National Safety Council
Contents:
While much progress has been made over the past several decades in improving air quality, air pollution is still a major health concern in many areas, and motor vehicles are a major source of air pollution. In some areas, the personal automobile is the single greatest polluter. Driving a private car is probably a typical citizen's most "polluting" daily activity. A poorly maintained or malfunctioning car releases up to 100 times that of a well-maintained car. Transportation emissions are an important contributor to global warming, stratospheric ozone depletion, and ground-level ozone (smog).
Air pollution can affect people's immune systems, airways, and lungs; can increase the risk of respiratory infection; and can contribute to lung cancer. Air pollution can also aggravate asthma and cause asthma episodes. Symptoms of exposure to air pollution can include mild irritation to the nose, eyes, and throat, coughing, wheezing, and a reduced ability to exercise outdoors. Children, the elderly, and people with asthma are at particular risk.
Asthma is the leading serious chronic illness among children and the number one cause of hospitalization among children under 15. More than 8.5 million children under 18 have asthma. A recent study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that the reduced use of cars in Atlanta, Georgia during the 1996 Summer Olympics led to improved air quality and a significant decrease in hospital emergency room visits for asthma. More than 1.9 million children in the United States with asthma are potentially exposed to unhealthful levels of ozone, according to a recent study from the American Lung Association.
Children are more vulnerable to air pollution for a number of reasons, including having respiratory organs that are not fully developed, breathing in more air per pound of body weight than adults, and having narrower airways that are more affected by tissue inflammation.
Outreach and Education on Transportation and Air Quality
In communities across the country, efforts are underway to help address concerns about transportation, air quality, and climate change. A wide range of initiatives have been undertaken by federal, state, and local agencies as well as environmental organizations, community organizations, and others. Many communities have included education and outreach among their various means of reducing vehicle emissions, meeting air quality standards, and maintaining a healthy environment.
A number of communities have specifically targeted youth in their outreach activities. Focusing on pre-drivers and new drivers will help instill life-long practices of proper car maintenance and driving habits. Starting with new drivers may also more easily accomplish these goals than changing the behavior of experienced drivers. Informing and involving youth even before they become drivers can be important to their future decisions about driving. These programs are intended to provide the knowledge and understanding that will help tomorrow's drivers make the right choices when it comes to alternative transportation choices, car maintenance, driving smart, and preventing pollution.
About this report
This report describes some specific programs that focus on the interrelated issues of transportation, air quality, and climate change, and particularly on initiatives involving youth. It describes, from the perspective of the program managers and youth participants, their experiences, their keys to success, their obstacles, and their suggestions for others.
The specific activities undertaken by the various organizations vary greatly from community to community. The size and type of community being served also varies, as do the types of organizations undertaking the efforts. The organizations discussed in the report include state environmental agencies, a regional nonprofit, a metropolitan planning organization, a local chapter of a national nonprofit organization, an air quality management district, and a science center collaborative. The information in this report was gathered from participants in a roundtable discussion in October 2001, from written descriptions provided by program mangers, and from individual discussions.
While specific focus varies among the programs, some of the key types of pollution prevention actions promoted by the programs include:
The first section of the report provides an overview of the activities involved in each of the programs. The second section provides descriptions of their experiences and lessons learned.
American Lung Association of Gulfcoast Florida
The American Lung Association of Gulfcoast Florida (ALAGF) has undertaken a number of activities involving youth. Two of the programs deal specifically with air quality and have been modeled after their successful programs in other areas such as tobacco and asthma.
"AirWise"
ALAGF's first effort in the area was to develop an educational kit, called "AirWise," to help educate 6th through 8th graders about indoor and outdoor air pollution. It is designed for use in middle school classrooms and contains: fact sheets, a list of resources, a comprehensive instructor's guide that includes lesson plans for two one-hour lessons, classroom activity guides, a take-home IAQ checklist, and classroom aids. Teachers can gauge the effectiveness of the program using pre- and post-tests included in the kit.
