Enviropolis – Enhancing Urban Environmental Education

The Enviropolis program aims to 1) recruit people into the environmental field and 2) develop environmental leaders. The program adds components to Northeastern undergraduate classes that typically are not feasible, like field trips, conference attendance, workshops, field monitoring, etc. Enviropolis 2005 focused on Urban Water Management and took 12 students on field trips in Boston, Tampa and Washington, D.C. In Washington, the students also attended the WEFTEC conference, the largest water quality event in North America, and participated in technical sessions, a facility tour and networking events. The students also organized a workshop on the environmental impacts of Hurricane Katrina, which was attended by people from all around the country. Enviropolis 2006 focused on Urban Hydrologic Sustainability. 27 students visited facilities in and around Boston (including the award-winning Gillette Stadium wastewater recycling plant), attended the WEFTEC conference in Dallas and organized a workshop. Enviropolis 2007 focused on a local issue: “Muddy River Water Quality,” with hands-on research experience, including field sampling and laboratory analyses, attendance at a conference, a field trip in Boston and a technical workshop. Enviropolis is having an impact on students. In the words of participant Filipe Cravo (’06), “The conference in Washington, D.C. was a big help in deciding whether or not I would want to get into the environmental field. We got to network with professionals already established in the business and had the chance to ask questions.”