The Green Education Foundation (GEF) has launched a robust set of sustainability education (SE) K12 professional development courses with the goal of inspiring educators to green their school districts across the country.
Sustainability Education Concepts and Teaching Methods (for Educators)
This 15 hour, online course provides K-12 educators an introduction to sustainability education concepts, curriculum and teaching methods. Classroom sustainability curricula are linked to course units by topic and grade. Teaching strategies, resources, and materials are provided throughout the course. Participants work to create their own sustainability lesson plans, units or school initiative. Upon completion, educators will have the knowledge and skills to proceed with sustainability education and programs in their own classrooms and communities.
Green Energy and Technology
This course takes an in-depth look at important topics in renewable energy, carbon neutrality, and conscious energy consumption. In addition, the course dives deep into the science and technology issues involved in energy production and consumption, and how those issues relate to sustainability. The capstone project involves an energy audit of the school building, leading to proposals for energy conservation through alternative lighting, heating and cooling, and other energy consuming systems.
Sustainable Water Systems
This course is a comprehensive treatment of the science, technology, and sustainable development concerns associated with the increasing global and national water availability crisis. Water conservation on a very large scale is one of the few effective responses to the problem. The study of sustainable water systems and conservation offers a unique opportunity for students to develop and apply their understanding of STEM concepts to practical, everyday activities within their school building and in their homes.
Introduction to Green Building
In this course, students learn about the sustainability of natural cycles, and how human activity designed to meet present-day needs can interfere with those cycles and be unsustainable. By understanding the concepts of sustainability in relation to the built environment, participants see why there is a need for green building as part of the solution towards achieving a more sustainable world. Using real-world examples, students are introduced to the key principles of green building including current standards, regional factors, and the five major components of green building.
