2. • Environmental education (EE) refers to organized
efforts to teach about how natural environments function
and, particularly, how human beings can manage their
behavior and ecosystems in order to live sustainably. It is
a multi-disciplinary field integrating disciplines such as
biology, chemistry, physics, ecology, earth science,
atmospheric science, mathematics, and geography. The
term is often used to imply education within the school
system, from primary to post-secondary. However, it is
sometimes used more broadly to include all efforts to
educate the public and other audiences, including print
materials, websites, media campaigns, etc.
3. • Environmental Education (EE) is the teaching of
individuals, and communities, in transitioning to a society
that is knowledgeable of the environment and its
associated problems, aware of the solutions to these
problems, and motivated to solve them [6]. The United
Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation
(UNESCO) states that EE is vital in imparting an inherent
respect for nature amongst society and in enhancing
public environmental awareness. UNESCO emphasises
the role of EE in safeguarding future global developments
of societal quality of life (QOL), through the protection of
the environment, eradication of poverty, minimization of
inequalities and insurance of sustainable development
(UNESCO, 2014a).
4. • 1. Engaging with citizens of all demographics to;
• 2. Think critically, ethically, and creatively when
evaluating environmental issues;
• 3. Make educated judgments about those environmental
issues;
• 4. Develop skills and a commitment to act independently
and collectively to sustain and enhance the environment;
and,
• 5. To enhance their appreciation of the environment;
resulting in positive environmental behavioral change
5. • Environmental education has crossover with multiple
other disciplines. These fields of education complement
environmental education yet have unique philosophies.
• Citizen Science (CS) aims to address both scientific and
environmental outcomes through enlisting the public in
the collection of data, through relatively simple protocols,
generally from local habitats over long periods of time
(Bonney et al, 2009).
• Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) aims to
reorient education to empower individuals to make
informed decisions for environmental integrity, social
justice, and economic viability for both present and future
generations, whilst respecting cultural diversities
(UNESCO, 2014b).
6. • Climate Change Education (CCE) aims in enhancing the public's
understanding of climate change, its consequences, and its problems,
and to prepare current and future generations to limit the magnitude of
climate change and to respond to its challenges (Beatty, 2012).
• Science Education (SE) focuses primarily on teaching knowledge and
skills, to develop innovative thought in society (Wals et al, 2014).
• Outdoor Education (OE) relies on the assumption that learning
experiences outdoors in ‘nature’ foster an appreciation of nature,
resulting in pro-environmental awareness and action (Clarke &
Mcphie,2014). Outdoor education means learning "in" and "for" the
outdoors.
• Experiential education (ExE) is a process through which a learner
constructs knowledge, skill, and value from direct experiences" (AEE,
2002, p. 5) Experiential education can be viewed as both a process and
method to deliver the ideas and skills associated with environmental
education (ERIC, 2002).
• While each of these educational fields has their own objectives, there
are points where they overlap with the intentions and philosophy of
environmental education.
7. • The roots of environmental education can be traced back
as early as the 18th century when Jean-Jacques
Rousseau stressed the importance of an education that
focuses on the environment in Emile: or, On Education.
Several decades later, Louis Agassiz, a Swiss-born
naturalist, echoed Rousseau’s philosophy as he
encouraged students to “Study nature, not
books.”[1] These two influential scholars helped lay the
foundation for a concrete environmental education
program, known as nature study, which took place in the
late 19th century and early 20th century.
8. • The nature study movement used fables and moral
lessons to help students develop an appreciation of
nature and embrace the natural world.[2] Anna Botsford
Comstock, the head of the Department of Nature Study
at Cornell University, was a prominent figure in the nature
study movement and wrote the Handbook for Nature
Study in 1911, which used nature to educate children on
cultural values.[3] Comstock and the other leaders of the
movement, such as Liberty Hyde Bailey, helped Nature
Study garner tremendous amounts of support from
community leaders, teachers, and scientists and change
the science curriculum for children across the United
States.
