Creating Great Lakes stewards and promoting healthy urban watersheds in Detroit

Session: Education, Outreach, and Citizen Science in Our Great Lakes: Engaging the Community (2)

Joan Chadde, Center for Science & Environmental Outreach, Michigan Technological University, [email protected]

Abstract

The goal of this 2-year EPA-funded project is to build student and teacher capacity to steward the urban water resources of Detroit now and in the future. The project has engaged 30 teachers at 15 schools, reaching 800 middle school students, in becoming stewards of their community’s drinking water. Teachers participated in five workshops each school year to enhance their understanding of their local water resources and gain valuable teaching resources. Students participated in three field trips that included visiting the Detroit drinking water treatment plant or water recovery plant, conducting stream health and ecosystem monitoring, and completing a stewardship project. Student surveys indicate increased knowledge and greater interest in environmental careers. The demographics of Detroit public school students are: 80% qualify for free/reduced lunch, 83.9% are African American, 12% Hispanic, 2.36% White and <2% other, with a 71% graduation rate in 2014.. The project is a collaborative effort of the Detroit Zoological Society, Detroit Public Schools Community District, Wayne State University Healthy Urban Waters, Detroit Audubon, Southwest Detroit Environmental Vision, U.S. Forest Service Urban Connections, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Michigan Department of Natural Resources, and Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, coordinated by Michigan Technological University.