The newsletter of Science Education for New Civic Engagements and Responsibilities (SENCER) recently featured an article on Brownfield Action, a project developed by Peter Bower, a senior lecturer at Barnard College, and the Columbia Center for New Media Teaching and Learning (CCNMTL).

Brownfield Action is a web-based, interactive learning simulation in which students assume the roles of environmental consulting firms and use scientific data to investigate a suspected contaminated land site. In 2003, Brownfield Action was selected as a “national model curriculum” by SENCER. Since then a collaborative network of faculty have used the simulation and contributed to new curriculum and the growth of the tool.

The article covers developments at a seminar and training session for Brownfield Action held at Barnard College May 17-19, including new contributions and a vision for an interactive, 3D game-based “next-generation Brownfield.”

SENCER is a program supported by the National Science Foundation to support a community of faculty, students, academic leaders, and others to improve undergraduate STEM education by connecting learning to critical civic questions.