Infrastructure: California and the World

Infrastructure: California and the World

Background image: bridge silhouette with sunrise and clouds in background
Image credit:
Thomas Hawk via flickr https://flic.kr/p/3vAvE (modified)

Program Concept

How do California's infrastructures affect economic possibilities, the environment, and day-to-day life in our state? How do our infrastructures influence our relations with each other, within and beyond California? What can an exploration of infrastructures in other parts of the world teach us about ourselves? Finally, will our current infrastructures help us thrive in the future? And if not, how might we adapt to better serve the needs of Californians?

Infrastructure: California and the World is a working group for middle and high school teachers whoare interested in a sustained study of California infrastructure systems. It is an extension of the 2025 ORIAS Summer Institute, Infrastructure and Society.

Application

Program Details

Schedule + Format

Participants in this program commit to attend six 2-hour, in-person meetings at UC Berkeley, plus one field trip.  Hybrid attendance options may be available in very limited  circumstances.

Meeting dates are tentatively set for the following weekends, with exact hours TBD in consultation with participants:

  • October 24/25, 2025
  • December 6/7, 2025
  • January 31/February 1, 2026
  • February 21/22, 2026
  • April 25/26, 2026
  • May 23/24, 2026

The field trip will be scheduled for March, 2026, exact date TBD.

Participant Eligibility

This program is open to k-12 teachers, TOSAs, and curriculum specialists who work in public or private schools in California. The program is open to teachers beyond commuting distance, but please note that meetings will be held in-person and travel funds are not available through the program.

Participant Responsibilities

  • Complete preparatory reading/listening/viewing prior to each meeting session. This work will take approximately 60 - 90 minutes per session.
  • Attend and actively participate in all meetings, including the five discussion sessions (October, December, January, February, April), the field trip (March) and the final session in which participants share the projects they develop.
  • Author and submit a project-based unit or major assessment through which students can learn about California infrastructure in a global context.
  • Complete a post-program survey.

Stipend

Each teacher-participant will receive a stipend of $1100 upon completion of the program.

"Governance, it turns out, does not take place at a distance but through the intimacy and proximity of toilets, pipes, and potholed roads."

(Appel, Anand, and Gupta 2018)

Project Funding

Infrastructure: California and the World is made possible by support from the California Global Education Project, which is part of California’s State Subject Matter Project. Additional support comes from UC Berkeley's Office of Resources for International and Area Studies (ORIAS) and the area studies centers and institutes at UC Berkeley. 

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