.

During the session, facilitators will guide participants through the resources, offer practical strategies for adaptation and implementation, and provide opportunities for educators to share insights. The virtual 1.5-hour workshop will include group-based learning, discussions, networking opportunities, and a Q&A session.

The goals for the workshop include:

• Educate participants on the value of teaching green chemistry and toxicological principles, including hazards, risks, hazard assessment, and safer alternatives.
• Guide participants on practical approaches to effectively incorporate the ChemFORWARD curriculum materials into their courses.
• Empower participants to adapt and implement the ChemFORWARD module resources and expand their professional network.

Workshop participants interested in using the module in their courses will be given temporary access to the ChemFORWARD database for free! 

Event Details

• Who: Educators at GCC signing institutions
• What: A chance for you to learn more about the ChemFORWARD module and get your questions answered
• When: Thursday, August 8, 5 - 6:30 p.m. EDT OR Friday, August 9, 10 - 11:30 a.m. EDT
• Where: Online (we'll email you details about how to connect)

If you are a GCC signer, we hope you’ll join us for one of these sessions! Limited seats are available for this workshop, so registration is on a first-come, first-served basis. Register below to secure your spot. We'll send a Zoom link and more information closer to the date.

The August sessions are open to GCC signers only — stay tuned for more workshops in our Greener Curriculum Showcase Series! 

The NSF Center for Sustainable Polymers (CSP) in partnership with the Minnesota Corn Growers Association (MCGA) and the Minnesota Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC) will be offering a FREE three-day workshop at the University of Minnesota for high school chemistry teachers on green and sustainable chemistry. The workshop was developed through the University of Minnesota MRSEC Research Experiences for Teachers (RET) program. Applicants from across the Midwest are welcome. 

While applications are now closed for 2024, we encourage interested teachers to visit the website and learn more about the workshop for future years:

https://csp.umn.edu/green-chemistry-workshop/

Are you ready to see your institution move forward to engage faculty and change curriculum toward sustainability issues? This workshop will introduce participants to the Piedmont/Ponderosa model, which has been adopted successfully across the United States and beyond, reaching thousands of professors over two decades.

The Piedmont/Ponderosa model of two-day faculty development workshops has been used by dozens of institutions—large and small, public and private—with resulting faculty enthusiasm and renovated courses. This virtual workshop will provide a history and overview with discussion time on Day 1 and delve more deeply into details of workshop form and function on Day 2. Both days will last 2.5 hours.

Interested faculty leaders will be equipped with the knowledge, materials, and strategies to adapt this “Sustainability Across the Curriculum” model to their own institutions. Activities will explore the pace, timing, funding, staffing, and philosophy behind the unique aspects of the workshop model. Resource materials, interactive breakout room discussions and opportunities for Q&A will be included. Challenges in making the transition to teaching fellow faculty will also be discussed. Participants will be provided with background materials beforehand and will have multiple handouts and guides to support deeper discussion on Day 2.

Participants in this workshop will be eligible to apply to participate in the Global Sustainability Across the Curriculum Program Development Support Group, a longer term program that guides participants through the key steps involved in establishing a successful sustainability across the curriculum program at their institution.

If you are looking for a shorter workshop that is applicable to faculty new to sustainability and the teaching of it, please see Integrating Sustainability Literacy Across Your Curricula — Best Practices.

How to Register

Registration including a breakdown of registration fees is available through the AASHE website. A limited number of scholarships are available to individuals who need financial assistance to participate. Please apply two weeks before the program begins (i.e., 6/01/2023) to be considered for a scholarship for this workshop.

Registration Policies:

• Registration deadline is Wednesday, June 12, 12:00 p.m. ET.
• Payment is accepted in the form of Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discover cards.
  If you need to pay by check or ACH, please contact us at least 5 weeks prior to the event start date. Registration using these forms of payment must be received 4 weeks prior to the event start date and full payment must be received by AASHE within 2 weeks of event start date.
• Cancellation Policy: A 20% processing fee applies to any cancellation prior to June 5, 2023. No refunds will be given after June 3, 2024.
• No substitutions are allowed.
• Registered participants will receive access to the recording after the live event.

