Creating a Global Open Web Course on Waste Management

Distance learning has already been employed as an agent of raising environmental awareness in projects like "PollinatorLIVE" and "Hands on the Land." The former has created webcasts on pollination and participatory science projects while it has made experts available to answer questions during certain time slots. The latter is a national network of field classrooms connecting students to public lands and waterways and has provided online courses like "Appalachian Artifact Exploration" and "Snow Science." Along similar lines, the presentation will explore the possibility of introducing a distance learning open non-credit web-course on sustainable waste management in a way that will incorporate a globalized perspective and involve an international audience in order to raise awareness on environmental issues and promote social change. Waste management is an important topic to be investigated because of two reasons: First the environmental impact can better be grasped through a multi-media approach. Second, the impact has generated a variety of responses and non-responses depending on the extent of environmental awareness and the level of development. To that purpose, the exploration of waste management in two regions in the US and Greece will serve as the pilot project of the proposed course. Specifically, the US generates annually 230 million tons of waste, or 4.6 pounds per person per day. Less than one-quarter of it is recycled with the rest being incinerated or buried. However, steps have been taken to minimize environmental impact such as waste reduction initiatives and recycling. For example, the companies "Diversified Energy"and "Velocys" are working on a portable system to turn biomass into diesel and jet fuel whereas local waste management companies have embarked on new initiatives to encourage recycling. The marked progress has initiated new university programs on sustainability across the country. On the other side of the globe, Greece still disposes 90% of its refuse in landfills and open dumps while recycling has stagnated into an embryonic stage. Furthermore, the environmental impact has been exacerbated by intense urbanization waves. The pilot project will show an interview with employees of "Waste Management" of Pasco County in Florida who will demonstrate the technology used for management of hazardous biological and chemical wastes, minimization of waste and recycling. It will also incorporate an interview with local officials of Konitsa, a town in north-western Greece and the problems they have faced with waste management while the current method of over-the-ground burial will be filmed. Both video-recordings and interviews will be conducted by university students in the two countries, under the supervision of the presenter. The non-credit course can be accessed freely by learners and educators around the globe who may upload material from their own countries and initiate discussion forums after registering. The materials used will range from online lectures, interviews and locally made videos demonstrating waste management methods. Students who join the course commit to a plan of action in promoting awareness on waste management problems and possibilities of sustainable approaches while they mark their progress on line. An international group of young committed students is expected to be created to bolster sustainable waste management in their respective countries. The open course is also expected to demonstrate the importance of innovation and civic involvement and thus contribute to the spread of the ideology of personal involvement in the solution of public problems.