Teaching Green Chemistry

How do we teach green chemistry in a way that makes it (1) relevant to people's lives, (2) a vehicle for advancing worker health and safety, and (3) a means of increasing the ability of workers to affect change? This work challenges three problems: (1) Workers do not have the right kinds of hazard and exposure information to identify and prioritize chemicals in the workplace; (2) workers do not have information on safer alternatives; and (3) decisions about the substances used by workers are made by management, without workers. The underlying assumption to date has been that toxic substances are a reality of the job, and it is the responsibility of workers, industrial hygienists and environmental engineers to implement controls to reduce, rather than prevent, health and environmental damage caused by the use of these substances. Green chemistry challenges this long-held assumption. It provides the basis on which workers can raise the demand that substitution with safer alternatives is reasonable and doable. Substitution protects worker, community, and environmental health by mitigating chemical hazards at the source, at the point of chemical design (or chemical selection in the case of products). Green chemistry therefore needs to be taught in ways that (1) anchor it in peoples' experience, (2) highlight its current limitations, and (3) introduce practical tools for implementation of safer alternatives. This presentation will highlight an innovative, successful day-long course for entry-level workers in green chemistry, health and safety, and sustainability, written and taught by UCB's LOHP and UCLA's LOSH.