By Bri Brands

Students from the Department of Chemistry and the School of Earth, Environment, and Sustainability in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences took part in a unique STEM-based experiential learning opportunity. 

Nearly 20 students, led by Adam Brummett, associate professor in the Department of Chemistry, and Stratis Giannakouros, director of the Office of Sustainability and the Environment, embarked on a two-week journey to Switzerland and Germany, where they learned about sustainable chemistry.  

Three years ago, with support from the Department of Chemistry, Office of Sustainability and the Environment, Office of Undergraduate Research, and the Honors Program, Brummett was able to see his long-time dream of creating a trip combining elements of chemistry and sustainability come true. 

“A study abroad of this nature doesn’t exist anywhere,” Brummett said. “It’s a really unique thing that our students at the University of Iowa have access to a unique perspective on how these fields feed each other.” 

Over the course of two weeks, students spent time in four separate cities engaging in various activities, both cultural and academic. 

One of the things students found most interesting was the vantage point they had when overlooking the 20-meter-long Aletsch Glacier.  

“It’s hard not to be deeply impacted by seeing this glacier and where it was even just 15 years ago, and where it’s projected to be in the next 15 to 30 years," Brummett said. “We have a lot of lab meetings, we go visit industries, we have lectures, but that’s the thing that stuck with people.”  

Other places students visited include Fraunhofer Institutes, ETH University, Roche Pharmaceuticals, Lonza AG, and the Valais UNESCO region.  

Sophia Heim, an incoming fourth-year student studying environmental science, said the information she learned on the trip broadened her view on the environmental field.  

“I learned just how many people in this world are fighting for the same thing I am,” Heim said. “It is easy to feel alone when fighting to make a difference regarding climate change, but it was very impactful to see how many people are also pushing for innovation around the world.”  

Because students came from different academic backgrounds, many of them were worried about not having the right experience or knowledge during the trip. However, Brummett saw this as beneficial for the students. 

“When they start interacting with each other, helping each other fill in gaps, and having these really detailed, engaged conversations, our partners that we collaborate with are surprised at how engaged our students are,” he said. 

Allison Kruzich, an incoming third-year student studying environmental planning, comes from a sustainability background and learned a lot about the chemical side of sustainability. 

“It was very interesting to hear about how scientists and researchers were looking as far as the molecular level of chemical reactions to try to make a positive impact and improve the sustainability of their actions,” Kruzich said. 

After three successful years of leading the trip, Brummett is confident that the trip teaches information that can’t be replicated in a classroom setting—science students see the research and sustainability students see the decisions made with that research, but rarely does a student get to see both sides. 

“That whole spectrum and the complexity that lies in the middle of it is just not something that is able to be touched in the classroom,” he said. “You have to meet these people and see these challenges in real life.”