Outreach News - UNC Institute for the Environment

NC Energy Literacy Fellow leads student team to National KidWind Competition

View slideshow An Onslow County science teacher led a team of students from Dixon High School to a first-place win in the wind energy competition at the North Carolina Renewable Energy Challenge held on April 6, 2019. JD Jorgensen, a … Continued

In Iredell County, tests show high percentage of wells contain Chromimum 6 (NC Policy Watch | Apr. 22, 2019)

More than three-quarters of private drinking water wells tested in Iredell County had levels of Chromium 6 above the state health screening level, but the source of the compound is unknown. Scientists from UNC Chapel Hill and Virginia Tech, who conducted … Continued

Bringing environmental science to the people, IE launches Center for Public Engagement with Science

For the last 34 years, the UNC Institute for the Environment’s outreach unit, the Environmental Resource Program (ERP), has been committed to connecting environmental researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with communities in North Carolina. Now, … Continued

IE continues to enhance energy literacy among NC students and teachers with grant from Duke Energy

In 2019, the Duke Energy Foundation will continue to support IE’s efforts to promote energy literacy among teachers and students in North Carolina, through a yearlong teacher professional development program and a yearlong science enrichment program for high school students. … Continued

UNC scientists partner with Virginia Tech on National Science Foundation RAPID grant to study well contamination in aftermath of Hurricane Florence

A team of scientists from the UNC Institute for the Environment’s Environmental Resource Program (ERP) and Virginia Tech has been awarded a National Science Foundation RAPID grant to quickly mobilize a study of private well contamination in New Hanover and … Continued

Well water quality is improving post-Florence (Daily Tar Heel | Oct. 30, 2018)

Hurricane Florence did a lot of visible damage to North Carolina with its wind and rain, but its invisible impact is one that lingers on and affects the lives of many North Carolinians. North Carolina is fifth on the list … Continued

Online environmental health resource to assist communities after hurricane

In response to requests from state and local partners following Hurricane Florence, the UNC Center for Environmental Health and Susceptibility (UNC CEHS) has compiled a list of online environmental health resources to assist communities who are recovering and rebuilding. The … Continued

Climate LEAP alumna receives 2017 President’s Environmental Youth Award

Emily Liu, an alumna of the Institute for the Environment’s 2017 Climate Leadership and Energy Awareness Program (Climate LEAP) and a senior at East Chapel Hill High School (ECHHS), recently received the President’s Environmental Youth Award (PEYA) from the U.S. … Continued

E-Cigarettes and Teen Health with Ilona Jaspers (National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences Podcast | Sept. 14, 2018)

While the health effects of e-cigarette use are largely unknown, a variety of chemicals in e-cigarette liquid or produced during use are known carcinogens and toxic chemicals. In this podcast, we’ll learn about why the increased use of e-cigarettes, particularly … Continued

IDEA students present at 2018 Undergraduate Pipeline Research Symposium

By Megan Hoert Hughes On July 25, 2018, more than 130 undergraduate researchers from fourteen different programs came together for poster and oral presentations at the 4th Annual Summer Undergraduate Pipeline Research Symposium hosted by The Graduate School at UNC-Chapel … Continued

Teachers get their feet wet in NC shoreline classroom

Eighteen 4th and 5th grade teachers from North Carolina got their feet wet, literally, learning about how to incorporate outdoor education into their classrooms at the 2018-2019 kick-off of ExPLORE NC, a teacher professional development program. ExPLORE NC is an … Continued

From hog farm to nuclear engineering lab, NC teachers take an energy road trip (EducationNC | July 24, 2018)

Seventeen North Carolina science teachers stood on the flat top of a trash “cell,” a compacted trash mound sealed with soil. In the distance, a line of trucks dumped garbage into a new cell. A handful of gulls flew over … Continued

IDEA 2.0 welcomes 2018-2019 cohort

Eight UNC-Chapel undergraduate students recently began an intensive, yearlong research program called IDEA 2.0 (Increasing Diversity and Enhancing Academia). The program kicked-off with a luncheon where students and their faculty and graduate student mentors gathered to discuss the 10-week summer … Continued

MEDIA ADVISORY: IE’s Energy Literacy Fellows from across the state to explore the future of the electric grid

The UNC Institute for the Environment (IE) will host seventeen middle and high school teachers from across North Carolina who are enrolled in IE’s Energy Literacy Fellows Program at a professional development workshop July 10-12 that will explore the future … Continued

