The rise of global environmental
issues has stressed the importance
of sustainability and green chemistry teachings. Nevertheless, these
topics remain largely untouched in most post-secondary organic chemistry
lecture courses. This article investigates the barriers to integrating
green and sustainable chemistry into organic chemistry classrooms
and was guided by questions like: Do organic chemistry educators have
knowledge of green or sustainable chemistry, do they think it is relevant
to their field or courses, and do they have resources to make change?
A series of one-on-one, semi-structured interviews were conducted
with 8 active faculty members in the field of organic chemistry at
Canadian universities. Qualitative data analysis was carried out on
interview transcripts using an inductive thematic approach and the
application of the Framework Method. Major themes of content, structure,
resources, management, and individuals were identified at the intersection
of green chemistry, organic chemistry, and general barriers to educational
reform. These findings will ultimately be used to inform curriculum
development and supplement the creation of open-educational sources
for organic chemistry.
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