The Sustainability Across the Curriculum Workshop on June 2, 2025, brought together 22 faculty from diverse disciplines—from engineering thermodynamics to comics design—to explore how sustainability can be meaningfully integrated into teaching and learning. One panel included resource experts at the county, state, and regional levels, who shared pressing sustainability challenges and opportunities for students to engage with real, place-based issues. This workshop marked the relaunch of UMD’s Sustainability Teaching Fellows Program, an initiative that fosters interdisciplinary networks and equips faculty to develop innovative, collaborative approaches to sustainability education.
- Faculty earn a $250 stipend to attend the workshop and integrate sustainability into course learning outcomes
- Faculty learning community meets to continue dialogue on sustainability throughout the year
Overview
The mission of the Sustainability Across the Curriculum Workshop is to enhance the culture of sustainability at the University of Maryland through the intentional integration of sustainability topics throughout the curriculum to prepare students to become effective change agents. The workshop will support faculty in forming an interdisciplinary network of colleagues and finding connections between their disciplines and real, place-based sustainability challenges. In effect, student learning is improved by giving them projects that look at local sustainability issues.
How to Get Involved
Subscribe to our newsletter to hear when applications for the 2026 workshop are open. the application notification for 2026.
In the meantime, you can email Dr. Elisabeth Smela at smela@umd.edu to be added to an ELMS course, Teaching Sustainability, which is open to all interested faculty across the university who wish to fortify their own knowledge and integrate these topics into their teaching.