Environmental justice has emerged as a core principle of the Codman Academy. This evolution is both an acknowledgement of the undeniable reality we face today brought on by climate change and reflects the passion of teachers and school leadership. In my new role at Codman Academy as Science Instructional Coach, Grades 5-12, I am in a unique position to be able to now directly support teachers across a large range of grade levels and implement curriculum changes guided by my passion in environmental justice. With the motto of "The city as our classroom", I deeply believe that off-campus fieldwork experiences for our students are essential in learning about our local ecology. My proposal for 2023 Cooke Fellowship is to strengthen existing educational partnerships to enhance the rigor and quality of our off-campus fieldwork and to supplement this work by documenting professional-quality photos and videos to be shared in both internal curricular materials and public forums such as Codman Academy newsletters and social media. With the support of Cooke Fellowship in previous years, I completed a Coral Restoration internship at Utila, Honduras which made me determined to switch our course sequence to incorporate AP Environmental Science. This in turn has opened up more opportunities to align academic content with outside partnerships with our science courses across the Middle and Upper School. The importance of documenting and highlighting this important work within the Codman Community and public is paramount in raising awareness of the issues of climate change and how Codman Academy is doing to prepare our students to become the leaders of this critical work.

 

My personal passion is photography and I have had a wonderful opportunity to use this skill set to highlight the work at Codman Academy across a number of events1 in the past year and wish to enhance my ability to take professional quality photos and videos. We currently partner with Holly Hill Farm (HHF)2 , a non-profit educational farm in Cohasset, MA. We have their educators at Codman Academy working with Codman Food Ambassadors in the urban garden, teaching in classrooms, as well as hosting our students at their farm. I am currently collaborating with educators at Harvard Forest and HHF to setup several projects3 including a small plot in the HHF forest to join "Our Changing Forests" to study how forests change in response to climate change and human development February 2023. This plot of land will then be used to measure tree growth as part of a national network of community science studies.

 

Through Shoals Marine Lab (SML)4 "Science Teacher Conference" in July, I was able to support the new AP Environmental Science teacher, Nick Lee, to develop an intertidal transect lab highlighting changes in biodiversity of the intertidal zone in Boston Harbor through a community science project organized by Stone Living Lab (SLL)5, a network of research and educational institutions with a shared mission and vision to utilize Boston Harbor as a "living lab" for sustainability and enviro impact of storm surges and sea level rise on Boston Harbor coastlines which will be incorporated into Nick's AP Environmental Science course.

 

As a teacher with over a decade of experience who has been committed to organizing off-campus fieldwork experiences and inquiry labs for our students, I am now in a position to support my teaching team to continue this work and go further. One challenge I faced as a teacher on off-campus fieldwork is managing the logistics and keeping my students together and safe while also facilitating the academic experience. As an example, a the instructional coach, I am able to develop additional supporting materials such as species identification field notes in anticipation of the need for students to have when studying the diversity of flora and fauna of New England such as a Biology and AP Env Sci fieldwork trip I have developed using the Neponset River Walk to study this important Boston watershed6. I now have the capacity to highlight the great work teachers and students are doing through photos and videos so that lead teachers can focus on facilitating the fieldwork experiences. I also want to document the incredible local diversity of species in the greater Boston area for our students to learn about in both the classroom and field.

 

Finally, I wish to continue my own personal experience in understanding the impact of humans on our environment and the unique ecosystems of our world. My children share a Vietnamese heritage and so this particular country has a unique place in my heart. Vietnam is one of the fastest growing economies in the world with a population of 98 million, heavily concentrated in urban centers along its sprawling coastline. My goal in visiting this country is to learn more about the challenges the Vietnamese people face as they modernize their economies. I will not be requesting Cooke to fund travel to Vietnam as this is already part of a planned personal trip with my wife and children but I will be able to accomplish some unique goals while there.