9. • A new type of environmental education, Conservation
Education, emerged as a result of the Great Depression
and Dust Bowl during the 1920s and 1930s. Conservation
Education dealt with the natural world in a drastically different
way from Nature Study because it focused on rigorous
scientific training rather than natural history.[4] Conservation
Education was a major scientific management and planning
tool that helped solve social, economic, and environmental
problems during this time period.
• The modern environmental education movement, which
gained significant momentum in the late 1960s and early
1970s, stems from Nature Study and Conservation Education.
During this time period, many events – such as Civil Rights,
the Vietnam War, and the Cold War – placed Americans at
odds with one another and the U.S. government. However, as
more people began to fear the fallout from radiation, the
10. • mentioned in Rachel Carson’sSilent Spring, and the significant
amounts of air pollution and waste, the public’s concern for
their health and the health of their natural environment led to a
unifying phenomenon known as environmentalism.
Environmental education was born of the realization that
solving complex local and global problems cannot be
accomplished by politicians and experts alone, but requires
"the support and active participation of an informed public in
their various roles as consumers, voters, employers, and
business and community leaders" [5]
• One of the first articles about environmental education as a
new movement appeared in the Phi Delta Kappan in 1969,
authored by James A. Swan.[6] A definition of "Environmental
Education" first appeared in The Journal of Environmental
Education in 1969, authored by William B. Stapp.[7] Stapp later
went on to become the first Director of Environmental
Education for UNESCO, and then the Global Rivers
International Network
11. • Ultimately, the first Earth Day on April 22, 1970 – a national teach-in
about environmental problems – paved the way for the modern
environmental education movement. Later that same year, President
Nixon passed the National Environmental Education Act, which was
intended to incorporate environmental education into K-12
schools.[8] Then, in 1971, the National Association for Environmental
Education (now known as the North American Association for
Environmental Education) was created to improve environmental
literacy by providing resources to teachers and promoting
environmental education programs.
• Internationally, environmental education gained recognition when the
UN Conference on the Human Environment held in Stockholm,
Sweden, in 1972, declared environmental education must be used
as a tool to address global environmental problems. The United
Nations Education Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
and United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) created three
major declarations that have guided the course of environmental
education.
12. • Environmental education has been considered an additional or
elective subject in much of traditional K-12 curriculum. At
the elementary school level, environmental education can take the
form of science enrichment curriculum, natural history field trips,
community service projects, and participation in outdoor science
schools. EE policies assist schools and organizations in developing
and improving environmental education programs that provide
citizens with an in-depth understanding of the environment. School
related EE policies focus on three main components: curricula, green
facilities, and training.
• Schools can integrate environmental education into their curricula
with sufficient funding from EE policies. This approach – known as
using the “environment as an integrating context” for learning – uses
the local environment as a framework for teaching state and district
education standards. In addition to funding environmental curricula in
the classroom, environmental education policies allot the financial
resources for hands-on, outdoor learning. These activities and
lessons help address and mitigate "nature deficit disorder", as well
as encourage healthier lifestyles.
13. • Green schools, or green facility promotion, are another
main component of environmental education policies.
Greening school facilities cost, on average, a little less
than 2 percent more than creating a traditional school,
but payback from these energy efficient buildings occur
within only a few years.[10]Environmental education
policies help reduce the relatively small burden of the
initial start-up costs for green schools. Green school
policies also provide grants for modernization,
renovation, or repair of older school facilities. Additionally,
healthy food options are also a central aspect of green
schools. These policies specifically focus on bringing
freshly prepared food, made from high-quality, locally
grown ingredients into schools.
14. • In secondary school, environmental curriculum can be a
focused subject within the sciences or is a part of student
interest groups or clubs. At the undergraduate and graduate
level, it can be considered its own field within education,
environmental studies, environmental science and policy,
ecology, or human/cultural ecology programs.
• Environmental education is not restricted to in-class lesson
plans. There are numerous ways children can learn about the
environment in which they live. From experiential lessons in
the school yard and field trips to national parks to after-school
green clubs and school wide sustainability projects, the
environment is a topic which is readily and easily accessible.
