Integration of Sustainability Concepts in Environmental Engineering Teaching Through Activities Based on Audiovisual Tools

This work introduces an innovative approach to applying environmental sustainability principles through a practical activity focused on different processes to produce bioenergy from food waste generated at the Rey Juan Carlos University. These processes were carried out at the facilities of Escuela Superior de Ciencias Experimentales y Tecnología of our university, using used cooking oil, coffee residues and food waste to produce biodiesel, biocrude and biogas, respectively. The processes were recorded and edited into an educational video, providing a detailed explanation of each one and including concepts of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) to assess their sustainability. The activity was done by fourth-year students of Environmental Engineering Degree, within the course Life Cycle Assessment and Clean Technologies. The activity was implemented following four steps: video projection, questions and debate session on aspects related to the sustainability of the described processes, questionnaire on the application of LCA concepts to these processes and a final satisfaction survey. The marks obtained by the students, along with their satisfaction level were highly favourable, showing the suitability of the activity to show the practical application of environmental sustainability concepts. Besides, the proposed activity allowed students to think about the importance of sustainability of processes and products.