November 15th is National Recycling Day. A few weeks ago, I was thinking about how to incorporate this topic into my environmental science class. After a couple of days of hashing some ideas around in my head, I came up with the idea of having students try to figure out 1) what trash our students produce in a typical day at school and 2) what happens to this trash after it leaves the school. My environmental science book stated that typically, once the trash is picked up, the waste company takes it to a transfer station. Here, it is separated and sent to a dump, recycling plant, or an incinerator. I wanted to know if this was really true, so I have devised a project for my students to trace their trash. Our ultimate goal is 1) to educate ourselves on what happens to our trash, 2) to construct a layer in Google Earth that shows what happens to our trash, and 3) to devise a plan to reduce the ecological footprint of our school through breaking the chain of consumption and disposal.
If you would like to join this project, please feel free. I would start by watching the video at the link below. I have also included the documents we used to do this project. If you have any questions or ideas on how to improve this project, feel free to contact me: Thomas Cooper coopert@thewalkerschool.org.
Dec. 12th - What Waste Do You Produce? (see below: "Walker Talks Trash")
Jan. 20th - Interviews with Key Trash Personnel (see below: Waste Industries Presentation; MOLAM Industries CEO Interview)
Feb. 1st. - Text, Pictures, Video Due on Wiki
Feb. 8th - Completion of Individual School's KMZ files
Feb. 15th - Compilation of Google Earth Layers
Feb. 22nd - Recyclable Temporary Art Projects Set Up and Pictures
March - Plan of Action Submitted to Wiki
March - Final Reports on Wiki
Calendar of Events
We have created a calendar of events to help you plan to complete this project. On the calendar we have also scheduled online conservations using Elluminate for teachers to get together, talk about the project, voice any questions and concerns, and to help build our community. We will also be offering monthly tutorials on how to use Google Earth. These sessions will be the last Monday of each month at 8 pm EST, excluding holidays. Sessions will be recorded and posted in the session archive on our site. Completion dates provided on the calendar are only suggestions. Schools may enter the project at any time during the year and data may be posted at any time up until May 30th when the project closes for the year.
* Previous project sessions are stored on the "Archives " page of The Networked Learner wiki.
Trace Your Trash Composite Layer
(comming)
What Trash Do You Produce?
Walker Talks Trash
Interview Question for Walker Community - "What trash do you produce during your daily activities at school?"
Google Earth KML/KMZ Tutorials - http://code.google.com/apis/kml/documentation/
Notes: Programming can be done in a text editor, such as Note Pad, but if you have a copy of Google Earth Pro, it would make life easier.
Tess Trash Challenge http://marketplace.publicradio.org/display/web/2007/09/14/tess_trash_challenge/
Notes: Tess Vigeland of Marketplace is taking a challenge to carry her garbage around with her for 2 weeks. Compost and recyclables are exempt. Can you imagine carrying your garbage around with you? Could you put it in a small shopping bag or would you need a wheelbarrow?
Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things - http://www.amazon.com
Authors: William McDonough and Michael Braungart
Notes: Great book for background reading about industrial production, downcycling, and wastes.
Garbage Land: On the Secret Trail of Trash by Elizabeth Royte (ISBN: 031615461X)
Movies
Manufactured Landscapes - http://www.zeitgeistfilms.com/film.php?directoryname=manufacturedlandscapes
Notes: MANUFACTURED LANDSCAPES is the striking new documentary on the world and work of renowned artist Edward Burtynsky. Internationally acclaimed for his large-scale photographs of “manufactured landscapes”—quarries, recycling yards, factories, mines and dams—Burtynsky creates stunningly beautiful art from civilization’s materials and debris.
Running Time: 90 minutes
Recycled Life - http://www.recycledlifedoc.com/
Notes: Great movie on people in developing countries and how their life depends on working and living in a dump.
Running Time: 35 minutes
Welcome to the Trace Your Trash Project,
If you would like to join this project, please feel free. I would start by watching the video at the link below. I have also included the documents we used to do this project. If you have any questions or ideas on how to improve this project, feel free to contact me: Thomas Cooper coopert@thewalkerschool.org.
You Need to Watch This!
The Story of Stuff - http://www.storyofstuff.com/Projected Outcomes
Proposed Due Dates:
Calendar of Events
We have created a calendar of events to help you plan to complete this project. On the calendar we have also scheduled online conservations using Elluminate for teachers to get together, talk about the project, voice any questions and concerns, and to help build our community. We will also be offering monthly tutorials on how to use Google Earth. These sessions will be the last Monday of each month at 8 pm EST, excluding holidays. Sessions will be recorded and posted in the session archive on our site. Completion dates provided on the calendar are only suggestions. Schools may enter the project at any time during the year and data may be posted at any time up until May 30th when the project closes for the year.
* Previous project sessions are stored on the "Archives " page of The Networked Learner wiki.
