Students investigate how consumer products, supply chains, and waste systems contribute to pollution in local beaches and waterways, then use marine science and operations knowledge to recommend realistic solutions. Through field experiences with Heal the Bay and the International Coastal Cleanup, they collect evidence, trace pollution pathways from source to sea, and evaluate how logistics decisions affect environmental health. Working in defined professional team roles, they create scientific, data-driven recommendations and public education tools to share with community partners at the Sustainable Waterways Expo.

Students investigate how product life cycles, transportation systems, waste management practices, and watershed processes contribute to pollution in local beaches and waterways. They collect, model, and analyze field and scientific data to explain pollutant movement, ecosystem impacts, and relationships among resource use, biodiversity, and water quality. They evaluate trade-offs and refine realistic solutions using scientific evidence, logistics analysis, regulations, and sustainability criteria aligned to NGSS and SDG 12.4. They collaborate in professional team roles, use feedback and reflection to improve their work, and communicate recommendations clearly through reports, visual models, and public presentation at the Sustainable Waterways Expo.

Throughout the six weeks, teams will build a sequence of working products that show their thinking from source to sea: a product journey map, a watershed and pollution pathway model, field notebooks, cleanup data tables, debris classification charts, and a supply chain analysis for one everyday item. As they gather evidence, students will also create water quality findings, case study notes, GIS or hand-drawn location maps, and a team evidence board that connects marine science, logistics, and regulation. By the end, each team will produce a professional report, community recommendations, a scientific explanation of environmental impacts, and a visual product such as an infographic, public awareness campaign, or interactive display. For the expo, teams will present a polished exhibition package that includes their final presentation, models, mapped data, and a realistic solution prototype or logistics improvement plan for reducing pollution entering local waterways.

Begin with a Heal the Bay “Who Pollutes?” watershed simulation field experience where students observe how everyday human activity and discarded products move through a watershed into rivers, beaches, and the ocean, then debrief the essential question in mixed Marine Biology and Operations teams. Back in class, teams examine a curated set of real beach debris from local cleanup data, choose one common item such as a water bottle, snack wrapper, or phone charger, and complete a rapid “source to sea” product journey sketch from manufacturing to disposal to possible waterway impact. Invite a representative from Heal the Bay or City Public Works to present the city’s need for recommendations to reduce pollution entering local waterways, framing students as Environmental Logistics Consultants with a real audience and purpose. End the launch with a team role-selection protocol, a short reflection journal or video reflection, and a public notice board where teams post initial hypotheses about where pollution begins and what systems might prevent it.

Conclude with a public “From Source to Sea: Sustainable Waterways Expo” where teams present as Environmental Logistics Consultants to families, school staff, Heal the Bay educators, Port of LA and logistics partners, local environmental groups, and city public works representatives. Each team should share a scientific investigation, product supply chain map, pollution pathway model, beach cleanup data analysis, and a realistic recommendation or prototype aligned to SDG 12.4 through interactive displays, posters, digital infographics, and short presentations. Include a gallery walk with community judges who use a simple feedback form to recognize strengths such as scientific evidence, logistics analysis, feasibility, and community impact, followed by student reflection through exit tickets or video reflections. To increase participation, assign each student a professional speaking role during the expo and add a public awareness component such as QR-linked campaigns, pledge cards, or community action guides visitors can take with them.