ALAGF developed "AirWise" in conjunction with air quality experts. Through group activities and individual lessons, it offers middle school students an interactive and fun way to learn more about their environment. "AirWise" covers information on current air quality issues such as:
The "AirWise" educational materials have been used by more than 15,000 students in the Tampa Bay metropolitan area since 1995. The kits are available at no cost to schools in the Tampa Bay area via funds raised through sponsorships. Schools outside the Tampa Bay area have the option of purchasing the materials.
Youth Environmental Associates (YEA!)
The American Lung Association of Gulfcoast Florida, in partnership with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is sponsoring an exciting environmental health program aimed at encouraging youth to reduce air pollution.
The project began several years ago when high school students interested in the environment were recruited as volunteers to work with the Association's Air Quality Task Force made up of volunteer air quality experts. From this initial effort, the students organized themselves into a group called YEA, Youth Environmental Associates. This unique, youth-driven initiative was found to be the first of its kind in the nation. YEA members feel this program is a way to collectively work towards a solution to the problems of air pollution, with specific emphasis on pollution caused by mobile sources. The primary goal of YEA is pollution reduction and they are using a myriad of activities¾all designed by students to be fun and engaging - to reach this goal. For example, both carpooling and the use of alternative forms of transportation are activities encouraged by YEA. To get more students involved, incentives are offered to participants.
YEA Clubs have been established at several local high schools and plans are to continue forming additional clubs. YEA members have written and produced commercials that have been aired on popular teen radio stations, (e.g., Radio Disney). Student members have shared information with Florida congressmen and senators during visits to their offices.
Each YEA Club must have a teacher to oversee its activities. The participating teacher must sign a letter of agreement ensuring that they will hold regular meetings and conduct activities aimed at reducing vehicle miles traveled. Participating teachers receive a $300 stipend. Each group of students, with guidance from the ALAGF, determines what activities and events they will take part in. In addition to the school-based activities, during the summer of 2001, participating students attended 27 sessions over 10 weeks covering such things as leadership training and public speaking and visited a variety of sites and organizations. The students received stipends of $50 per week for their participation.
ALAGF's YEA project incorporates education, advocacy, and volunteerism utilizing a contemporary platform; YEA presents air quality issues in a student-friendly manner, provides an entrée to public officials and decision making bodies who look to young people for input, and helps the ALAGF to identify a whole new spectrum of volunteers to reach a younger generation. Most importantly, YEA addresses the ALA's core program of environmental health. Much of the success of the program can be credited to the community partnerships whose members serve as technical advisors and supporters to YEA. These partners include the Center for Urban Transportation Research at the University of South Florida (USF); the Hillsborough County Environmental Protection Commission, Jerry Ulm Dodge, and the USF College of Medicine.
For more information:
Email: Nelson Mongiovi, NelsonM@alagf.org,
Phone: (800) 780-5864 or (813) 962-4448
Web sites: www.gulflung.org, www.airwise.org
The Mid America Regional Council (MARC) serves as the association of city and county governments and the metropolitan planning organization for the bi-state Kansas City region. MARC has in the past worked directly with local middle schools and junior high schools in a program called Let Kids Lead. Let Kids Lead helps students learn how transportation choices affect air quality and enables them to develop math and critical thinking skills, cultivate leadership skills, influence local government decision-making processes, and perform work that benefits the entire community.
The cornerstone of the project is the Transportation Choices Survey, a survey students used to assess peer travel behavior and to identify factors that prevent kids from walking and cycling. The survey was developed by students at Liberty Middle School in Liberty, Missouri, and at Indian Hills Middle School in Prairie Village, Kansas. Students collected and analyzed data about classmates' trips to and from school and around the neighborhood to gain a better understanding of how and why kids and parents make the travel choices they do.
