Green chemistry education curriculum materials

Julie A. Haack is a senior instructor and assistant department head for chemistry at the University of Oregon, where her work has focused on the incorporation of green chemistry principles into the introductory chemistry curriculum for both science and nonscience majors. She is a leader in facilitating the identification, development, and dissemination of green chemistry educational materials throughout the chemistry curriculum. 

To sustain the development of new green chemistry curriculum and tools, a network of faculty has been formed to promote a collaborative approach to preparation of new materials. The Green Chemistry Education Network (GCEdNet) (35) began in 2004 with five ambassador faculty members located... 

A question that educators often pose is how to effectively incorporate green chemistry education into an already crowded curriculum. While it certainly is true that we are always re-evaluating our course content to cover the essentials and keep it relevant, this does not mean that we should feel limited in our ability to incorporate green chemistry. In many cases green chemistry offers a better alternative to traditional material in getting across the principles covered in the first-year curriculum. Thus green chemistry should not be perceived as an addon topic but instead should replace some material that is traditionally covered. 

In order to help insure that we develop a sustainable world, it is imperative that we bring the tenets of sustainability to the people of the planet. As chemists, we can have a considerable influence on the progress that we make toward this goal by both what we practice and what we preach . We must view all chemistry with the goal to make it greener. In order to implant this view in a student s psyche, it is necessary to infuse green chemistry across the curriculum. Educators need to look at all the materials (particularly textbooks) they use, and consider how they can infuse sustainable chemistry into the discussion. 

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