Citizen scientists, partners contribute 1,000 lake measurements to NASA-funded study

On Monday, May 14 at 12:56 p.m., a citizen scientist texted a lake level measurement for Great Lake in the Croatan National Forest, North Carolina, marking the milestone 1,000th measurement for the NASA-funded Lake Level Monitoring Project. Great Lake is … Continued

IE exhibit explores e-cigarettes, flavorings and the toxicology of vaping at annual UNC Science Expo

Amid stations of matching smells to graphics, blowing bubbles and building molecules out of candy, families and children were learning about the science behind a serious emerging public health issue in the United States—vaping. Vaping is the act of inhaling … Continued

Haine receives NC Outstanding Informal Educator Award in STEM

Reprinted from North Carolina Science, Mathematics, and Technology Education Center Dana Brown Haine works for a major research university that is on the cutting edge of scientific discovery. While this research may not have found its way into science textbooks just yet, … Continued

Impacts of Global Warming on Sustainable Farmers

Inspired by her involvement in IE’s Climate LEAP Program, high school senior Grace Baucom produced this documentary that explores how extreme heat affects sustainable farmers in North Carolina’s Piedmont region. Watch documentary

Gray proposes new conceptual framework for environmental health literacy

Kathleen Gray, UNC Institute for the Environment’s associate director for outreach and public service, recently published a paper in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. In this paper, she proposes a new way to consider how … Continued

IDEA 2.0 students dive into 2018 with a series of Geoscience Intensives

IDEA 2.0 students from UNC-Chapel Hill and North Carolina Central University are participating in a series of “Geoscience Intensives” over the course of the Spring 2018 semester. On January 26, students toured the campus of the National Institute of Environmental … Continued

“Explore More at Pritchard Park” kick-off showcases local natural resources, IE outreach

Six months into a year-long partnership, the Chapel Hill Public Library hosted a kick-off of its new outdoor learning and play initiative “Explore More at Pritchard Park”. As one of the named partners, the UNC Institute for the Environment has … Continued

IE scientists to present at 2017 AGU Fall Meeting

Several scientists from the UNC Institute for the Environment will be presenting at the 50th annual AGU Fall Meeting Dec. 11-15 in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Fall Meeting is the largest worldwide conference in the geophysical sciences and attracts more … Continued

IDEA 2.0 students stand out at Undergraduate Pipeline Research Symposium

By Rachel Greene On July 28, 2017 hundreds of people filed into the Sonja Hayes Stone Center at UNC-Chapel Hill for the annual Undergraduate Pipeline Research Symposium. Nearly 150 undergraduates from UNC and universities around the country presented posters at … Continued

From the Blog: Measuring Eastern North Carolina’s Lakes

By Grant Parkins Grant Parkins is the Watershed Education Coordinator with the UNC Institute for the Environment. The UNC Environmental Resource Program (ERP) has teamed up with a UNC researcher on a NASA-funded project designed to better understand how the … Continued

In the News: Turbine Power!

The Energy Literacy, Engagement and Action Program, Energy Leap, and IE’s K-12 Science Education Manager Dana Haine were featured in a video and story on the BeAM: Be A Maker Web site. The Energy Literacy, Engagement and Action Program, Energy … Continued

Coastal retreat kicks off 2017-18 ExPLORE NC program

The 2017-2018 ExPLORE NC program kicked off July 17 with a four-day-long retreat in Morehead City, NC. ExPLORE NC, which stands for Experiencing Place-based Learning Outdoors in Rivers and Ecosystems of North Carolina, helps elementary school teachers develop creative and … Continued

IDEA 2.0 launches a series of Saturday Intensives with a trip to the Cane Creek Reservoir

The NSF-funded IDEA 2.0 undergraduate geoscience program has launched a series of Saturday Intensives, to take place during the 2017-2018 academic year, designed to introduce students to geoscience research happening throughout the Triangle and beyond. Each experience is planned so … Continued

IN THE NEWS: Solar kickoff at East Chapel Hill High

Under a sunny sky on the freshman hill at East Chapel Hill High, students gathered to celebrate the hard work and risk-taking by four of their fellow Wildcats. The Solar Kickoff on Wednesday, September 13 represented the official announcement of … Continued

IDEA program successfully increases undergraduate and high school student interest and engagement in the geosciences