MARC initially worked directly with students at the two middle schools to create and administer surveys and to assess the results. The survey was subsequently converted into an online form to enable other schools to easily participate in the program. Any middle or junior high school in the Kansas City metropolitan may participate with the approval of the school administration and the sponsorship of a teacher. (MARC requests that a minimum of 50 students or one entire grade level complete the questionnaire.) After a school registers, students use computers at their schools to complete the survey. The survey, includes 20 questions and takes about 10 minutes to complete
All responses are automatically entered in a database and tabulated. MARC then provided the schools with a data summary, allowing the students the opportunity to evaluate the responses and to identify significant trends. If survey responses reflect a desire for increased cycling and walking opportunities, students are encouraged to convey this information to community leaders either in writing or in person. MARC provides administrative support and assistance in arranging meetings with local public officials.
Teachers who serve as project sponsors receive a teacher's guide containing: instructions for completing the survey, a primer on regional transportation and air quality issues, and tips on assisting students in conveying their message to community leaders. MARC also provides students with information packets to help them learn about regional air quality issues. Topics include ground-level ozone, air pollution impacts of short trips by car, health effects of air pollution, and the health benefits of walking and cycling. Also included are tips on how youth can take an active role to increase opportunities for walking and cycling in their communities.
Because MARC designed the survey to be incorporated into regular science and math classes, the only time commitment from the teacher is that which he/she would ordinarily spend developing lesson plans for a regular class. Teachers could choose to spend one or more class sessions discussing material from the guide. The program involved about 150 sixth and seventh graders over two years.
Let Kids Lead is a program of the Academy for Educational Development supported by funds from the EPA. MARC's Let Kids Lead ran from 1997-2000 with total funding of $120,000.
Although funding for this project has expired, the online survey instrument is available at www.marc.org/bikeped.htm.
For more information:
E-mail: James Joerke, jjoerke@marc.org.
Phone: (816) 474-4240
Web sites: www.marc.org/environment/LetKidsLead.htm, www.letkidslead.org.
New England Science Center Collaborative
The New England Science Center Collaborative (NESCC) is working to link scientists to informal science educators at museums, aquariums, planetariums, and environmental centers. NESCC was initially established with funds from Environmental Defense, one of five national environmental organizations that received a three-year $2 million grant from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation to explore ways to get information out to the public about climate change. This initiative was undertaken in five states, one of which was New Hampshire. While most of the efforts targeted business and political strategies, NESCC emerged as a broad-based educational effort to disseminate and present climate change research for public consumption.
A variety of New Hampshire nonprofit science and environmental organizations joined together to form the Collaborative in March 1999. In 2001, the effort was expanded beyond New Hampshire to form a regional effort. Membership now includes 19 nonprofit science centers and 6 research institutes that together host more than 2 million visitors and members a year.
The New England Science Center Collaborative's approach is to distribute information through existing and valued venues that employ science educators. Since the majority of attendees at museums are families and children, NESCC focuses its work on educating the museum staff and volunteers who then reach out to families and youth about climate change. They have 9 interactive exhibits that travel throughout New England and students are involved in demonstrating the exhibit and their understanding to top public officials.
A second teaching tool for educating youth about climate change is NESCC's "Climate Change Backpack." It is more mobile than the exhibits and can be used in a variety of settings and presented according to the available teaching slot (in 20, 45, or 90 minute presentations). In 2002, NESCC will train 180 docents to use the backpack to educate students. The backpacks, donated by the Timberland Company, include a presenter's guide geared towards those without an in-depth knowledge of climate change, and a variety of props and activities to help teach various concepts related to climate change. NESCC has found that involving the youth in hands-on activities has been very successful in getting the concepts across. Students have also been involved in demonstrating the backpacks. In February 2002, EPA distributed 130 of the backpacks for use at national parks around the country.
In addition to funding through the MacArthur Foundation, NESCC has project funding from a number of regional foundations, the EPA, and state air quality offices. NESCC expects to generate a small revenue stream through sales of the backpack which retail at $199 each. The most difficult aspect of the effort to fund, and the most essential aspect, is capacity building including communication with and coordination of the various members.
One of the keys to the success of the collaboration is outside coordination. NESCC contracts an independent consultant to coordinate its efforts. This model keeps the focus on priority activities and issues. The collaboration, begun as a one-year experiment in 1999, has just committed to a work plan through 2006. Interestingly, this long-range planning came from the insistence of the scientific institutions who "have never found such an efficient way to get our science to the public." NESCC has chosen to use one of its member organizations as the fiscal agent rather than incorporate.
