Our November Collab Lab focused on opportunities to engage students around green infrastructure. We asked participants to brainstorm ideas around different types of green infrastructure as they are designed, installed or in service, using the inventory provided within the City of Milwaukee’s Green Infrastructure Plan. From there we paired up educators with representatives from industry, higher-ed, non-profits, and local government and had them flesh out a specific idea in greater detail. Here’s what they came up with: Identify targets sites for green infrastructure Identify vacant lots in the students’ neighborhood to active and install stormwater trees, gardens, community art. Green infrastructure targeted: Rain gardensStormwater treesNative landscapingRegenerative stormwater conveyanceGreenways & land conservation Phases targeted: DesignInstallation Desired experience for students: Mapping GISThink about neighborhood & communityThis is worth it!Evidence and argumentBudgeting and financeUnderstanding different land use/space factorsHistory of the area, why a particular lot is vacantCultural experience of neighborhood as an influence to artDurability of art What students will need: Mapping softwareDataFacilitator/guides to support — experts, & exemplarsDocumentation and presentation skills Who students should meet as part of this work: UWM School of Architecture & Urban PlanningYouth Council @ City HallPocket parks tour How students might share their work: VideoPodcastMilwaukee Neighborhood News ServiceStory MapSocial media/websiteShare with community service organizations, the experts that helped them.Storytelling– “What did I learn” Art within Native Landscaping Design art projects within a native landscape Green infrastructure targeted: Native Landscaping Desired experience for students: Cross curricula – art/science/mathExploring new things Youth voice/leadershipNew materialsMentoringCulture What students will need: Guidance/leadership to understand and get excitedResearch on native landscapes, sustainable materials (what they are, why they are important)Location, calendar, transportation Who students should meet as part of this work: Partner with college studentsLandscape/gardening experts How students might share their work: Community grand opening, with presentation by youthGarden Gallery (art) night Low tech watering systems Create olla pots or other system to water gardens when students/volunteers may not be available to do so. Green infrastructure targeted: Rain barrels & cisterns Phases targeted: DesignInstallationIn Use Desired experience for students: Research the history of olla potsDesign a system where rain barrels fill the pots (how many rain barrels?)Calculate how much water might be capturedDetermine the size of pots that might be necessary for a particular garden or spaceMonitor gardens to make sure the system is workingCompare performance at different times of year Evaluate how the long the system can run without supportCalibrate the outflow rate from rain barrels so that it is most effective What students will need: History of olla pots & agricultureMath — planning for the # of pots for the areaScience — expected rainfall for the area, ecology, human impactCommunication skills — share what they didReading & writing Arts — decorating barrels, making their own pots @ schools with kiln [can we make our own rain barrels?] Who students should meet as part of this work: Community connections for support in monitoringEnvironmental engineersfresh coast guardians from MMSDTeens Grow Greens for different ideas on irrigationPottery infrastructure How students might share their work: video storyPresent @ Science Strikes Back? [Escuela Verde?]Share after a full growing season for data collectionShare publicly — news, radio, social media, USDA Butterfly Garden Reclaim paved area of “playground” for stormwater management and wildlife habitat restoration. Green infrastructure targeted: Rain gardensNative landscapingBioswalesDepavingSoil Amendments Phases targeted: DesignInstallationIn use What students should experience: Design process — native plants, permaculture, pollinator habitat, education of younger studentsSelf directed personalized learning What students will need: Research skillsCuriosityInformation sourcesAccess to professionals/experts How students might share their work: Photo voiceSignageNewsletters & written media Permeable paving meets math Use installation of permeable paving as a chance to exercise mathematical thinking. Green infrastructure targeted: Permeable paving What students should experience: Apply math concepts (geometry, algebra, etc) when designing permeable walkway through a parkArt, design, science of materialsExploration of career pathsPresentation of findings What students will need: Access to practitionersManipulation/manufacturing of materialsBest practices for fitting pieces togetherPermeable paving vs alternativesCost data for possible choices — installation, maintenance, long term costs Who students should meet as part of this work: Practitioners: non profits, contractors, college student mentorsMMSDArtistsLandscapersTours of UWM School of Freshwater Sciences, GWC, MMSD, etc.) How students might share their work: Green Students ConferenceOpportunity for students across schools/districts to present GI projects to each otherGreen job fair — in part, the conference could be funded by exhibitors (engineers, landscapers, etc.) who do a job fair GI Scavenger hunt Inventory and map green infrastructure within students’ community; identify where water is coming from; find as many examples as possible, create a map using GIS software What students should experience: The possibilities that exist in different areasProblem solving using mapping softwareAbility to visualize things on a map What students will need: Mapping software and an introduction to using itGeneral location for finding green infrastructureLesson on green infrastructure installations and interventions Who students should meet as part of this work: Students who did bigger project How students might share their work: Story map Water quality assessment Assess the water quality in the local community Green infrastructure targeted: Rain barrels & cisternsRain gardensSoil Amendments What students should experience: Data analysisHands on development of projectOwnership & involvementSuccess & Impact What students will need: SpaceNative plantsRaspberry Pi computerTypes of soilTypes of compostGravelSensors for moisture/contaminationWater quality test kits Who students should meet as part of this work: Upham Woods — digital observation kitsSweetwater – Adopt A Storm DrainRiver KeepersPlastic Free MKE How students might share their work: Social mediaMuralsLogosMottosPeer to peer education — teach others to continue projectBrand itGive it legitimacy Greening Alleys Create a list of priorities for green alleys near a school, identify and collect the data to use in prioritizing the alleys. Green infrastructure targeted: Green streets and alleys What students should experience: Surveying the neighborhoodIdentifying improvements and analyzing lowest cost estimates of putting in improvementsCommunication of survey, improvements, What students will need: Access to expertiseComputers/data setsEstimation software/templates Who students should meet as part of this work: MMSD — Lisa Sasso, Bre Plier, Nadia VogtDPW — Nader JabberWDNE — Ben Benninghoff, Samantha …
