EHRA Foundations: Lessons
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Provided by: Environmental Health Research-to-Action|Published on: January 28, 2025
Lesson PlansScientist Reviewed
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Scientist Reviewed This resource has been reviewed by SubjectToClimate's climate scientists and verified for scientific accuracy and up-to-date information. Learn about our review process →
Synopsis
- This 10-lesson unit introduces students to environmental justice and health, health impacts in environmental justice communities, the use of science and data in environmental justice, and ways to fight against environmental injustice.
- The lessons cover a wide range of related topics, like air and water quality, the importance of green spaces, citizen science, mapping tools, and environmental justice policy.
- Students will explore many case studies from Detroit and Flint, Michigan.
Subjects: Biology, Geography
Authors: Environmental Health Research-to-Action
Region: Mid Michigan, Southeast Michigan
Languages: English
Teaching Materials
Positives
- These lessons call on students to act for environmental justice, which can help them feel empowered.
- Students will get to hear from a variety of speakers and read many different points of view.
Prerequisites
- Students will need to have a basic understanding of pollution.
- Students will need to have access to Flipgrid.
- In Lesson 5, the link for the National Stormwater Calculator is missing, and the link for the CDC/ATSDR Social Vulnerability Index is broken.
Differentiation & Implementation
- While these lessons are primarily for students in grades 6-8, many of the resources within the lesson have versions for students as young as 4th grade.
- If microscopes or magnifying glasses are available, students can use them to take a closer look at the results from their air monitor data in Lesson 2.
- Students can research climate change and how it exacerbates impacts on environmental justice communities.
Lesson 1: Environmental and Health Justice: The first lesson introduces students to the concept of environmental justice. Available data from a multitude of different sources all show that people are not facing the consequences of climate change equally and that our poorest populations, those that have had the least impact on the climate, are the ones facing the most challenges due to climate change. All external sources have been vetted, and this lesson is recommended for teaching.
Lesson 2: Air Pollution 101: The second lesson gives students hands-on experience to examine air quality, which is something that is very often taken for granted. This lesson says that air pollution is the main cause of climate change and that is exactly right, with best estimates saying that 80-90% of the warming the Earth has experienced is due to increases in air pollution emissions. This lesson is recommended for teaching.
Lesson 3: Water Quality and Access: This lesson goes into water access and quality. All external links redirect to reputable sources. Students will also learn about the real-world situation in Flint, Michigan. This lesson is recommended for teaching.
Lesson 4: The Power of Nature: Trees are an incredible solution when it comes to climate change and environmental justice. Not only do trees sequester carbon dioxide, the main culprit behind global warming, in urban areas trees can also result in significantly reduced temperatures. And yet, many urban areas that are populated by minorities have had their trees stripped away compared to predominately white neighborhoods. Please note that the Tree Equity Score link does not work directly from the PDF, as it needs a "www" added, but will work after that. This lesson is recommended for teaching.
Lesson 5: Data for Public Good: This lesson helps students learn about how to identify different types of data and how to evaluate data sets and websites. Students will be able to identify publicly available data and useful information for environmental decisions. Being able to assess a dataset or website for its usefulness, limitations, and bias is an invaluable skill for students as they learn research skills. The information presented is accurate and this lesson is recommended for teaching.
Lesson 6: Community-led Science: Students will learn what community-led science is along with its benefits and challenges. They will also learn how to collect their own data to answer their research questions, which allows students to better understand scientific results and methods. The lesson and examples focus on environmental health and emphasize the importance of understanding climate impacts in local communities. The information presented is accurate and this lesson is recommended for teaching.
Lesson 7: Mapping the Issues: This lesson introduces students to using maps to understand issues, framed largely around a historical account of a disease epidemic. Clear text and several videos guide students in understanding the importance of maps before creating their own environmental justice storymap. The text clearly illustrates how mapping is a key tool in climate research. This lesson is recommended for teaching.
Lesson 8: Telling Your Story: This lesson introduces students to the importance of stories in advocacy. A host of linked resources provide tips and examples, most notably the ‘Youth & Climate’ series that grounds this resource in personal stories of climate change impacts. This lesson is recommended for teaching.
Lesson 9: Policy Advocacy 101: This lesson introduces students to policy advocacy and teaches them a series of organizing tactics. An excellent selection of external sources frames the student project to create a power map and advocate for policy change. The text clearly shows how policy advocacy is an important tool to fight climate change. This lesson is recommended for teaching.
Lesson 10: Bringing it All Together Through Action: The final lesson tasks students with using all of the skills they have learned in communication, storytelling, and advocacy to produce a final project that addresses an environmental justice topic of concern. Effective communication is stressed as key in educating people and gaining popular support to address climate change. This lesson is recommended for teaching.
Lesson 2: Air Pollution 101: The second lesson gives students hands-on experience to examine air quality, which is something that is very often taken for granted. This lesson says that air pollution is the main cause of climate change and that is exactly right, with best estimates saying that 80-90% of the warming the Earth has experienced is due to increases in air pollution emissions. This lesson is recommended for teaching.
Lesson 3: Water Quality and Access: This lesson goes into water access and quality. All external links redirect to reputable sources. Students will also learn about the real-world situation in Flint, Michigan. This lesson is recommended for teaching.
Lesson 4: The Power of Nature: Trees are an incredible solution when it comes to climate change and environmental justice. Not only do trees sequester carbon dioxide, the main culprit behind global warming, in urban areas trees can also result in significantly reduced temperatures. And yet, many urban areas that are populated by minorities have had their trees stripped away compared to predominately white neighborhoods. Please note that the Tree Equity Score link does not work directly from the PDF, as it needs a "www" added, but will work after that. This lesson is recommended for teaching.
Lesson 5: Data for Public Good: This lesson helps students learn about how to identify different types of data and how to evaluate data sets and websites. Students will be able to identify publicly available data and useful information for environmental decisions. Being able to assess a dataset or website for its usefulness, limitations, and bias is an invaluable skill for students as they learn research skills. The information presented is accurate and this lesson is recommended for teaching.
Lesson 6: Community-led Science: Students will learn what community-led science is along with its benefits and challenges. They will also learn how to collect their own data to answer their research questions, which allows students to better understand scientific results and methods. The lesson and examples focus on environmental health and emphasize the importance of understanding climate impacts in local communities. The information presented is accurate and this lesson is recommended for teaching.
Lesson 7: Mapping the Issues: This lesson introduces students to using maps to understand issues, framed largely around a historical account of a disease epidemic. Clear text and several videos guide students in understanding the importance of maps before creating their own environmental justice storymap. The text clearly illustrates how mapping is a key tool in climate research. This lesson is recommended for teaching.
Lesson 8: Telling Your Story: This lesson introduces students to the importance of stories in advocacy. A host of linked resources provide tips and examples, most notably the ‘Youth & Climate’ series that grounds this resource in personal stories of climate change impacts. This lesson is recommended for teaching.
Lesson 9: Policy Advocacy 101: This lesson introduces students to policy advocacy and teaches them a series of organizing tactics. An excellent selection of external sources frames the student project to create a power map and advocate for policy change. The text clearly shows how policy advocacy is an important tool to fight climate change. This lesson is recommended for teaching.
Lesson 10: Bringing it All Together Through Action: The final lesson tasks students with using all of the skills they have learned in communication, storytelling, and advocacy to produce a final project that addresses an environmental justice topic of concern. Effective communication is stressed as key in educating people and gaining popular support to address climate change. This lesson is recommended for teaching.
Teaching Tips
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Resource Type and Format
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