Furthermore, celebration of Earth Day or participation in EE
week (run through the National Environmental Education
Foundation) is a great way to dedicate your lessons to
environmental education. To be most effective, promote a
holistic approach and lead by example, using sustainable
practices in the classroom and school grounds and
encouraging students and parents to bring environmental
15. • The final aspect of environmental education policies, but
certainly not least important, is training individuals to
thrive in a sustainable society. In addition to building a
strong relationship with nature, American citizens must
have the skills and knowledge to succeed in a 21st-
century workforce. Thus, environmental education
policies fund both teacher training and worker training
initiatives. Teachers must be trained to effectively teach
and incorporate environmental studies in their curricula.
On the other hand, the current workforce must be trained
or re-trained so that they can adapt to the new green
economy. Environmental education policies that fund
training programs are critical in educating citizens to
prosper in a sustainable society.
16. • A study of Ontario teachers explored the obstacles of
environmental educators. [11] Through an internet-based
survey questionnaire, 300 K-12 teachers from Ontario,
Canada responded. Based on the results of the survey,
the most significant challenges identified by the sample
of Ontario teachers include over-crowded curriculum,
lack of resources, low priority of environmental education
in schools, limited access to the outdoors, student apathy
to environmental issues, and the controversial nature of
sociopolitical action.[12]
17. • An influential article by Stevenson (2007) outlines the conflicting
goals of environmental education and traditional
schooling. [13] According to Stevenson (2007) the recent critical
and action orientation of environmental education creates a
challenging task for schools. Contemporary environmental
education has the revolutionary purpose of transforming the
values that underlie our decision making, from the present ones
which aid and abet environmental (and human) degradation to
those which support a sustainable planet in which all people live
with equal human dignity. [14] This contrasts with the traditional
purpose of schools of conserving the existing social order by
reproducing the norms and values that currently dominate
environmental decision making. [15] Confronting this
contradiction is a major challenge to environmental education
teachers.
18. • Awareness and sensitivity to
the environment and
environmental challenges
• Knowledge and
understanding of the
environment and environmental
challenges
• Attitudes of concern for the
environment and motivation to
improve or maintain
environmental quality
• Skills to identify and help
resolve environmental
challenges
• Participation in activities that
lead to the resolution of
environmental challenges
19. • Environmental education does not
advocate a particular viewpoint or
course of action. Rather, environmental
education teaches individuals how to
weigh various sides of an issue
through critical thinking and it
enhances their own problem-solving
and decision-making skills.
20. Environmental Education
• Increases public
awareness and
knowledge of
environmental issues
• Does teach individuals
critical-thinking
• Does enhance individuals'
problem-solving and
decision-making skills
• Does not advocate a
particular viewpoint
Environmental
Information
• Provides facts or opinions
about environmental
issues
• Does not necessarily
teach individuals critical-
thinking
• Does not necessarily
enhance individuals'
problem-solving and
decision-making skills
• May advocate a particular
viewpoint
21. • There is now a wide appreciation of the damage
being done to the environment through human
activity. This damage is sometimes global, as in the
case of the depletion of the ozone layer and of the
increase in greenhouse gas emissions. Often the
damage is regional, as with pest degradation of
native forests, or the erosion of river catchments.
Often too, the damage is local. Pollution from motor
vehicles, contamination of soil by chemicals, sewage
discharges; these and hundreds of other human
activities stress the environment.
22. • Environmental education, together with sound legislation,
sustainable management, and responsible actions by
individuals and communities, is an important component
of an effective policy framework for protecting and
managing the environment.
• Environmental Education is a new focus for education. It
is a way of helping individuals and societies to resolve
fundamental issues relating to the current and future use
of the world's resources. However, simply raising
awareness of these issues is insufficient to bring about
change. Environmental Education must strongly promote
the need for personal initiatives and social participation to
achieve sustainability.
