Seven Department of Chemistry undergraduates presented their final projects on Friday, March 27, after taking part in a unique experiential learning course offered through the Research Opportunity Program.
Sofiya Berzhanskaya, Stefanos Grigorakis, Nicolas Heer, Chiara-Marie Marchesano, Miya Sa, Emily Yen and Karen Zhu gave talks accompanying research posters as part of ROP299/399, which was taught by Professor Jennifer Murphy of Chemistry and Professor Debra Wunch from Physics and School of the Environment.
“We collaborate on the NSERC Alliance-funded project Toronto Atmospheric Monitoring of Emissions (TAME), which produces large amounts of data characterizing the chemical composition of the local atmosphere,” Murphy explained.
According to their website, the TAME project is focused on improving the tracking of greenhouse gas emissions in the Greater Toronto Area. As local governments work toward meeting their net-zero targets by 2050, this initiative offers essential data and analysis to support effective policy development and reduce emissions.
“Senior researchers and government collaborators affiliated with TAME served as mentors,” Prof. Murphy said. “They pitched a range of data analysis projects that investigated a topic of interest to the researcher, and that offered a chance for students to develop research skills.”
PhD student Isabelle Lao was awarded a Chemistry Teaching Fellowship Program Award to develop and deliver a series of instructional modules on Python programming for the students to use in the course. After a quick introduction to key atmospheric science concepts, and a few weeks developing basic skills with Python, each student selected a project and met with their mentor to get started.
The student projects investigated various sources of greenhouse gases and air pollutants in urban areas, looked into methane emissions and nitrous oxide hotspots, and evaluated the utility of low-cost sensors for expanding observational coverage.
While the students each worked on their projects independently, the class met weekly for two hours each Friday afternoon during fall and winter semesters, providing the opportunity for students to get regular feedback from the instructors, Murphy said. “Each week, students had to provide a short update on their progress, which helped them to develop their skills with oral communication and time management and also allowed them to learn about each other’s projects.”
In addition to connecting with each other, the course facilitated interactions with mentors, including Mark Panas (UofT), Sebastien Ars (ECCC), Felix Vogel (ECCC), Niki Jacobs (UofT) , Lawson Gillespie (ECCC) and Dan Weaver (UTSC), who taught guest lectures and ensured that the findings of the data analysis could be put in context and contribute to the broader TAME initiative.
Prior to the final class presentations in late March, the students presented their research at the March 11th U of T Research Opportunities Program (ROP) Undergraduate Research Poster Fair, held in the Great Hall at Hart House. The event brings together students from across the university who have completed ROP projects, giving them the opportunity to present their work and research experiences to faculty, staff, and fellow students.
To view all of the participants with their posters, visit the Project Highlights page at TAME.
After the fair, students presented their work in poster, oral presentation, and written formats to round out the course. Together, these experiences completed a full cycle of engagement with real atmospheric data and cross-institutional collaboration, underscoring the value of experiential learning in preparing students for future research, graduate study, or science-informed careers.
To learn more about the Research Opportunity Program, visit the program page at the Faculty of Arts and Science.