Stuyvesant High School, New York NY
Use student-formulated questions to video record interviews with owners of eco-friendly business in Belgium, France, Luxembourg and Switzerland to provide students with data to propose sustainable and green initiatives in their current or ancestral communities, using new perspectives and vocabulary.
In Charleroi, Belgium, I was able to see visit old industrial sites that have been repurposed as museums, mini-golf courses, escape rooms, and parks. It was inspiring to see these sites given new, green life.
In Namur, Belgium, I was able to visit Le Nid, an educational space entirely dedicated to informing residents and visitors alike about how the city is preparing for future challenges related to climate change. .
Hiking the Mullerthal Trail in Luxembourg was a breathtaking experience. The fairy-tale like landscape and the local residents' dedication to sustainable development gives hope for what is possible in terms of preservation.
The nation of Luxembourg has made all forms of public transit (trains, buses, tramways, etc.) 100% free of charge and has also made many bike lanes as wide as automobile lanes.
The city of Colmar, France has gone to great efforts to keep their historic shipping canals both clean and beautiful, making sure that responsible tourism keeps their local economy and culture vibrant.
Dijon, France, the birthplace of world renowned Dijon mustard, has few remaining traditional mustard makers. I was lucky enough to see firsthand how it can be sustainably made in small batches, while still being economically lucrative.
This Fellowship has taught me that there are innumerable ways for a community to implement ecologically friendly and sustainable initiatives that are not only economically viable, but that actually increase economic productivity. I also saw the myriad ways that outdated industrial sites can be repurposed and given new, green life.
Since all of the sites I visited were identified by my students through their classroom research, I learned that my students are themselves invaluable resources that I can look to as inspiration for new experiences and new perspectives. Indeed, it was humbling to know that, although my career largely consists of teaching them about the French speaking world, my students have so much to offer me via their enthusiasm and curiosity about the world.
All of the places that I visited had inspired awe in my students because of their innovation, beauty, or resourcefulness. However, it was interesting to see how the local residents and business owners of these places saw their commitment to sustainable development as being not only logical, but as also normal and commonplace. This gives me hope that more and more young people can also develop this mindset to better their own communities.
The goal of my fellowship was to use student-created questions to explore and investigate eco-friendly sites in Francophone Europe. I plan to have my students study the methods I used to interview and explore sites during my fellowship and then use that as a model for reaching out to community leaders and business owners outside of Francophone Europe in order to conduct their own research and to propose their own ideas for what is possible.
At Le Nid in Namur, Belgium, I received a host of materials and access to online resources dedicated to preparing cities for a future affected by climate change. Virtual reality tours and models are provided for students to inspire them to rethink their own communities and how they can prepare them to be more sustainable. I plan on having my students use these resources as a springboard for proposing changes and innovations within their own neighborhoods.
I plan on sharing the resources I gathered, both in print and interview form, with my colleagues who teach Environmental Science, Urban Ecology, Oceanography, and Economics. Additionally, I plan to have my students come up with a plan for how they can speak to adults in their own communities about proposed changes to make their neighborhoods more sustainable and eco-friendly.