Over the past five years, the Increasing Diversity and Enhancing Academia (IDEA) program provided meaningful research experiences to 42 undergraduate students and geoscience focused science enrichment programming for 105 high school students. The program achieved its goal of increasing the … Continued

Teachers examine the future of the electric grid

By Cinnamon Moore Twenty science teachers from across North Carolina gathered at UNC-Chapel Hill from June 20-22 to participate in a workshop that helped them learn about new energy technologies and the future of the U.S. electric grid. The teachers … Continued

Local HS students spend week immersed in energy science

Twenty high school students from Durham, Orange, Chatham, and Alamance counties recently spent a week conducting hands-on activities to examine society’s current use of energy and the technological solutions that will support a low-carbon future at the Energy Literacy, Engagement … Continued

NASA-Funded Lake Level Monitoring Project Web Site Launched

The Lake Level Monitoring Project is an effort to better understand how the volume of water in lakes is changing over time. This NASA-funded project is a collaboration between the Department of Geological Sciences at UNC-Chapel Hill, the UNC Institute … Continued

IE to assist Chapel Hill Public Library with creation of outdoor environmental learning opportunities

By Cinnamon Moore At a press conference at the Chapel Hill Public Library (CHPL) on June 8, North Carolina’s First Lady Kristin Cooper announced that the CHPL was among a select few to receive grants from the federal Institute of … Continued

Scientists discuss findings at annual Duke Energy Foundation meeting

By Rachel Greene Five UNC scientists connected to the Institute for the Environment presented their recent findings at an annual meeting with Duke Energy Foundation on Thursday, June 8, 2017. The Duke Energy Foundation provides philanthropic support for groups and … Continued

IDEA Undergraduate Geoscience Students Present at Celebration of Undergraduate Research

On April 27, six undergraduate geoscientists presented posters at the 18th annual UNC Celebration of Undergraduate Research. The students – Karylle Abella (Mentor: Carol Arnosti and JP Balmonte, Marine Science), Ricardo Garcia (Mentor: Joel Hudley, Geology), Will Larsen (Mentor: Xiaoming … Continued

IE exhibit teaches community about toxins in food and water

By Alexandra Grant UNC’s Institute for the Environment taught children and their parents about environmental toxins in food and water and how to make healthier food choices during Morehead Planetarium and Science Center’s annual UNC Science Expo on Saturday, April … Continued

UNC Conducts Hands-on Environmental Health Learning at Durham Women’s Health Awareness Event

On Saturday, April 1, faculty and students from two NIEHS-funded centers in the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health – Superfund Research Program (SRP) and the Center for Environmental Health and Susceptibility (CEHS), with assistance from the UNC Institute … Continued

High School Climate LEAP and IDEA Geoscience Students Meet Elected Officials at Saturday Academy

On Sat., Feb. 25, forty high school students from IE’s Climate Leadership and Energy Awareness Program (Climate LEAP) and the Increasing Diversity and Enhancing Academia Geoscience Program (IDEA), along with Action Fellows with the Alliance for Climate Education (ACE), joined … Continued

IE’s Environmental Resource Program wins NSF grant to enhance program for underrepresented minority students in geosciences

For the last five years, IE’s Environmental Resource Program has received funding from the National Science Foundation to administer high school and undergraduate programs that promote, encourage and support underrepresented minority students to pursue careers in the geosciences. The program … Continued

New NASA grant enlists North Carolinians to help measure water stored in NC lakes

Tamlin Pavelsky, an associate professor of global hydrology in the UNC Department of Geological Sciences and an affiliate faculty of the Institute for the Environment, has built a career on measuring rivers and lakes. Until now, he has used satellite … Continued

Dr. Jason West welcomed the New Year with a candid talk on climate change

On January 4, more than 100 UNC students, faculty, staff, and community members joined Dr. Jason West, Associate Professor in the Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering at UNC Chapel Hill, in a Carolina Science Café conversation about global climate … Continued

IE’s IDEA program featured at AGU

By Alexandra Grant IE’s IDEA Program (Increasing Diversity and Enhancing Academia) was well-represented at the 2016 American Geophysical Union (AGU) Fall meeting in San Francisco. This NSF-funded program provides undergraduate research experiences to underrepresented minority students in the geosciences through … Continued

