Life in Plastic, Not Fantastic: How Microplastics Affect Our Planet and Ourselves

Course Description

This course is designed to introduce high school students to the rapidly growing issue of microplastics and their impacts on the environment and human health. By combining scientific research at Carleton with real-world applications, the course aims to help students understand, investigate, and communicate one of today’s most discussed environmental challenges: microplastics. Throughout the week, students will learn how microplastics are formed, how they travel through ecosystems, and how they eventually end up in the human body. Through recreating hands-on experiments conducted and published at Carleton, engaging discussions, and creative problem-solving activities, students will develop a deeper appreciation for broader environmental sciences and their role in creating healthier futures.

We will highlight the pathways available for students interested in pursuing environmental and biological sciences at the postsecondary level. By sharing our own academic experiences—from Undergraduate to Graduate students at Carleton—we can showcase the extensive research on microplastics being conducted in biological and environmental sciences. Topics to be covered in this week-long course include plastic monitoring and management, the physiology of ingestion, reasons for ingestion, toxicology, methods for measuring microplastics, and sustainability initiatives in students' own lives. Students will learn how physiological and behavioural responses to plastics in non-human animals reveal mechanisms and food-web transfer that ultimately impact human health. This approach demonstrates that the same processes that harm wildlife also affect people, reinforcing the link between ecology, health, and sustainability. We will help students see how their interests can lead to many different avenues for addressing pollutants in our world today. Throughout the course, we will encourage students to ask questions about university life, science degree programs, and future careers to build their confidence and curiosity about postsecondary education. Students will participate in activities such as identifying microplastics under a microscope, removing MPs from soil samples, analyzing current events related to plastic pollution, learn how to navigate the plethora of information on microplastics from media releases and creating public awareness messages based on the theme “Life in Plastic, Not Fantastic.” These activities will aim to foster critical thinking from public information, teamwork in a scientific investigation, creative expression for scientific dissemination, and scientific literacy through research papers.

By the end of the week, students will not only understand the science behind microplastics but also feel inspired to consider their potential role as future scientists, researchers, innovators, or advocates for environmental health.