Building on a stewardship success story

The “Lakes for Life: Global Voices, Local Action” webinar, 1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 27, features Michigan Great Lakes Senior Advisor and Strategist Emily Finnell as a presenter. Co-hosted by Shedd Aquarium, AquaVox, and Water Solutionaries, it features youth-led action and science-based solutions across continents. You can register to join in advance.

For K-12 students and educators heading back to school, the World Lake Day mission aligns with Michigan’s statewide strategy of using place-based, problem-based, project-based – or 3P – learning to focus on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).

FS2S supports implementing and expanding 3P learning and helping teachers and administrators develop these practices in schools and communities.

For its initial 2021-22 school year, FS2S funded six schools to demonstrate strategies and best practices. The Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity’s (LEO) MiSTEM Network adapted the experiences and lessons from FS2S into one of its resources for school use, the MiSTEM Freshwater Literacy and Stewardship playbook.

During Phase 2 of FS2S, 16 districts implemented 3P projects and provided feedback on their experiences using the playbook. Phase 2 projects included field trips, mini-libraries, teacher trainings, informal yard signs for local water conservation, pollinator gardens, and beekeeping.

Through both phases, state partners and grant participants created and refined a tool kit of resources, information, and real-world opportunities for students and educators, including the MiSTEM Freshwater Literacy and Stewardship playbook.

FS2S has also provided insights into what helps these 3P programs survive and thrive over the long term and where the most significant challenges lie.

Participants shared common challenges of 3P implementation, including curricular alignment, sufficient training and support for teachers, and budget constraints on planning and transportation.

In summer 2024, the OGL received funding for FS2S Phase 3, designed to fill gaps discovered in the first two phases. It includes developing and funding a pilot Wheels to Water program to provide up to $1,000 to cover transportation costs for school field trips to freshwater ecosystems in Michigan.

Phase 3 funding will also provide grant funding from $5,000-$10,000 that will be rolled out in the 2026-27 school year to schools or Local Education Agencies to implement projects in which students work with communities to address local water issues that impact the Great Lakes ecosystem.

The OGL is also working with partners to update the Freshwater Education Program Database developed during earlier FS2S phases into an online platform withsimplified searchability and interactive features.

FS2S is a partnership of EGLE’s OGL and Environmental Education program and LEO’s MiSTEM Network. The OGL has funded the program through the Michigan Great Lakes Protection Fund, LEO through MiSTEM School Aid Funds, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency through the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative.

Participating schools can integrate the program into curricula and continuous improvement plans to prepare future water stewards, leaders, and decision-makers. All schools can use the MiSTEM Network’s STEM Toolbox and Freshwater Literacy and Stewardship playbook to develop Great Lakes-based 3P experiences.

Learn more on the OGL’s Stewarding the Great Lakes webpage and the Michigan Water Stewardship Program’s website.

 

Adapted and expanded from an article in the 2024 Michigan State of the Great Lakes Report by Eileen Boekestein and Katie Mika, Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy; and Megan Schrauben, Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity.