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From biofuels to bacteria, Ecotek's students link science to international policymaking

They’re not your typical students. You won’t find them hanging out at the mall or playing videogames on the weekend and after school. Rather, Ecotek’s students are peering into petri dishes examining bacterial growth rates, building wind turbines, designing hydroponic growing systems and carefully mixing chemicals to create biofuels.

Thanks to Ecotek, a branch of the Motor City Model UN Club, these students are engaging in science projects that give them a better understanding of the way science shapes international policymaking. Also, through its relationship with international organizations like the GLOBE Program and the United Nations, it is connecting these young people to the world.

Ecotek’s team of student scientists, ages 10 to 17, attend schools throughout Metro Detroit. They begin by working with leaders at the United Nations to identify a global problem, such as improving access to drinking water in developing countries. From here, the team’s work moves to researching the issue from multiple angles, such as reading and analyzing UN treaties and reports from international think tanks. This “awareness” is then converted to complex scientific research projects that are done by the student scientists in their research lab at TechTown. Based on their findings, the students then write their own protocols and share their information with leaders at the United Nations and with other scientists around the world.

One recent science project took the students into the microscopic world of bacteria. Students Nimet Williams, Angel Hall and Amber Young grew bacteria collected from various animals and studied the shapes, sizes and growth rate of the various types of bacteria. The team discovered that bacteria from amphibious animals like frogs and turtles had a higher growth rate and was more difficult to neutralize than the bacteria gathered from other animals. They then wrote an Amphibious Bacteria Identification protocol for the treatment of bacteria spread by these animals that could potentially cause disease outbreaks in humans. As a result of their hard work, Nimet and Amber have been accepted into the mini med school program at the University of Michigan.

Ecotek students study a plethora of science topics with public policy applications, including alternative energy. One team of student scientists recently made biodiesel out of soybean oil, and now they’re researching methods for converting algae and other cellulose-based materials to biofuel. Another team, lead by Antoine Crews, is looking at ways to better identify, track, safely store and neutralize hazardous materials. As a result of this effort, he and his team have developed a protocol for identifying decaying uranium in soil.

Ecotek students aren’t content to confine their research projects to the laboratory: they attend science expos to educate others about their findings. Last year, they traveled to South Africa to present their research at the GLOBE Learning Expedition in Cape Town. This weekend, they’ll be hosting an event called the 2009 Fuel Cell Challenge at the Detroit Edison Public School Academy to help educate the community about hydrogen based technology; they’ll share their research on biofuel later this month at the Michigan AgriEnergy Conference in Kalamazoo. Most exciting of all is the students’ upcoming visit with leaders at the United Nations in New York City next month.

Organizations can partner with Ecotek by sponsoring a future scientist, collaborating on an international science project, or starting an affiliate club. For more information on Ecotek, contact program director Keith Young at (313) 399-7893 or keiyoung@ecotek-us.com.

 

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