Answers to the most frequently asked questions....

• What benefits will I receive by participating in the LEAF Initiative?​​

  • As a LEAF Fellow, you will have unique opportunities

    • Develop an Individualized Environmental Leadership Plan (IELP) that you will use to chart your personal leadership journey.

    • Learn to write an op-ed.

    • Learn about opportunities for the public to participate in proposed state laws (i.e. tesimony at bill hearings) and in agency rulemaking procedures (i.e. notice and comment)

    • Be immersed in nature (staying at Camp Dodge in the White Mountains of New Hampshire).

    • Earn an Environmental Leadership Certificate from WPI's Office of Sustainability.

    • Earn additional credentials:

      • Virtual badges in Environmental Justice, Plastics Reduction, and Pollinators, and an EcoLeader Certification (from the National Wildlife Federation).

      • Associate Environmental Professional Certification (from the National Registry of Environmental Professionals).

    • Be connected with a professional mentor.

    • Participate in a curated, virtual ECO-Career Summit developed for LEAF Fellows by NWF.​

    • Have opportunities to co-publish research with faculty, and/or present at conferences.

​​​

• ​Is there work outside of the seminar?

  • LEAF Fellows will complete most work during the Wednesday seminar. There may be short readings, podcasts, and videos that we ask students to review prior to our meetings, but you will not have to prepare anything written to hand-in outside of class. ​

​​​

• Will I receive credit by participating?

  • Yes! You will receive 1/6 credit in each term. Completing the seminar will also count towards the minor in sustainability engineering.​

​​​

• Is the seminar time confirmed for C and D terms?

  • No. We will discuss timing with all LEAF Fellows when the seminar begins.​

​​

• Can I participate if I am on IQP for one term?

  • Yes. We are happy to work with LEAF Fellows so you can participate while on IQP.​

​​

• What excursions/tours might we do?

  • Each term we will participate in a different excursion such as participating in a Toxic Tour in Roxbury with Alternatives for Community and Environment to learn about the pollution, congestion, and poor air quality that continues to impact the community, and conducting community science. ​​

​

• How many students will be participating in the LEAF Fellow Initiative?

  • As this is the pilot year of the LEAF Fellows Initiative, we are only accepting between 10-15 students. ​

​​

• How do I sign up? 

  • Email the LEAF Initiative Co-Directors, and they will send you sign-up details.​

​

• What will happen in each of the terms? Check out the course description....

Environmental Leadership Seminar (Course) Description 

​           B & C term Seminar (2000 & 3000 ID/IGS)

How do you infuse environmental knowledge and leadership into your career, regardless of your major? This Environmental Leadership Seminar is an action-oriented seminar that enables students to develop an environmental stewardship and social responsibility lens they can apply to their discipline. During this seminar, students will develop and iterate an Individualized Environmental Leadership Plan (IELP). The IELP will allow LEAF Fellows to curate their own environmental leadership journey. Additionally, the seminar will introduce students to a mix of environmental literacy content (e.g., environmental ethics, (inter)national environmental policy, organizations and agencies, foundations of ecology, community engagement, and public participation in environmental science and decision making, etc.), conflict resolution techniques, and leadership styles and skills. Concepts will be connected across the classes using examples and applications of the Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness grant program (MVP). The MVP grant program supports Massachusetts communities so they can identify and address climate-related vulnerabilities. 

​

This seminar will include a mix of expert guest lectures and instructor- and student-led teaching styles. Throughout the term, students will learn from professional guest speakers who specialize in leadership strategies, environmental governance, regulatory frameworks, incorporation of sustainability principles in engineering, conservation, and related topics. Throughout B and C terms, students will have opportunities to participate in hands-on, experiential nature immersion.   

​​

           D-term Seminar (4000 ID/IGS)

During this term, students will focus on applying the knowledge they have gained in the prior two terms. Students will choose how they would like to apply their knowledge and leadership skills. Options include: community projects, earning additional credentials (e.g., external badges and certifications), career exploration, networking, mentorship, and dissemination of their work. Students will explore various modalities such as giving conference and poster presentations, developing professional publications, community organizing, and environmental justice. 

​

Classes will be a mix of guest speakers, discussions, action-oriented work, leadership training, and peer-to-peer mentoring. Assignments outside of the classroom will involve a mix of activities, including attending regulatory hearings, town committee meetings (e.g., sustainability committee meetings), lectures, conference presentations, and organizing volunteer activities. During D-term, students will have additional experiential, hands-on nature immersion opportunities.

​​

• Will I receive any "swag" as a LEAF Fellow?

  • We are working on this and hope to have some LEAF Fellow swag. Interested Fellows can help design the logo.​

​​

• What kind of guest speakers can participants anticipate?

  • There will be speakers from the public sector (e.g., Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, the Department of Environmental Protection, state senators/representatives), from private industry, and from not-for-profit organizations.

​

​​