Blog Post #27

August 15, 2024

Brigitte Stepanov

Summer 2024 In Review

The summer began in Washington, D.C., alongside Drs. Sophie Landrieux Kartochian, Stuart Minson, and Britta Kallin. We presented at the 7th International Symposium on Languages for Specific Purposes (ISLSP) & Centers for International Business Education and Research (CIBER) Business Language Conference, titled “Languages for Specific Purposes: Making Connections Within and Beyond the Classroom,” at George Washington University (May 2-3, 2024).

Our panel, “Sustainable Development as a Specific Purpose in Language and Culture Education,” framed sustainable development as a specific purpose in both research and teaching. Dr. Minson focused on a research project funded by the Atlanta Global Studies Center that addressed equity in dual language education. Meanwhile, Dr. Kallin presented on “Sustainable Development in Germany.” Dr. Landrieux Kartochian delivered a presentation titled “French for Global Sustainability Professionals,” and I provided an overview of my course, “Energy Humanities,” emphasizing its focus on service learning.

The rest of the summer was spent teaching at our GT-E campus in Metz, France – the photos below capture some of those moments:

Clockwise from top right: posters for gardening events and book talks in Metz in the month of June; a composting site in Metz; composting bins open to all

Metz s’est lancé en 2021 dans la plantation de micro-forêts en ville. Dans ce cadre, la Ville a souhaité mener une étude afin de connaître l’avis des habitants à l’égard de ces micro-forêts et leur perception au fil du temps.

Metz started planting micro-forests in the city in 2021. As part of this effort, the City wanted to conduct a study to understand residents' opinions about these micro-forests and how their perceptions change over time.

A 10-minute survey was carried out in partnership with the University of Lorraine, AgroParis Tech Nancy, the University of Toulouse III – Paul Sabatier, and CEREMA.