Educators can schedule a field trip with BRING (available in Lane County only) to visit Short Mountain Landfill, just five miles from Eugene. Worldwide, landfills are the most common form of waste disposal. For Lane County’s garbage, Short Mountain landfill is the final destination for much of our stuff when it doesn’t always have to be. Students learn about the importance of “reduce, reuse and recycle” as it relates to Short Mountain and how to make better choices about what we throw away. Note: Educators outside of Lane County or Lane County educators with scheduling challenges can download the accompanying field trip lesson plan, which includes a link to a “virtual field trip.”

Ready to schedule? Email educator@bringrecycling.org to get started.

Educators can schedule a field trip with BRING (available in Lane County only) to visit Glenwood Transfer Station in Eugene. Transfer stations are vital parts of the waste management system. These facilities help transfer waste from where we generate waste to landfills. Transfer stations provide opportunities to recycle electronics, dispose of hazardous waste, and throw away items that do not fit in curbside roll carts or dumpsters at home. Students on this tour see these scenes and more. Note: Educators outside of Lane County or Lane County educators with scheduling challenges can download the accompanying field trip lesson plan, which includes a link to a “virtual field trip.”

Ready to schedule? Email educator@bringrecycling.org to get started.

Educators can schedule a field trip with BRING (available in Lane County only) to tour BRING’s Planet Improvement Center, Oregon’s first combination reuse store and conservation learning center. Students learn about the lifecycle of stuff, see a wide selection of salvaged building materials on sale or made into upcycled artwork, and are inspired to think about materials differently. Virtual tours are available if needed. Note: Educators outside of Lane County or Lane County educators with scheduling challenges can download the accompanying field trip lesson plan, which includes a link to a “virtual field trip.”

Ready to schedule? Email educator@bringrecycling.org to get started.

Educators can schedule a classroom lesson with BRING (available in Lane County only) or download a lesson plan for self-guided instruction to help students learn about food waste and the vast resources required for food production, developing an understanding of the interconnectedness of the food system and responsible consumption.

Ready to schedule? Email educator@bringrecycling.org to get started.

Students design, build, and test small-sized vehicle prototypes that transfer various types of potential energy into motion. To complete the “Go-Public” phase of the legacy cycle, students demonstrate their understanding of how potential energy may be transferred into kinetic energy.

Students learn about the water cycle and its key components, including the watershed concept and why it is crucial in engineering hydrology.

Students learn that access to clean water is a significant problem globally, especially in developing countries and during and after natural disasters.

In this hands-on activity, student groups design, build, test, and improve devices to pump water as if they were engineers helping a rural village meet its drinking water supply.

Students measure the effectiveness of water filters in purifying contaminated water, preparing test water by creating different concentrations of bleach (chlorine-contaminated) water. After passing the contaminated water through commercially available Brita® water filters designed to purify drinking water, students determine the chlorine concentration of the purified water using chlorine test strips and measure the adsorption of chlorine onto activated carbon over time.

Students create and analyze composite materials—puffed rice cereal, marshmallows, and chocolate chips—to use the materials to construct a structure with optimal strength and minimal density.