About the Project
Geospatial technologies have emerged over the last fifteen years as one of the key tools used by environmental scientists (National Research Council, 2006). In fact, educators have recognized that coupling geospatial technologies with environmental science topics and scientific datasets opens the door to local and regional scientific investigations (McInerney, 2006). During the past three years we have been working to provide tools, curriculum, and resources to allow students to learn science through authentic inquiries using their own scientific data. In this article we describe the use of Geographic Information System (GIS) technologies coupled with computer modeling to engage students in determining the economic and ecological value of trees in their neighborhood.
In our urban tree project students collect data on tree location and condition in the field and then and use CITYgreen, an extension to Arc View, to evaluate the economic value of their trees on such constructs as storm water runoff, carbon generation avoidance, and air pollution removal. Students also evaluate the impact of street trees on air quality and the rate of carbon sequestration and determine how much carbon is stored in their tree sample.
Project Information
Project Leads: Dr. Michael Barnett, Dr. Eric Strauss, and Dr. David Blustein
Partners: Urban Ecology Institute, Environmental Studies at Boston College
