Module 5 : Closing the Environmental Loop

ABOUT

In Closing the Environmental Loop, students investigate how industry is changing in response to today’s environmental issues and learn about a range of incentives for reducing the environmental impact of products and processes. They first look at how every stage in the life cycle of everyday products affects the environment. Then, through video, case studies, and Web research, they learn how industries are redesigning products for easier remanufacture or recycling, changing their production processes, improving their facilities, developing eco-industrial parks, and “greening” their product supply chains.

Closing the Environmental Loop introduces students to the use of data for monitoring progress toward environmental goals. Through a role-play activity, students develop the negotiation skills needed to build financially and environmentally sustainable business partnerships. Throughout the module, students apply what they learn about products and companies to a product of their own choosing. In a final activity, they present proposals for making their chosen products more environmentally sustainable.