ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION
2019 – Present
Environmental Education engages with students in the Chicago Public School system and spreads knowledge about various topics related to the environment, our relationship with it, and sustainability as a whole. The goal is to instruct students about ways that they can interact with and help our planet.
Our project group is dedicated to helping students better understand their relationship with the environment around them and the impacts that climate change is having in their communities. We aim to provide students with the tools and resources that they need to engage with sustainable living in order to help them become environmental advocates.
We partner with public and charter schools (K-12) to teach lectures on a wide range of sustainability related topics, such as climate change, agriculture, green technologies, and the future of clean energy. To enhance these lectures we lead students in hands-on activities such as poster-making, outdoor gardening, and urban agriculture initiatives.
Two project group leaders leading a professor–student sustainability seminar in May, 2025.
In 2025, we continued our teaching program at Gary Comer Youth Center, coming in twice a week and continuing to build upon concepts introduced earlier in the year.
We also continued teaching sixth graders once a week at Ray Elementary, focusing on hands-on and interactive activities this quarter. In addition to trivia quizzes on the lessons, we incorporated taste tests and seed germination experiments.
During last school year we also hosted a workshop with West Loop's Bennett Day School and are currently partnering with the Chicago Youths Symphony Orchestra.
From 2023-2026, we have developed environmental and presenting at:
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Ray Elementary School
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Gary Comer Youth Center
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UChicago Charter Woodlawn
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Dulles Elementary
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Midwest Fine Arts Society and Chicago Civic Orchestra
Hands-On Learning
Students at Ray Elementary School participated in a bean sprout growing activity. The students measured the plants' growth over time (image left), and they planted their sprouts in the school's garden along with other vegetables.
Environmental Education also led water testing activities, where students tested the pH and other chemical properties of various water bodies in Hyde Park.
Project Group Leaders Dougie and Sam present on the groups work at the 2024 Sustainability Symposium.
A student's work during in-person instruction (2019)
Garden Club
On May 2nd, 2025, with the help of some passionate middle school students, our group installed three garden beds at the UChicago Charter School’s Woodlawn Campus to kickstart their garden club. The club meets weekly to plant and harvest fresh fruits and vegetables, and to learn how to prepare and cook the food students pick.
This initiative will began again in the 2025-26 academic year. This project is funded thanks to the University of Chicago’s Green Fund.
In-Our Hands
In March 2026, we had the opportunity to aid in the Chicago Civic Orchestra and the Midwest Fine Arts Society’s In Our Hands – a project that integrates climate education with music education for Chicagoland youth. Students were split into chamber music groups, tasked with coming up with a climate issue that they will portray through music programming of their choice. On PSI's end, we facilitate two interactive workshops and lessons on climate change to support the student’s projects, teach them the basics of climate change, and help them inspire creative environmental solutions. The project culminated in a performance at the Chicago Symphony Orchestra!
Ray Student Council & the Ray Sustainability Committee
We are working to assist the Ray Student Council and the Ray Sustainability Committee in their efforts to make Ray Elementary School as sustainable as possible. With them, we have assisted in leading hands on seed-ball activities for a wide range of students during Earth Day and holding a career day to expose students to various careers in sustainability fields.
Speaker Series
For our high school students, we host a speaker series where they can learn from UChicago professors and professionals in various sustainability-oriented fields including environmental policy, conservation, and environmental education.
Blogs
In an effort to ensure that students take away valuable knowledge from our lessons, we have created a blog including relevant information. This allows students who have additional questions or who want to share what they’ve learned with their families to have a helpful resource they can turn to.
Environmental Education members for the 2025-26 academic year.