 

I am specifically interested in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) (formerly Saigon) because of its proximity to the Mekong River, the 3rd longest river in Asia and also serves as a major transportation system for Vietnam. The Vietnam War and post-war history of Vietnam is a critical component of the 11th grade Humanities Curriculum. It is a critical ecosystem for fish spawning which is a critical part of the Vietnamese fishing industry. However, heavy pollution from fertilizer run-off from surrounding farms, human waste from untreated sewage, toxins from heavy industry, and plastic waste have heavily impacted this important ecosystem. I would have the opportunity to document how the river serves its critical functions and the negative impact of development. Associated with the Mekong River, are brackish water ecosystems where the river and ocean water mix forming mangroves. One such area that is located near HCMC, is the Can Gio Mangrove Biosphere Reserve7, a UNESCO biosphere reserve that was formally designated in 2000. This is an incredibly biodiverse hotspot which serves as a critical area for carbon dioxide sequestration and fish nursery. Using photography equipment supported by the Cooke Fellowship, I would take multi-day e-bike tours to the Mekong River delta and Can Gio Mangrove Biosphere reserve to personally experience these critical ecosystems of Vietnam documenting the flora and fauna. The final piece would be a full day "Farm to Table" culinary tour. I would be able to observe and participate in sustainable agricultural practices at a cattle ranch, harvest catfish at a fish farm, and observe irrigation systems used in rice paddies) and then prepare and cook items sold at a local produce market.

 

My experiences in Vietnam would serve as a basis to develop resources for science teachers to use in their curriculum or to be invited as a guest teacher when their curriculum scope and sequence is a good match. A case study on Can Gio Mangrove Biosphere could serve as an anchoring phenomenon for ecological biodiversity and conservation as well as the reality of a large urban center having a negative impact on the air and water quality of the Vietnamese population. The unique agricultural practices in the areas outside of HCMC would then have connections to existing curriculum we have with the educators of Holly Hill Farm and AP Environmental Science.

 

Measurable Goals 

 

• Create fieldwork curriculum materials: Create species identification field guides for current Codman Projects (Boston Harbor intertidal zone, Neponset River watershed, New England forest/farm). Join Holly Hill Farm as a volunteer through their Gardening/Conservation position to learn about ecology, develop knowledge of local plants, pollinators, and soil conditions. Document flowers, birds, bees, insects and butterflies and upload findings to community science initiatives. Collect data as needed to support teachers for Stone Living Lab.

 

• Create photo and video archive : Collaborate with Yully Cha, Director of Strategic Initiatives and Advancement, and Chetna Naimi, Codman Academy Partnership Director to write articles for the Codman Academy monthly newsletter highlighting sustainability related classroom fieldwork and academic work at various Boston area natural resources (Neponset River, Stone Living Lab - Boston Harbor community science projects) as well as accomplishments by Codman Academy Food Ambassadors working with Holly Hill Farm and Green City Growers. Document all photo and videos using internal Google account: photos@codmancademy and Regularly post media on Instagram (IG: eyoo.cation) showcasing Codman Academy teachers and students working on environmental and sustainability projects and curate this work by promoting through unique hashtags: #codmanclimatechange #cookefellowship

 

• Create Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam Case Study: I will document my ecotourism experiences from Vietnam and share my experiences with Codman and Cooke Fellowship communities Instagram (IG: eyoo.cation). I will utilize existing AP Environmental Science lab protocols designed by Nicholas Lee to study water quality (pH, salinity, temperature, heavy metals, and nitrate/nitrite) of Mekong River Delta and Can Gio Mangrove Biosphere.

 

Summary of impact on Codman Academy 

 

• Use photography and videography to archive and highlight the incredible work of Codman Academy science teachers and students during fieldwork, labs, and studies regarding environmental justice and sustainability. Media will be used by the Business Development department in Newsletters, Calendar, and Codman social media.

 

• Strengthening of curriculum by revising off campus fieldwork for our major partnerships and field sites (SLL Boston Harbor, Neponset River, Harvard Forest - Holly Hill Farm, and Codman Micro-forest) for Grades 5-12 science courses across numerous Expeditions and 11th grade humanities (Vietnam Expedition). 

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General Timeline

 

• April - June 2023: - Purchase of photograph and field equipment - Attend 2023 Stone Living Lab Research Conference to join new community science project: Boston Harbor sea level rise / storm surges - Collect Growing Forest Data with AP Env Sci fieldwork trip to HHF - Document fieldwork in collaboration with Codman science teachers and outside partnerships (HHF, SML, HF, and SLL).

 

• July: - Volunteer time at Holly Hill Farm in Gardening/Conservation program - Travel to Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam and experience various ecotourism programs

 

• August: - Curriculum planning and revise/create off-campus fieldwork with Science Teachers and share resources collected from HHF, SML, and SLL field sites. - Share Ho Chi Minh specific media with 11th grade Humanities teacher ( Holly Mellett) and 12th grade APES teacher (Nick Lee)

 

• Fall 2023 and ongoing: - Continue to support and document ongoing Grade 5-12 fieldwork associated with environmental justice and sustainability initiatives at Codman Academy in collaboration with Codman Academy administration and through social media.