The key to working with the science centers is being able to offer them current, credible, scientific educational resources and access to scientists. As one science center member says, "Most of us entered the field of informal science education because we know the importance of conveying science to the public. NESCC brings the excitement of science to our staff, so our staff can share that excitement with young people."
For more information:
Email: Mary Lou Krambeer, nescc@chartervt.net
Phone: (603) 444-0949
New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services
The New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services (NHDES) has undertaken a number of activities to help educate youth about the impact of transportation choices on air quality. NHDES is incorporating outreach as a means of achieving compliance with regulations, especially state and federal regulations related to mobile sources.
Staff from NHDES do classroom presentations upon request on a variety of environmental issues including air quality and transportation issues, predominantly to high school and post high school students. NHDES staff have also presented regularly at an annual drivers education teacher workshop. NHDES is also involved in an annual "EcoNet" summer camp program for 10 to 14 year-olds which includes multiple environmental issues and computer skills.
NHDES promotes the use of air quality curriculum by attending regular science teacher workshops and displaying materials, including the National Safety Council's Cleaner Cars Module.
For more information:
Web site: www.des.state.nh.us/teachers
Northeast Sustainable Energy Association
Northeast Sustainable Energy Association's (NESEA) "Earth Smart Travel" education program involves a number of activities for students in elementary school through high school. Activities undertaken by NESEA in Pioneer Valley, a central Massachusetts community of about 60,000, during the 2000 - 2001 school year included the following.
Elementary School Lessons Provided Throughout the Pioneer Valley
"Earth Smart Travel" lessons were provided to 65 third and fourth grade classes in 16 Pioneer Valley schools. Students analyzed their pollution reduction efforts and created posters based on their learning. Lessons, which were designed to meet local educational standards, included a technology demonstration, such as an electric vehicle, and a trip log activity for the students. College students and community volunteers were recruited to present the lessons. Students' posters were displayed at a number of events. NESEA promoted the activity as a potential Earth Day activity.
"Give Your Car a Break Week" Trip Log and Trip Tally Program
In the spring of 2001, 1,350 Pioneer Valley elementary and middle school students joined efforts to record car trips and car miles avoided by carpooling, combining trips, taking the bus, walking, and riding bikes to get around. NESEA provided the trip log forms to record car miles avoided and guidance and instruction, with the help of volunteers. They recorded saving 92,521 miles, and avoided the production of 42 tons of CO2. This represented a sevenfold improvement over the previous year. The event was covered by local newspapers and radio.
New Curriculum: "Getting Around Clean and Green"
Greenfield Middle School students investigated environmental impacts of transportation and discovered solutions in their own community while trying out NESEA's new curriculum. Students used technology, science, and social studies standards to understand and address real world issues such as transportation and global warming.
School Presentations Coordinated
NESEA coordinated meetings and discussion about opportunities for transportation solutions between middle school students and local leaders including local planners, EPA officials, state senators, a state representative, a Rails-to-Trails speaker, a mass transit manager, and a bicycle advocate
Technology Demonstrations Provided
Ten schools hosted Earth-friendly transportation demonstrations organized by NESEA to highlight the value of technology. Students were excited to see, ride, and drive clean transportation alternatives including electric, hybrid, solar, biofuel, and human powered vehicles.
Bike Rack Funds for Towns in 2001
NESEA provided funds and helped students meet bike rack grant requirements.
High school students in Amherst, Hadley, and Greenfield successfully planned rack locations. Each town will receive up to $4,000 for bike racks and installation.
Award ceremonies were held during Bike Week for students and town officials.
Pioneer Valley Clean and Green Map Created
NESEA created a student friendly "Clean and Green Transportation Map of the Pioneer Valley." The map highlights many fun and interesting sites and activities for students and identifies different transportation modes. The map allows students to calculate trip distances and find less polluting alternative ways to get around and also meets geography education standards.