Looking back at APNEP’s 2016 partnership with ERP

In their December newsletter, the Albemarle-Pamlico National Estuary Partnership’s (APNEP) featured a collaboration with UNC-IE’s Environmental Resource Program (ERP). Over the summer, twenty 8th-12th grade science teachers spent four days exploring the sounds and the sea at the Trinity Center … Continued

Local HS students “immersed” in environmental, geosciences through IE’s yearlong IDEA Program

Over the summer, twenty-one local high school students completed a weeklong field camp immersion, through the UNC Institute for the Environment’s IDEA High School Program (IDEA), where they conducted stream sampling at local creeks, toured a wastewater treatment plant, learned … Continued

Western N.C. Science teachers to explore the future of electricity

The UNC Institute for the Environment will host middle and high school science and technology teachers from N.C.’s western region at a day-long professional development workshop on October 3, 2016 at The Collider in Asheville. This interactive teacher professional development … Continued

Local HS students spend week at UNC-Chapel Hill immersed in energy, climate science

By Cinnamon Moore Twenty-eight high school students from Durham and Orange counties recently spent a week learning about the connections between climate and energy at the Climate Leadership and Energy Awareness Program (Climate LEAP) summer institute as part of a … Continued

Meet Grant Parkins: IE’s New Watershed Education Coordinator

By Cinnamon Moore Grant Parkins was raised in rural Ohio, spending his childhood in a one-stoplight town surrounded by cornfields and dairy farms. It was in this small, quiet town that Parkins’ love for the environment began. “I grew up … Continued

Summer program to promote energy awareness among local high school students

The Institute for the Environment at UNC-Chapel Hill’s Climate Leadership and Energy Awareness Program (Climate LEAP) begins Aug. 1. The program, now in its seventh year, provides a weeklong summer science enrichment experience for Durham and Orange County high school … Continued

ERP, partners develop guide to help Triangle fishermen safely eat their catch

View official announcement from UNC-Chapel Hill Families enjoying North Carolina’s Free Fishing Day at Triangle-area lakes or rivers this Fourth of July will have new resources to help them understand health advisories about eating the fish they catch, thanks to … Continued

‘Tools of Watershed Management’ trains leaders to protect North Carolina’s watersheds

By Cinnamon Moore Following a comprehensive, statewide study of North Carolina’s diverse watershed programs, the Institute for the Environment’s Environmental Resource Program (ERP), in partnership with the NC Watershed Stewardship Network, designed and conducted a series of workshops to build … Continued

Exploring the Future of Electricity workshops continue to teach NC teachers

Forty-six science and technology teachers from Central and Eastern North Carolina recently participated in the professional development program Exploring the Future of Electricity, offered by the Institute for the Environment’s Environmental Resource Program (ERP). The program, led by ERP’s K-12 … Continued

IDEA Students Featured at Annual Celebration of Undergraduate Research

On Tuesday, April 18th, UNC students and faculty gathered at Frank Porter Graham Student Union for the Seventeenth Annual Celebration of Undergraduate Research. The purpose of this event, hosted by the Office of Undergraduate Research (OUR), is to recognize and … Continued

Visit IE at the Annual UNC Science Expo Apr. 9

On Saturday, Apr. 9, the UNC Institute for the Environment’s Environmental Resource Program (ERP) will host an exhibit at the UNC Science Expo. Annually, the Expo attracts over 1,000 attendees of all ages to engage with scientists and educators from … Continued

High School Students Discuss Civic Engagement Issues During Saturday Academy

Twenty local high school students from the Climate LEAP and IDEA programs came together on March 19 to learn about civic engagement and sustainability. This Saturday Academy was facilitated in collaboration with Paul Bonnici at the UNC School of Government … Continued

Environmental Health Specialists “Sort Sources” of Lead to Learn About Protecting NC Children and Families

On March 17, ERP staff, Megan Hoert Hughes and Megan Rodgers, presented at the West Piedmont Environmental Health District quarterly meeting in Winston-Salem. Thirty environmental health specialists participated in the session to learn more about childhood lead poisoning and prevention, … Continued

EGRET Fellows Dive into Coastal Science at Weekend Retreat

EGRET Fellows teachers gathered at the coast during the weekend of March 12-13, to learn about barrier islands and sound ecosystems in North Carolina, as the culminating event for a year-long professional development program. Nine participants, all 5th grade teachers, … Continued