Review all Terms & Conditions.

Registration closes Monday, July 15, 2024

On the territories of the lək̓ʷəŋən and W̱SÁNEĆ First Nations of the Pacific Northwest, the trees are deep in conversation and negotiation via mycelial networks. The salmon return to make the stream bed fresh and cool for the next generation, while coastal nurseries provide a place to rest where old meets new and salty meets sweet.

Join us for a week to observe and explore how Nature creates the richness and complexity of life through chemistry. Adventure through the ecotones to learn the ways in which Nature operates at the molecular scale to communicate, assemble/ disassemble, purify, clean, colorize, protect, detect, repair, and a host of other functionalities that parallel those needed in commerce.  

Tune your senses through exploration, experience, and experts to understand the critical ways in which Nature’s chemistry differs from modern commercial chemistries to achieve the same functional end, and how this learning can broaden and benefit your approach to Nature-positive R&D.

The fields of chemistry and biomimicry will converge to explore the profound lessons nature offers for shaping a world characterized by high-performing chemistry strategies and materials that benefit the people and places in which they are made, used, and managed. Sip tea and watch the eelgrass sway while you practice Biomimicry Thinking with Nature’s recipes and methods.

While the content is designed with the non-chemist in mind, chemistry professionals will gain valuable insights into Nature’s life-friendly chemistry principles and hands-on training using the biomimicry research methodology.

Throughout this workshop, our world-renowned biomimicry instructors will teach participants to: 

• Recognize the roles chemistry plays in the natural world and their relevance to the roles chemistry plays in commerce and industry,
• Distinguish between biotic and abiotic chemistries in the natural world,
• Discover the principles underlying Nature’s elegant and sophisticated life-friendly chemistries,
• Understand the principles underlying Nature’s multifunctional, life-friendly chemistry-based materials,
• Use Biomimicry Thinking tools to abstract chemistry design principles and deep patterns from specific, function-based natural strategies, and
• Apply Biomimicry Thinking tools to solve a chemistry-related challenge.

This workshop is open to professional and university-level participants from all backgrounds and levels of experience with biomimicry. The agenda is designed for:

• Innovators within commercial sectors touched by chemistry, such as chemicals, cosmetics, packaging, textiles, electronics, personal care, medical, and energy, who are interested in bringing Nature’s Chemistry and materials genius to their project work and innovation strategies through Biomimicry Thinking.
• Innovators without chemistry training who are interested in gaining the knowledge that would allow them to be productive partners alongside professional chemists as they work to bring Nature’s Chemistry and materials genius to their project work and innovation strategies.
• Sustainability champions who want to be inspired by the natural world at the molecular scale as they work to solve humanity’s toughest sustainability challenges.
• Educators who want to bring Nature’s Chemistry and materials genius into the classroom.
• Students enrolled in the Graduate Certificate in Biomimicry program with Arizona State University interested in the Biomimicry Specialist Certification. This Immersion Workshop counts as one of two required in-person units. Learn more about the requirements for the Biomimicry Specialist Certification here.

This workshop is focused on equipping faculty across the curricula with best practices for embedding sustainability into their respective courses in a way that is engaging, transformative, and that supports existing course learning objectives. The workshop is based upon lessons learned at The College of Charleston (CofC) in Charleston, SC, where for four years faculty have engaged in a SACSCOC quality enhancement plan reaccreditation project, “Sustainability Literacy as a Bridge to Addressing 21st Century Problems.” This internally funded project is centered upon working with faculty to embed sustainability literacy into existing courses by providing ongoing trainings, workshops, and a year-long faculty cohort who work together on sharing best practices for teaching sustainability in a fall course, and then again in a spring course.

This workshop will present an overview of the project, it’s learning goals and outcomes, and an overview of assessment data (both qualitative and quantitative) from the project. Presenters will then work with those in the audience to:

• locate existing student learning objectives and help transition them to be sustainability focused
• dialogue about ways to present sustainability in an interdisciplinary way that also connects to a home discipline via effective sustainability teaching methods
• brainstorm capacity building opportunities to build faculty coalitions around embedding sustainability throughout the curricula.