Professional Development Teacher Workshops Taught
NESEA hosted workshops for teachers based on its "Getting Around Clean and Green" and "Solar Model Car Building" curriculums.
"The American Tour de Sol" Field Trip Drives Home "Earth Smart Travel"
The Tour De Sol: The Great American Green Transportation Festival is a unique, award-winning, year-round public education campaign that culminates in May in a series of festivals in the Northeast. NESEA displays Earth-friendly vehicles at the festivals and the festivals are linked by a road-rally competition. Approximately 4,000 people attend the festivals each year.
Database of Educational Resources
On NESEA's Web site is a searchable database, called Future Wheels Teachers Resource Guide, of K-12 educational resources that use the theme of transportation and the environment. It includes NESEA resources and resources from other organizations. Each entry includes a description of the resource, contact information, and price. Resources that are free or low cost are clearly identified, as are materials that can be downloaded directly off the Internet. Entries for curriculum guides and student competitions show which national education standards they help students meet.
"Getting Around Without Gasoline"
"Getting Around Without Gasoline" is an interdisciplinary curriculum unit for middle school classes. During the unit students interpret statistics, develop graphs, express their thoughts in writing, and conduct mathematical calculations in order to compare powering vehicles with gasoline vs. electricity. Activities include designing a model vehicle and a city, and selecting a project that will make a difference in their community. Background information is included in the 60-page unit.
An Environmental Education Grant from the EPA funded the unit. Copies are free for teachers in New England, New York, and the Mid-Atlantic states; $10 a copy for all other regions.
"Getting Around Clean & Green"
"Getting Around Clean & Green" is an interdisciplinary science/social studies curriculum for middle school classes. It allows students to explore transportation and environmental issues in their own lives. Activities cover: transportation systems, health impacts, environmental and transportation histories, carpooling, and mass transit. A final assessment project includes a student-researched, designed and written "green" travel guide to fun local destinations. The unit is 90 pages and supports teaching/learning standards in a number of subject areas including technology, science, geography, social studies, and mathematics.
A FREE copy can be downloaded from www.nesea.org or a printed copy can be ordered from NESEA for $10. This curriculum was funded by U.S. Department of Transportation's Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement (CMAQ) program funds. CMAQ is a program of the U.S. Department of Transportation that provides funding for projects or programs that will help reduce transportation-related emissions in order to help communities meet air quality standards.
For more information:
Email: Chris Mason, cmason@nesea.org
Phone: (413) 774-6051
Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District
The Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District (SMAQMD) has done many things with youth over the years. Current efforts include the High School Challenge and the "Save Planet Polluto" CD-ROM. Students also participated in earlier efforts, such as the neighborhood Smog Squad (1990 - 1999), visiting residents door to door in targeted neighborhoods, and passing out air quality information and free transit tickets during the summer smog season.
"Save Planet Polluto"
"Save Planet Polluto," is a CD-ROM educational air quality adventure game now being distributed to parents, students, and teachers in the Sacramento area. It is primarily targeted to grades four through eight. It requires the students to learn about air pollution and sources by taking a series of classes, and to solve a series of problems in order to identify pollution sources on Planet Polluto and save the planet. "Save Planet Polluto" has reached thousands of children. The CD-ROM is free to anyone in the Sacramento, California, regional area. Some of the information and student activities are available on the Plant Polluto Web site at www.plantepolluto.org. "Save Planet Polluto" was funded by EPA.
The High School Clean Air Challenge
Under the High School Clean Air Challenge program, youth leaders and environmental clubs have develop and organize air quality events at their schools. The program is managed by the American Lung Association of Sacramento-Emigrant Trails under contract with SMAQMD.
The Challenge, now in its sixth year, is campus-based and organized by students. During the months of April, May and November, numerous events take place among local high schools. By providing alternative means of transportation, students and staff can see for themselves how much they can clear their parking lots while simultaneously cleaning their air.
The benefits for students of participating in the High School Challenge include community service credit, references and recommendations from a nationally recognized nonprofit organization, and leadership skills. The youth make a long-term commitment to the program and they spend their own time on weekends or evenings as well as time during school hours.
