Developing Project-Based Learning That Embeds Equity- Focused Environmental Justice Education into Existing MSW Programs

Environmental justice is a critical component of social work practice with implications for individuals' and community well-being. Often, social work education maintains boundaries and impedes the achievement of its stated Grand Challenges by siloing environmental issues apart from examination of other vulnerabilities and social injustices. Yet, evidence abounds demonstrating climate instability threatens historic social justice and equality gains over the past half-century. Moreover, these negative impacts are accelerating with disproportionate impacts on vulnerable populations, a reality that makes environmental justice significant to social work.

This timely and interactive workshop incorporates online pedagogical approaches to activate student engagement with strengths-based environmental justice advocacy. Modeling X University's creative reimagining of its Social Action Project to better support disciplinary ethical mandates and meet students' stated interests, articulated in prior research, for more education on these topics can benefit other social work programs. The workshop uses parallel process to showcase social work education that centers on collaborative, strategic, and replicable approaches that train future social workers to advance equity-based environmental justice. This workshop includes members from X University that developed a unique virtual semester-long Social Action project completed by 481 social work students (394 MSW and 87 BSW) and can speak to various components and outcomes from this endeavor. The panelists include university faculty, a community partner, and a student representative. These individuals will explore the Social Action project in the context of the profession's move toward environmental justice, such as with the 2020 launch of the Council for Social Work Education's Curricular Guide on Environmental Justice. Panelists will also address the conference theme of battling inequities and building solutions by sharing replicable environmental justice interventions for social work students that build relevancy and advance equity.

Panelists will cover the following topics: 1) Defining environmental justice and adjacent concepts, such as "person in environment/person and environment" approaches and connections to racial and social justice. 2) Employment of online pedagogical practices to develop meaningful integration of environmental justice and advocacy within the MSW curriculum. Panelists will share how these practices increase accessibility and participation among students across five diverse campuses within a university system. 3) Community collaborations: panel members will discuss the importance of bridging gaps between the university and how various community partnerships were developed. These collaborative efforts engage students in advocacy projects that expand their perspectives and offer opportunities to practice social work skills such as listening to community needs and using a strengths-based approach. 5) Incorporating research outcomes from X University's semester-long Social Action Project, panelists will demonstrate how other schools can replicate these Social Action Projects by sharing timelines, planning processes, students' choice pathways, and research survey outcomes. During a ninety-minute session, panelists will address each of the topics above with prepared statements, discussion, response to questions, and facilitation of an interactive activity.