Choose Your Field Investigation
5.
With your parent or guardian’s and counselor’s approval, do ONE of the following:
You must choose exactly one option from this requirement. Both options show public health at work in the real world, but they focus on different systems and different risks.
Your Options
- Req 5a — Waste and Wastewater Systems: Visit a wastewater treatment plant or solid-waste operation and learn how a community handles sewage or trash safely. You will see how public health protects water, soil, and people by controlling waste before it spreads disease.
- Req 5b — Food Safety in Action: Visit a restaurant, cafeteria, or similar food service facility and study how food is stored, handled, cooked, and monitored. You will learn how public health prevents contamination before a meal reaches a plate.
How to Choose
Choosing your investigation
Think about what you want to observe and discuss
- Best fit if you like systems and infrastructure: Choose 5a. You will see large-scale public health work that most people never notice.
- Best fit if you like kitchens, practical routines, and daily habits: Choose 5b. You will study contamination control in a setting most people use every day.
- Time and access: A cafeteria or restaurant visit may be easier to arrange locally, while a treatment plant tour may need more planning.
- What you will gain: 5a teaches how communities manage waste and protect shared resources. 5b teaches how food safety depends on temperature, storage, sanitation, and attention to detail.
| Option | Main focus | What you observe | What you gain |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5a | Waste systems | Disposal, treatment, sanitation, environmental protection | A bigger-picture view of how cities prevent contamination |
| 5b | Food safety | Kitchen workflow, storage, temperatures, contamination prevention | A practical understanding of how public health protects meals every day |
5a
- Main focus
- Waste systems
- What you observe
- Disposal, treatment, sanitation, environmental protection
- What you gain
- A bigger-picture view of how cities prevent contamination
5b
- Main focus
- Food safety
- What you observe
- Kitchen workflow, storage, temperatures, contamination prevention
- What you gain
- A practical understanding of how public health protects meals every day
You only choose one path, but both lead to the same public health lesson: prevention depends on systems people follow consistently.