Registration Now Open for Tools of Watershed Management Workshop

The NC Watershed Stewardship Network in partnership with UNC Institute for the Environment, is offering a FREE two-day workshop to anyone who works at the local level and is ready to plan and implement watershed improvement projects in their community. The workshop will be … Continued

IDEA Students Discuss the Need for Diversity in the Sciences

On Saturday, February 27, sixteen high school students from the IDEA (Increasing Diversity and Enhancing Academia) geosciences program, met with UNC Geology faculty Dr. Joel Hudley and Dr. Melissa Hudley, along with IDEA undergraduate students Corey Moore and Jonathan Garrick, … Continued

ERP Educators Present at UNC Minority Health Conference

On Friday, February 26, Environmental Resource Program educators Neasha Graves and Megan Hoert Hughes presented at the 37th annual UNC Minority Health Conference. They were joined by local partners Lorisa Seibel, Reinvestment Partners, and Lenora Smith, Partnership Effort for the … Continued

First Meeting of the Year for the Lead Advisory Committee and Healthy Homes Outreach Task Force

On Wednesday, February 24, Environmental Resource Program (ERP) educators Megan Hughes and Neasha Graves coordinated twenty-two lead and healthy homes professionals from across the state in a quarterly Lead Advisory Committee and NC Healthy Homes Outreach Task Force meeting. The … Continued

NC Initiative to Reduce Home Health Hazards Featured in National Webinar

On February 4, Kathleen Gray, Associate Director for Outreach and Public Service in the UNC Institute for the Environment (UNC-IE), and Neasha Graves, Community Outreach and Education Manager in the UNC-IE Environmental Resource Program (ERP), co-presented in a webinar facilitated … Continued

High School Programs Now Accepting Applications

Applications are now being accepted for two exciting summer enrichment programs for high school students – Climate LEAP (Leadership and Awareness Program) and IDEA (Increasing Diversity and Enhancing Academia). Both programs provide hands-on, minds-on science activities and are open to … Continued

Training Stewards to Build Capacity for Watershed Management

On December 15th and 16th, Michele Drostin, ERP research associate, along with other members of the NC Watershed Stewardship Network (WSN), facilitated a workshop titled Tools of Watershed Management. The event, held at the NC Botanical Garden in Chapel Hill, was … Continued

ERP Partners with Tribal Programs on Asthma and Healthy Homes Outreach

One-fifth of American Indian youth have been diagnosed with asthma in their lifetimes (CDC, 2013). This and other chronic health conditions are exacerbated by high smoking rates (CDC, 2015), mold, particulate matter from heating practices and other hazards in many … Continued

ERP hosts World Energy Climate Simulation for K-12 Teachers and Students

On Saturday, December 5th, in conjunction with the 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference, forty-four K-12 teachers and high school students conducted Climate Interactive’s World Climate Exercise, a mock-UN Climate Change Negotiation where participants role-play international climate negotiators working to … Continued

Welcome Andrew!

We are delighted to announce that Dr. Andrew George has joined UNC SRP as Community Engagement Research Associate. Dr. George’s expertise in community engagement in environmental problem-solving, capacity building and democratic decision-making make him well suited to aid SRP in developing … Continued

ERP Builds Partnerships to Enhance Lead Knowledge among Clinicians and Health Departments

In the past five years, more than 36,000 children younger than 6 years old tested with blood lead levels at or above 5µg/dL, the level at which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend clinical and educational interventions to … Continued

IDEA Students Explore Water in our World

On Saturday, September 26, IDEA high school students came to UNC’s Morehead Planetarium and Science Center to explore the Water in Our World exhibit, which explores the ways we get water, why we need to clean it and the future … Continued

Outreach Materials Developed to Help Local Businesses Reduce Stormwater Pollution

ERP recently learned that a partnership with the Town of Chapel Hill to train local businesses (restaurants) in pollution prevention resulted in an award from the Water Environment Federation (WEF) in its annual stormwater video competition. ERP and Town of Chapel Hill … Continued

Healthy Homes for Community Health Workers

On August 25, Environmental Resource Program educators Neasha Graves and Megan Hoert Hughes facilitated a Healthy Homes for Community Health Workers training for 25 social workers, nurses, public housing staff, and environmental health specialists in Charlotte. As part of the … Continued

