Overview
Dates: May 2011-February 2012.
The 2009 campus Climate Action Plan commits Duke to make sustainability and climate neutrality part of curricular as well as co-curricular experiences for all students. One way that Duke is attempting to meet the curriculum goals in its Climate Action Plan is by engaging the “gatekeepers” of the curriculum, faculty, via “sustainability in the curriculum” projects. During May 2011, a group of Duke faculty and others participated in a workshop organized by Charlotte Clark, intended to support them in redesigning their Fall 2011 or Spring 2012 courses to include a sustainability content component. A sub-set of seven of these faculty will also explore sustainable teaching practices in their Fall 2011 courses, exploring methods such as paperless grading, and reduction of energy use in their classrooms. These seven are CIT’s Fall 2011 Sustainability Fellows.
Planned Fellows Activities
Fellows will met once a month during Fall 2011 to discuss their course design and react to approaches they have implemented already. Most of the faculty attempted to reduce or eliminate paper handouts and paper assignment collection from students; some attempted to reduce energy use in their classrooms, and plan to reduce materials use in their laboratory classes. Working with Casey Roe, Duke’s Sustainability Outreach Coordinator, they reviewed and commented on Duke’s draft “Green Classroom Certification” proposal, and also posted public blog entries about their green teaching experiences on the Trillium Fellows blog (Charlotte Clark’s website for her larger faculty initiative).
Planned Outcomes
The Fellows’ intent is to provide some anecdotal and subjective analysis and feedback about their experiences attempting green teaching practices, for the benefit of other members of the Duke teaching community. Each CIT Fellow will contribute a blog post about their fall teaching experiences, by mid-February 2012.
Participants
Charlotte Clark, Lecturer, NSOE (co-convener and faculty lead)
Sandra Cooke, Lecturing Fellow, Thompson Writing Program
Michael Ennis, Lecturing Fellow, Thompson Writing Program
Linda Franzoni, Professor of the Practice, Mechanical Engineering
Martha Reeves, Visiting Professor, Markets and Management Studies, Sociology and Women’s Studies
Craig Roberts, Assistant Director of Education, Duke Institute for Brain Sciences
Melissa Simmermeyer, Lecturer, Romance Studies
Shana Starobin, Graduate Student, Nicholas School of the Environment