Challenge 2

Welcome to the middle school challenge page for Challenge 2 of the Fairchild Challenge! Read below to find challenge information, entry requirements, resources and more for the challenge.

Challenge 2: Environmental Justice

Title: Pittsburgh’s Green Gazette
For individuals or groups | Maximum points: 200

Due Date: Fri., Dec. 6, 2024 by 5 p.m.

Download challenge rubric here

Your Challenge:

We are putting up the Phipps Signal — Western Pennsylvania needs your help! In this exciting challenge, you'll create an original 6-panel comic strip that tackles an environmental issue impacting Western Pennsylvania. Your mission is to research the issue, identify a realistic solution and design an original superhero character built to address the problem. This superhero should embody the qualities and powers needed to implement the solution in a fun and imaginative way. Whether it's combating pollution, restoring natural habitats or promoting renewable energy, your comic should highlight how your superhero can make a positive impact in the region.

Once your comic strip is complete, choose a local newspaper to send your project to, so your ideas and creativity can reach a wider audience. As part of your research, make sure to use at least three reputable sources to ensure your solution is informed and credible. This challenge encourages you to think critically and creatively about environmental issues while empowering you to be part of the solution. Let your imagination soar and inspire others with your superhero’s journey to save the day and protect our planet!

Entry Requirements:

Deliver to the science education coordinator at Phipps in person or via certified mail (electronic submission is not accepted for this challenge):

• Challenge Entry Form
• 3 entries per school MAXIMUM
• Cartoons must be no larger than 8” x 10” and presented on 8.5” x 11”, white, unlined paper. Cartoon may consist of up to 6 panels. Only original, student-created work is acceptable; images may not be digital photos or clip-art.
• Accompany your cartoon with a 200-word letter to the editor of a newspaper. In the letter, explain your cartoon and describe how it educates others about the environmental problem you illustrated.
• All entries MUST be labeled with student(s) and school name
• Original comic, characters and artwork
• Works Cited with at least 3 sources

Resources:

The following list of online resources may be used when preparing your entry:

• Climate Change | Western Pennsylvania Conservancy (waterlandlife.org)
• 12 Videos to Introduce Climate Change to Middle School Students (plt.org)
• Office of Environmental Justice (pa.gov)
• Shapiro Administration Expands Environmental Justice Protections with Updated Policy and Improved Mapping Tool
• Climate Action Plan - 4-in-1 Personal Climate Change Action (purposeontheplanet.org)
• THE 17 GOALS | Sustainable Development (un.org)
• Sustainable Development Goals | United Nations Development Programme (undp.org)
• Western PA Conservation Leaders and Environmental Projects to be Honored - PECPA
• 5 environmental victories from 2021 that offer hope (nationalgeographic.com)
• The Big Environmental Stories to Watch in 2023 | World Resources Institute (wri.org)
• Ways to Help the Environment: What You Can Do | AMNH
• Middle schoolers may be the secret weapon in fight against climate change | CNN

Standards: 

Read below to find the standards for each grade level for Challenge 2 of the Middle School Fairchild Challenge

• Grades 6 – 8

Grades 6 – 8

• CC.3.5.6-8.A Cite specific textual evidence to support analysis of science and technical texts.
• CC.3.5.6-8.D Determine the meaning of symbols, key terms, and other domain-specific words and phrases as they are used in a specific scientific or technical context relevant to grades 6–8 texts and topics.
• CC.3.5.6-8.H Distinguish among facts, reasoned judgment based on research findings, and speculation in a text.
• CC.3.6.6-8.C Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience.
• CC.3.6.6-8.E Use technology, including the Internet, to produce and publish writing and present the relationships between information and ideas clearly and efficiently.
• CC.3.6.6-8.H Draw evidence from informational texts to support analysis reflection, and research.
• 4.2.6.A Identify the five major watersheds of Pennsylvania.
• 4.2.6.C Identify natural and human-made factors that affect water quality.
• 4.4.6.B Analyze how soil types and geographic regions have impacted agriculture in Pennsylvania.
• 4.5.6.A Examine how historical events have shaped the sustainable use of natural resources.
• 4.5.6.C Identify key people and events that shaped the environmental history in the United States.
• 4.5.6.D Identify reasons why organisms become threatened, endangered, and extinct.
• 4.3.7.A Explain how products are derived from natural resources.
  • Describe the process of converting raw materials to consumer goods.
  • Differentiate between renewable and nonrenewable resources
• 4.3.7.B Explain the distribution and management of natural resources.
  • Differentiate between resource uses: conservation, preservation, and exploitation
• 4.4.7.A Describe how agricultural practices, the environment, and the availability of natural resources are related.
• 4.4.7.D Identify the positive and negative effects of technology used in agriculture and its effects on the food and fiber system and the environment over time.
• 4.5.7.A Describe how the development of civilization affects the use of natural resources.
  • Compare and contrast how people use natural resources in sustainable and non-sustainable ways throughout the world.
• 4.5.7.C Explain how human actions affect the health of the environment.
  • Identify residential and industrial sources of pollution and their effects on environmental health.
• 4.5.7.E Describe how length and degree of exposure to pollutants may affect human health.
  • Identify diseases/ conditions that have been associated with exposure to pollutants
• 4.2.8.A Describe factors that affect the quality of ground and surface waters.
• 4.3.8.A Compare and contrast alternative sources of energy.
• 4.5.8.A Explain how Best Management Practices (BMP) can be used to mitigate environmental problems.
• 4.5.8.C Describe how humans can reduce pollution.

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