Sparking IDEAs in the Geosciences

As seen in Endeavors: “It is a sticky, humid Tuesday morning in July. While many teenagers are just starting to roll out of bed, the high school students I’m with are unloading equipment from a van as they prepare to … Continued

Building Teacher Capacity to Incorporate Emerging Biomedical Science in the Classroom

UNC SRP’s RTC science educator Dana Haine, MS was invited to lead a six-hour workshop titled Integrating Epigenetics into your Biology Curriculum for 24 high school science teachers at the July 2015 Environmental Health Sciences Summer Institute hosted by the … Continued

IDEA Summer Science Institute 2015

Twenty-two IDEA High School Students participated in a 6-day Summer Science Institute on July 6-11. The students investigated two urban streams in Durham – Mud Creek and Ellerbe Creek – and collected biological, chemical, and physical data on stream health. … Continued

Majora Carter kicks off Earth Week at UNC

Majora Carter, urban revitalization strategist and social-enterprise pioneer, delivered the Campus Earth Week Keynote Address at UNC on Wednesday, April 15th. This event kicked off a week of activities focused on recognizing sustainability initiatives at UNC and envisioning an even … Continued

2015 Annual UNC Science Expo

On April 11th, the ERP participated in the 5th annual UNC Science Expo that is produced by UNC’s Morehead Planetarium and Science Center as part of the North Carolina Science Festival. Approximately 700 people of all ages attended this year’s … Continued

ERP and UNC Department of Geological Sciences lead IDEA Saturday Academy

On Saturday, March 28th, fifteen IDEA high school students met with UNC Geology faculty Joel Hudley, Melissa O. Hudley, and two IDEA undergraduate students to learn about geology concepts, peak oil, the environmental and economic decision-making involved with oil extraction, … Continued

ERP Awarded 2015 Office of the Provost Engaged Scholarship Award for Partnership

The Environmental Resource Program was honored to receive the 2015 Office of the Provost Engaged Scholarship Award for Partnerships at the annual UNC Public Service Awards ceremony, sponsored by the Carolina Center for Public Service. The ceremony, held on April 7, … Continued

NC Asthma Summit 2015

The 2015 North Carolina Asthma Summit, an annual gathering of asthma clinicians and community health workers sponsored by the Asthma Alliance of North Carolina and the North Carolina Asthma Program, met in Burlington on March 3 and 4, 2015. As part … Continued

ERP Staff Leads Third Saturday Academy for IDEA High School Students

On Saturday, February 28th, twenty-six students from the IDEA and Climate LEAP high school programs participated in an activity to learn about sustainable cities and climate change. The students, led by Dana Haine, Megan Hughes, and David Salvesen, constructed a … Continued

ERP Spotlight: Neasha Graves

ERP’s Neasha Graves was recognized for her high quality work and contributions to the Community Outreach and Engagement Core (COEC) community in the NIEHS Grantee Highlights. Neasha is the Community Outreach and Education Manager for the Environmental Resource Program (ERP) … Continued

New Resources on Health and Hydraulic Fracturing

Hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking,” has become more common in the quest to extract natural gas from reserves across the United States. ERP staff helped NIEHS develop two new resources to examine the potential environmental health implications of this practice and … Continued

ERP Staff Leads Saturday Academy for IDEA High School Students

On Saturday, November 8, twenty IDEA high school students traveled to the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences in Raleigh as part of the IDEA Saturday Academy series. The students worked with museum scientists in the Visual World Investigate Lab … Continued

NC Healthy Homes Outreach Task Force Meeting

On Wednesday, November 12, thirty lead and healthy homes professionals from across the state came together at the UNC Institute for the Environment for the quarterly NC Healthy Homes Outreach Task Force meeting. The representatives from local and state health … Continued

UNC BCERP Launches Website to Educate Young Black Women About Breast Cancer

On October 1, the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill Breast Cancer and the Environment Research Program (UNC BCERP) launched an interactive website devoted to educating young African American women about environmental risk factors for breast cancer. Researchers in the UNC BCERP who … Continued

ERP Staff Leads First Saturday Academy of the 2014-2015 School Year

On Saturday, September 27, twenty IDEA high school students attended the first Saturday Academy of the 2014-2015 school year. The students spent the morning at UNC’s Morehead Planetarium and Science Center exploring the Water in Our World exhibit and seeing … Continued

Public Health Forum on Childhood Sun Damage and Skin Cancer

On September 5, staff in the UNC IE Environmental Resource Program (ERP) partnered with the UNC Center for Environmental Health and Susceptibility (CEHS) to host a public health forum on childhood sun damage and skin cancer risk. The theme was Protecting … Continued

Farewell, Amy!

