Schiller Student Challenge

Grappling with Environmental Racism

During the 2020-2021 academic year, the ֱ College Schiller Institute for Integrated Science & Society delivered a series of programming and initiatives to recognize environmental racism as a challenge of our time and our campus.

In Spring 2021, the Schiller Institute highlighted and sponsored projects by students and student groups that grapple with race and environmental justice. Undergraduate and graduate students were invited to participate.

Projects included, but were not limited to, short pieces of writing offering unique perspective or personal reflections on environmental racism, draft op-eds addressing environmental racism and suggesting action to be taken, visual media interpretative works (photos, videos, etc.), research projects, data analysis projects, documentation of community action projects, and creative writing.

Students were invited to participate in the Challenge in multiple ways. The Schiller Institute offered funding opportunties to support their projects.

The Student Challenge was co-sponsored by the Environmental Studies program and the Office of Student Involvement.

Students were invited to submit requests for funding support for proposed class projects to the Schiller Institute. Funding was intended to assist with completion of the project and may include supplies, travel, equipment, software, and research costs. Support for travel costs was subject to the most up-to-date COVID-19 public health guidance. Funding of up to $200 per project was available.

Completed projects (whether funded by Schiller or not) were submitted to the Schiller Institute. After a quality assurance review process assisted by faculty, staff, and student stakeholders took place, selected projects were chosen to be featured on this web page.

Projects could be, but were not limited to, short pieces of writing offering a unique perspective or personal reflection on environmental racism, draft op-eds addressing environmental racism and suggesting action to be taken, visual media interpretative works (photos, videos, etc.), research projects, data analysis projects, documentation of community action projects, or creative writing.

Students were also encouraged to submit an abstract of their project for the Environmental Racism Summit.

The Environmental Racism Summit took place on Friday, April 23, 2021 from 1-3 PM.

The Summit featured student presentations about projects submitted in response to the Schiller Student Challenge. The Summit was part of the Earth Day Fair hosted by the student organization EcoPledge andtook place on Stokes Lawn. Posters were also on display throughout the day.

Project Archive

The Schiller Institute is proud to highlight projects by students and student groups that grapple with race and environmental justice in response to the Schiller Student Challenge. The projects below are organized based on the class where the project was submitted. This page also includes projects that were on display at the Environmental Racism Summit.

E. Allen

Environmental Injustice: The COVID-19 Pandemic, Air Pollution, and Other Correlating Factors in Massachusetts

ByElizabeth Allen, Environmental Studies and Economics major, Class of 2021

Factors that Change Secondhand Smoke Exposure Among Women of Reproductive Age in Bangladesh including Grameen Bank Membership (2011)

By Kiran Khosla, Environmental Studies major, Class of 2019