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Green Chemistry Education

Green Chemistry Series no. 3

 

P. Tundo and T. Patti, eds.

INCA (Interuniversity Consortium "Chemistry for the Environment"), 2002
[ISBN 88-88214-00-5]

The Subcommittee on Green Chemistry of the Division III of IUPAC, in collaboration with OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), has organised a Workshop on Green Chemistry Education.

One of the pillars of OECD's Sustainable Chemistry effort is the incorporation of sustainable chemistry concepts into chemical education, and the provision of support material to do so. At the joint meeting held on Paris, November 8th 2000, which has the lead for this work within the Sustainable Chemistry Issue Team, Italy proposed a workshop on education in the context of sustainable chemistry (called "green" chemistry by IUPAC). The joint meeting agreed on the value of the workshop, provided IUPAC has the lead responsibility for the workshop, but the workshop is held in co-operation with OECD.

* This activity was presented at a poster session at the IUPAC Congress/GA July 2001
>view pdf - 34KB<

The Event held at Auditorium S. Margherita, Ca' Foscari University of Venice, 12-14 September 2001, was hosted by the Interuniversity Consortium "Chemistry for the Environment", INCA.
This Workshop was the first one in the world since green chemistry, and green chemistry education, are still the frontier fields in chemical sciences.
It was opened to representatives (governmental institutions, academia and industry, national and international chemical societies, industrial organisations, environmental institutions and associations, etc.) with a relevant background on Green Chemistry educational themes. Persons coming from 23 Countries attended the Workshop.

The Workshop was focused upon the educational aspects of Green Chemistry and dealt with the following topics:

  1. Existing government and industry programs (R&D, awards, information, tools, etc.) useful for incorporating Green Chemistry into the education systems;
  2. Existing Green Chemistry educational material, tools, initiatives and sources;
  3. Educational areas which address Green Chemistry Education;
  4. Elaboration and carrying out the Green Chemistry educational programs/projects with new educational materials/tools;
  5. Commitments and recommendations necessary to carry out Green Chemistry educational programs.

This book presents the results of the Workshop. It contains three sections: the first section is dedicated to the outcomes of the discussion the five topics, and contains recommendations.
The second one in a table containing a comprehensive list of available education resources on Green Chemistry Education, divided according the following categories:

- literature inc. journal articles specific to green chemistry education
- lecture courses not degree courses
- web based materials
- software based tools
- proceedings from workshops and courses
- interactive teaching modules
- public awareness materials
- formal education programs
- laboratory experiments
- exchange programs
- generic funding resources
- industrial resources
- national and international competitions that promote green chemistry
- networking information and resources

The third section is devoted to the survey and its results, and gives an overview of the needs and the expectations of the worldwide Organisations present on Venice and operating in the field of Green Chemistry Education.

The Workshop recognised and acknowledged the following future needs:

  • in the development of more teaching resources, particularly laboratory experiments and resource materials for schools (both secondary and elementary schools)
  • for promoting the greening of present textbooks, courses and other resource materials
  • for creating greater awareness of interdisciplinary activities which involve Green and Sustainable Chemistry
  • for encouraging greater industry involvement in the provision and funding of educational resources

Relevant recommendations reported as a result of the Working Sections are:

Topic No. 1: Existing government and industry programs (R&D, awards, information, tools, etc.) useful for incorporating Green Chemistry into the education systems

RECOMMENDATIONS

  1. In order to prevent duplication and minimize wasted effort there is need for international coordination on the development of Green Chemistry education material. IUPAC should coordinate this activity with input from other organizations such as OECD, UNIDO, EU, WHO, FAO, FECS, and UNESCO.
  2. Because educational requirements vary from country to country, national organisations and Governments need to modify, adapt, and translate the basic information generated at the international level.
  3. It is vital to encourage participation of the developing countries in Green/Sustainable Chemistry education. Educational materials should be adapted to suit the needs of these countries by the organisations named above, other NGOs and individual Governments and be made available through an international clearinghouse.
  4. The socio-economic benefits of Green/Sustainable Chemistry need to be quantified and publicised. We recommend that the IUPAC and OECD form a working group to develop information on the socio-economic benefits of Sustainable Chemistry using case studies, such as those from the nominations for the US Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Awards, from INCA Awards in Italy and Green Chemistry Network in UK.
  5. To develop a guidance document to assist member and non-member countries in implementing their own Green Chemistry education programmes.
  6. To generate a resource catalogue of Green Chemistry education materials already developed by individual countries or through cooperative efforts.

Topic No 5: Commitments and recommendations necessary to carry out Green Chemistry educational programs

RECOMMENDATIONS:
(in parenthesis the Organisation suggested to lead the action).

  1. Become more active in promoting public awareness of chemistry as a whole, with an emphasis on the benefits of Green Chemistry (IUPAC).
  2. Encourage training and educational activities in Green Chemistry (IUPAC/OECD).
  3. Promote the development of Green Chemistry materials that focus on the integration of Green Chemistry into the curriculum. These materials should emphasize problem solving and critical thinking skills rather than the simple transfer of knowledge (IUPAC/OECD).
  4. Facilitate interactions between chemists and other parties that have a stake in Green Chemistry, such as economists, engineers, and biologists (IUPAC/OECD).
  5. Disseminate Green Chemistry educational materials and techniques to both developed and developing nations (IUPAC/OECD).
  6. Coordinate development of Green Chemistry educational materials with input from other organizations such as UNIDO, EU, WHO, FAO, FECS, and UNESCO (IUPAC).
  7. Encourage national organizations and governments to modify, adapt, and translate the basic information coordinated at the international level (IUPAC/NGOs).
  8. Assess mechanisms for and encourage uptake of Green Chemistry in primary and secondary education (IUPAC/OECD).
  9. Incorporate Green Chemistry principles into the syllabus of the Chemistry Olympiad competition (International Chemistry Olympiad Steering Committee/National Chemistry Olympiad Committees).

The report is free downloadable from the INCA website or available <www.incaweb.org/publications/gcbooks.php>

<book announcement published in Chem. Int. 25(2) 2003>


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