Amy MacDonald, Environmental Health Educator, will be leaving ERP as of September 12 to take on a new position with Wake Tech Community College as Director of Grants Performance. From ERP Director, Kathleen Gray: “It will be difficult to replace Amy, … Continued

Exploring the Future of Electricity Teacher Workshop at Discovery Place

On Aug 14th, 2014, thirteen science teachers attended a workshop titled Exploring the Future of Electricity at the Discovery Place Education Studio in Charlotte, NC. During this daylong workshop, participants learned about the alternative energy sources and emerging technologies that … Continued

UNC Program Promotes Energy Awareness Among Local High School Students

As seen on Chapelboro.com: “This week the Institute is hosting 28 local high school students who will spend a week on the campus of UNC exploring topics related to current energy use, climate change, alternative energy and sustainability as part … Continued

UNC-led Summer Program Introduces High Schoolers to Geoscience

As seen in The Herald Sun: As a group of high school students looked on from the river bank, professor Brent McKee stuck a tool into the bottom of the Neuse River to collect sand, leaves, sticks and dirt. Then … Continued

SciVentures Campers “Journey Into the Cell”

In partnership with Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, the Community Outreach and Engagement Core (COEC) of the UNC Center for Environmental Health and Susceptibility developed a new environmental health focused program for Morehead’s SciVentures summer camp for middle school students. … Continued

Inaugural EGRET Fellows Program Summer Institute

ERP staff held the inaugural EGRET Fellows Summer Institute from June 24th to 26th in which 25 fifth grade teachers participated in a three-day workshop at Goose Creek State Park in Washington, NC. During the workshop, teachers interacted with scientists, … Continued

North Carolina Healthy Homes Website is now “live”!

We are pleased to announce that the North Carolina Healthy Homes website is “live” and ready for use. The site, which is partially funded through a NIEHS grant, has been redesigned by ERP staff in collaboration with the Guilford County … Continued

COEC Staff Participate in National Asthma Awareness Month

May was National Asthma Awareness Month and Neasha Graves and Megan Hughes, Community Outreach and Engagement Core (COEC) educators, were busy conducting several NIEHS-funded asthma and healthy homes activities and trainings around the region. On May 7, the COEC presented … Continued

Empowering Pre-college Students to Engage in Climate Change Solutions

Dana Haine, Program Director for IE’s Climate Leadership and Energy Awareness Program, gave a virtual presentation titled Empowering Pre-college Students to Engage in Climate Change Solutions to members of the Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness (CLEAN) Network, an informal group … Continued

IDEA High School Program Saturday Academy, March 15th

On Saturday, March 15, the IDEA High School Geoscience Students traveled to Newport News, VA to visit the Virginia Living Museum. Students learned about the hydrology and geology of the Chesapeake Bay, the Appalachian Mountains, and the Virginia Coastal Plain. … Continued

Journalists Explore NC’s Environmental Challenges During Week-long Expedition

The UNC Institute for the Environment—jointly with the UNC Superfund Research Program, Duke Superfund Research Center and the Institutes for Journalism and Natural Resources (IJNR)—is hosting 18 journalists from around the country March 3-8 on a learning expedition to explore … Continued

IDEA High School Program Saturday Academy, February 22nd

On February 22, 2014 IDEA High School Geoscience students attended Saturday Academy 3. We were joined by IE’s Dr. Lindsay Dubbs for marine science exploration at Nags Head, NC. We also worked with Beky Branagan, from Outdoor Afro, who led … Continued

ERP Presentation at AGU Fall Meeting

Dana Haine, ERP’s K-12 Science Education Manager, presented a session titled “Utilizing partnerships with scientists to enhance teacher capacity to address the Next Generation Science Standards” at the Fall 2013 AGU meeting in San Francisco. This presentation featured ERP’s work … Continued

ERP Staff Present at NSTA and NABT Fall Conferences

ERP staff presented multiple sessions at the 2013 National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) regional conference in Charlotte, NC and the National Association of Biology Teachers (NABT) conference in Atlanta, Georgia. Approximately 150 teachers participated in the following interactive sessions: Epigenetics: … Continued