Trace Your Trash Composite Layer
(comming)
What Trash Do You Produce?
Walker Talks Trash
Interview Question for Walker Community - "What trash do you produce during your daily activities at school?"
How is Trash Processed in Georgia?
Disposal of Georgia MSW
Interview Questions for Waste Industries -
What happens to your electronic waste?
Walker Interviews MOLAM CEO
Computer Recycling Process Used by MOLAM
Interview Questions for MOLAM Industries -
Walker Interviews Grady Road Landfill
Interview Questions for Grady Road Landfill -
Documents:
Tutorials
Atomic Learning, Windows MovieMaker 2 Tutorials -
http://movies.atomiclearning.com/k12/moviemaker2
Notes:
Google Earth KML/KMZ Tutorials -
http://code.google.com/apis/kml/documentation/
Notes: Programming can be done in a text editor, such as Note Pad, but if you have a copy of Google Earth Pro, it would make life easier.
Izzy Video -
http://www.izzyvideo.com/
Notes: great photography and video tips and tutorials
Online Resources:
Podcasts
Afterlife of Garbage -http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5027659
Notes: NPR.org podcast on what happens to our garbage after it leaves our home.
Consumed - Marketplace
http://marketplace.publicradio.org/projects/project_display.php?proj_identifier=2007/11/08/consumed
Notes:
Tess Trash Challenge
http://marketplace.publicradio.org/display/web/2007/09/14/tess_trash_challenge/
Notes: Tess Vigeland of Marketplace is taking a challenge to carry her garbage around with her for 2 weeks. Compost and recyclables are exempt. Can you imagine carrying your garbage around with you? Could you put it in a small shopping bag or would you need a wheelbarrow?
Our E-Waste Comes Back to Haunt Us
http://marketplace.publicradio.org/display/web/2007/11/14/consumed5_pm_1
Notes:
Articles Online
20 Things You Didn't Know About Garbagehttp://discovermagazine.com/2006/jun/twenty-things
Estimating and Addressing American's Food Losses
http://www.ers.usda.gov/publications/foodreview/jan1997/jan97a.pdf
Secrets of the San Men
http://nymag.com/nymetro/news/features/12101/index1.html
Books
Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things - http://www.amazon.comAuthors: William McDonough and Michael Braungart
Notes: Great book for background reading about industrial production, downcycling, and wastes.
Garbage Land: On the Secret Trail of Trash by Elizabeth Royte (ISBN: 031615461X)
Movies
Manufactured Landscapes -http://www.zeitgeistfilms.com/film.php?directoryname=manufacturedlandscapes
Notes: MANUFACTURED LANDSCAPES is the striking new documentary on the world and work of renowned artist Edward Burtynsky. Internationally acclaimed for his large-scale photographs of “manufactured landscapes”—quarries, recycling yards, factories, mines and dams—Burtynsky creates stunningly beautiful art from civilization’s materials and debris.
Running Time: 90 minutes
Recycled Life - http://www.recycledlifedoc.com/
Notes: Great movie on people in developing countries and how their life depends on working and living in a dump.
Running Time: 35 minutes
The Story of Stuff - http://www.storyofstuff.com/
Notes:
Running Time: 20 minutes
Websites
Basal Action Network - http://www.ban.org/index.htmlNotes:
E-Waste Guide - http://ewasteguide.info/
Notes:
Free Cycle - http://www.freecycle.org/
Notes:
Georgia Landfills - http://www.agrosecurity.uga.edu/annexes/Annex07_Landfills.pdf
Notes:
Georgia Superfund Sites - http://www.cqs.com/super_ga.htm
Notes:
Georgia Waste Industries Facility Sites - http://www.waste-ind.com/LocationsGA.aspx
Notes:
Go With the Flow - http://www.wef.org/apps/gowithflow/theflow.htm
Notes:
Green Museum - http://greenmuseum.org/http://greenmuseum.org/
Notes: Has information on environmental artists and those who do art with "found objects".
The Rock Garden- http://www.ajc.com/search/content/living/homeandgarden/stories/2007/11/06/folkart_1107.html
Notes: Largest folk art garden in the world created over years made entirely of reclaimed materials found in dumps.
National Recycling Coalition - http://nrc-recycle.org/americarecycles.aspxhttp://nrc-recycle.org/americarecycles.aspx
Notes: Has information on the recycling process.
Plasma Arc Incinerator - http://www.rexresearch.com/circeo/circeo.htm
Notes: Developed by Georgia Institute of Technology
Problem-Based Learning Study Guide -
http://www.studygs.net/pbl.htm
Notes: Gives a short summary of PBL and how it can be employed in the classroom.
Proper E-Waste Disposal Tips - http://earth911.org/blog/2007/10/10/proper-disposal-and-recycling-of-e-waste/
Notes: