Students will investigate a local environmental problem and analyze evidence showing how natural resources, hazards, or climate change influence human activity. Guided by the question, “How can we design a solution that reduces human impact on natural systems while responding to a real environmental problem in our community?” teams will create, test, and refine a technological solution. Students will evaluate environmental and ethical tradeoffs, incorporate diverse community perspectives, and communicate an evidence-based proposal to an authentic audience. Reflection and feedback will help students assess their collaboration, creative thinking, responsible decision-making, and next steps toward a more sustainable future.

Students will investigate a local environmental problem and construct an evidence-based explanation of how natural resources, hazards, and climate changes influence human activity. They will analyze credible data, stakeholder perspectives, and existing technologies to identify patterns, impacts, and ethical considerations. In collaborative teams, students will design, test, evaluate, and refine a feasible solution that reduces human impact on natural systems. Students will communicate their proposal to an authentic audience using clear writing, speaking, and media, then reflect on feedback, teamwork, personal growth, and the solution’s long-term sustainability.

Teams will create a community environmental needs map and an evidence brief explaining how natural resources, hazards, or climate changes influence local human activity. They will develop design sketches, decision matrices, and a testable prototype addressing a selected issue such as waste, pollution, energy use, biodiversity loss, or water quality. After gathering peer and community feedback, teams will document prototype tests and refinements based on effectiveness, feasibility, equity, and impacts on natural systems. The final products will be a refined technological solution, a concise sustainability proposal, and a multimedia pitch answering how their design reduces human impact while responding responsibly to a real community need.

Begin with a rapid “environmental evidence walk” around the school grounds, where teams photograph or sketch signs of waste, pollution, resource use, climate stress, or natural-hazard risk. Teams map one observation, connect it to human activity, and examine who or what is affected using brief local data and community perspectives. Share findings in a gallery walk alongside Earth Prize themes such as waste management, water pollution, biodiversity loss, and climate change, then identify patterns and questions. Conclude by introducing the challenge: “How can we design a solution that reduces human impact on natural systems while responding to a real environmental problem in our community?”

Host a community sustainability showcase where teams present a prototype, evidence-based explanation, and concise multimedia pitch answering the essential question. Invite families, local environmental organizations, municipal staff, and school leaders to evaluate how each solution addresses local resource, hazard, or climate conditions and reduces impacts on natural systems. Visitors provide feedback on effectiveness, feasibility, ethics, and possible unintended consequences, and teams publicly describe one refinement they would make. Conclude with a gallery celebration featuring audience-choice recognitions and individual reflections on collaboration, communication, responsible citizenship, and future action.