Oral Abstract Details

Author(s):
Charlene LeBleu, Rebecca ONeal Dagg and Carla Jackson Bell

Affiliation:
Auburn University College of Architecture Design and Constructiion

Presentation Type:
Oral

Topic Area:
Ecosystem impacts on human communities (e.g., human health, economic well-being, political action)

Abstract Text:
Environmental education plays a key part in improving the quality of life and education of our youth. Green building and living practices have been suggested to improve the quality of the water and the overall health of the watershed. Green for Life! demonstrates how a demonstration site of stormwater integrated management practices (IMP’s) is used to assist in the implementation of an environmental educational program. The pilot program works with existing after school curricula at a local community center to stimulate academic achievement in science and arts through the age appropriate hands-on building of “green retrofits” to a local community center. The Green for Life! program is two-fold. First, the program provides green retrofits to the community center and secondly, a green education curriculum will empower children and students to take their new “green knowledge” home and to learn how “greening” the community will help to make communities stronger. The pilot program targets after school students [GreenKidz for Life! (K-8) and GreenTeenz for Life! (9-12)]. The project is funded by a SWaMP grant, Saugahatchee Watershed Management Plan grant (ADEM, 319 Clean Water Act). This program emphasizes the understanding of core principals of environmental education and why they are important to childhood education and family development. It builds capacity in support of the pending legislation of No Child Left Inside Act (NCLI Act -- H.R. 2054 / S. 866; pending). The Green for Life! program acts as a stimulus to combat sedentary lifestyles in children in an underserved community while laying a foundation to promote water quality, environmental education and green building education.