The Challenge is funded by the SMAQMD and the Yolo-Solano Air Quality Management District. Sources of SMAQMD funding include CMAQ, Measure "A" (a set-aside portion of a local sales tax dedicated for transportation and air quality), Department of Motor Vehicles registration surcharge, and EPA grants.
For more information:
Web sites: www.PlanetPolluto.com; www.PlanetPolluto.com; www.AirQuality.org, www.saclung.org/youth/youth1.htm
Email: rguggenheim@saclung.org
Phone: (916) 444-LUNG (5864).
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has undertaken a variety of outreach activities for children and youth from preschool through high school. Each of the activities has involved working closely with schools and teachers. The funds have come from a number of state, federal, and private sources.
"Clean Air, Healthy Children"
DNR has developed a lesson and activity guide for use with four- to six-year-olds to teach about the link between air pollution and respiratory problems. "Clean Air, Healthy Children" teaches children the basic concepts of the respiratory system and air pollution and how to recognize early signs of respiratory problems. It includes activities for the children and supplemental information for caregivers. High school students helped create the artwork for the guidebook.
"Where's the Air?"
DNR also developed, in collaboration with the Wisconsin Department of Transportation, an interactive CD-ROM kit called "Where's the Air?" It was designed for use with students in 5th through 12th grades.
The kit provides teachers and students with a comprehensive set of science information, student activities, and discovery tools for studying air quality and its relation to social behavior, including automobile driving behavior. The kit includes a poster with science facts, a teacher activity guide including indoor and outdoor science and discovery projects, and a CD-ROM with computer games and supplemental study materials.
The kit cost approximately $60,000 to develop and funds were from DNR's Air Communications and Education budget (from funds set aside from mobile and stationary source fees).
Free copies of "Where's the Air?" were sent to all Wisconsin schools and libraries.
Video - "Asthma in the Air"
As part of its educational efforts, the Wisconsin DNR developed an eight-minute video on asthma and air pollution which it made available free to Wisconsin teachers. The video, called "Asthma in the Air," is intended for use as part of health education programs and focuses on the message that "When everybody does their part, it all adds up to cleaner air." The video is targeted to urban at-risk 5th and 6th grade students and it focuses on actions and solutions.
It was developed and produced by the Sixteenth Street Community Health Center Child Health Champion Project in Milwaukee, Wisconsin using local amateur student actors. It was funded in part by a grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Easy Breathers
The DNR is working in cooperation with students at partner high schools in Milwaukee in the development of a multi-part project aimed at teaching high school students about the impact of transportation on air quality, the impact of their driving and transportation behaviors and choices, and emerging automobile technologies. The project will involve a video, an interactive CD-ROM, a Web site, and a range of other supporting materials.
The project philosophy is to let the students take the lead as much as possible. Students are actively collaborating in every stage of project development, including script, acting, videography, music selection, Web site development, and travel to location shoots at partner schools in California and Texas.
The project is expected to be completed early in 2002 and is expected to cost about $400,000 for development and distribution. Sources of funding include the EPA Office of Transportation and Air Quality; the Wisconsin Department of Transportation Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ); the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Air Communications and Education (from mobile and stationary source fees); and Milwaukee Public Schools. Midwest Express provided complimentary airfares to the location shoots.
Biomonitoring Education
In another effort aimed at 5th grade students, DNR is training science teachers to teach a science module for students that involves creating biomonitoring sites. As part of the module, students collect environmental data and DNR then collects and analyzes the data. The project will engage the students in scientific research and data collection on air quality statewide, using biological monitors (milkweed). The idea is to have students engage in "real" science and learn the biochemistry of air quality while actively contributing to air quality in their local community.
The project is expected to cost approximately $10,000 with funds coming from a set aside of mobile and stationary source fees.
The Simulator: Drivers Wanted
Early in 2002, DNR will begin work on creating an interactive, simulated driving experience for high school drivers using video gaming technology. It will use competitive games to teach high school drivers about the impact of driving technologies and behaviors on air quality and congestion.
The intent is to make education about the automobile's impact on air quality and transportation fun so that it can make a difference in youthful transportation choices and behavior. DNR will collaborate with the states of Illinois and Indiana to distribute and/or install the product in high profile locations around the Lake Michigan shore, in Chicagoland, and through driver education schools/curricula in all three states. It will also be available on the Web.
It is expected to cost approximately $275,000 with funds being provided by EPA, Wisconsin Department of Transportation, the U.S. Department of Transportation's CMAQ program; funds set aside from mobile and stationary sources fees.
For more information:
Email: Sara Burr, burrs@dnr.state.wi.us, Mittsy Voiles, voilem@dnr.state.wi.us, Al Stenstrup, stensa@dnr.state.wi.us
Web sites: www.easybreathers.org, www.dnr.state.wi.us/org/caer/ce/eek
The programs used a number of different strategies for engaging youth in their programs. For the high school students, having students directly help in developing and organizing activities was one way of getting students interested and involved. In some of the programs, high school students took the lead in developing and organizing activities in their school and community. Giving youth a leadership role in the project gave them a stake in its success and made them more interested than they might have been otherwise.
In other cases, contact was made directly with teachers or school administrators, who in turn got the students involved. For getting programs into classrooms, one of the keys is to understand what the teacher needs, what fits into the curriculum, and what the applicable teaching standards are and to tailor the curriculum or lesson to those needs.
For school-based programs for younger grades, offering teachers a readymade activity for Earth Day was one way to make a lesson or activity attractive to the teachers.
For programs requiring students' time outside of school, one incentive used to attract student participation was to offer a stipend (for substantial participation over a period of time). In another case, the possibility of travel was if particular interest to many student participants.
For all ages, there was general agreement among the respondents that hands-on activities are key to capturing students' attention.
The students' roles and level of participation
In some cases students played a passive role, simply watching videos and learning in the classroom about transportation and air quality. In other cases, students were much more actively involved in developing materials and activities, implementing outreach efforts, and advocating for change.
In some cases, students took the lead in setting priorities and determining activities. In one program, students were actively collaborating in every stage of producing a video including script, acting, videography, music selection, location shoots, travel out-of-state to film on location, and Web site development.
Educational materials used
A wide variety of educational materials were used. They included such things as an online survey about transportation use and a companion teacher's guide, printed handouts, brochures, trip logs to calculate vehicle miles traveled, promotional items, Web sites, videos, and interactive CD-ROM's.
Evaluation and measuring success
A variety of methods were used to measure and evaluate the efforts. In some cases, the students were involved in some type of tracking or reporting such as a trip log to document reduction in vehicle miles traveled or an online survey about transportation choices.
In one case, teachers evaluated and provided feedback on a curriculum early in its development to ensure its usefulness for teachers. Some classroom-based programs involved evaluations from students and/or teachers and some used online feedback from Web sites including online student quizzes. One program allows students complete pre- and post-tests to measure the level of understanding, along with a teacher evaluation. The teacher evaluation was returned by 93 percent of the teachers, in part because they were given $100 to undertake the classroom program and respond to the evaluation.
In some cases, organizations conducted public opinion telephone surveys on a regular basis or after key outreach activities. In one case, success was measured by actions that lead to an increase in opportunities for cycling, walking, or other alternative transportation.
One program had a partnership with a local university that evaluated the program. Sometimes, success was measured by number of participants or responses to a particular effort. Oftentimes, success is expressed in anecdotal accountings of results.
Keys to success
While the programs and organizations are diverse, among the factors mentioned as keys to youth outreach efforts were:
Obstacles and limitations
Among the obstacles and limitations identified were:
Sources of funding
Funds for the youth outreach efforts came from a variety of sources, including
Starting over
When program managers were asked what they would do differently if they could start all over again, responses included:
Use of additional resources
When program managers were asked how they would change, add, or strengthen their efforts if they had additional resources, responses included:
More Government Support
When asked what federal, state and local government agencies could do to help support your youth activities, responses included:
Advice for others
| March 6, 2006 | | Disclaimer/Policy |