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This introduction charts the editors' evolving understanding of the implications of the COVID-19 pandemic for literary studies in the real time of the crisis. Oriented around the themes of friendship and community, the introduction articulates the overall ambition of the issue as one of maintaining an engaged intellectual community during the isolation imposed by the pandemic. Foregrounding narrative as the issue's major emphasis, it describes how the issue engages with pandemic storytelling in relation to literary history and literary production, environmental literary studies, and higher education and the profession. Finally, it provides an overview of the issue's sections and essays. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: STEM achievement gaps affect marginalized students nation-wide. Environmental education (EE) does not currently nor historically represent a wide range of demographic backgrounds, and increasing concerns demonstrate the effects this can have on pedagogy of the field and the success of its students. Purpose: This research focuses on measures being reported by EE organizations in Wisconsin, and nearby regions, in their work to address diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) with consideration to inclusive practices, instructional materials, and overall pedagogy of EE. Methodology/Approach: In 2021, a web-based survey was emailed to 140 EE organization leaders and an updated version was emailed to 112 EE organization leaders in 2023. Responses were analyzed to determine the status of EE across the state and trends across years. Findings/Conclusions: The data does demonstrate a need for equity in EE, specifically supporting students with different learning needs or from underrepresented backgrounds. DEI initiative importance versus resources allocated is disjointed. Lack of consistent collection of demographic data leads EE organizations to fall short of DEI action. Implications: In order to better support learning and positive outcomes, it is significant that environmental educators reevaluate their practices to meet the needs of the growingly diverse students across the country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the international community attempts to unite to combat climate change, American party politics could hardly be more divided on this issue. This paper offers an additional explanation for how US congressional politics on environmental policy has polarized: the ongoing education realignment in American party politics. As the Democratic Party increasingly relies on college-educated voters and the opposite is true for the Republican Party, this can affect the parties' positions on environmental policy based on public opinion research which finds a positive relationship between education and pro-environment attitudes. Using League of Conservation Voters legislative scorecards from 1983 to 2020, this paper finds the education realignment contributed to the removal of pro-environment Republicans and anti-environment Democrats in Congress in recent decades; and this primarily occurred through elite replacement rather than conversion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explores the perceptions that high school students have about mantled howler monkeys in the Mexican community of Balzapote, Veracruz. We systematized the learning process derived from a Primate Conservation Education Program (PCEP) based on participatory action research (PAR) and arts-based education. Our results indicate a decrease in students’ fear of monkeys, the recovery of myths and legends about this species, as well as a complex knowledge about monkeys and their habitat. The inclusion of local knowledge enriched the learning experience and reinforced primate conservation concepts. The PAR and arts-based approaches allowed students to internalize and apply acquired knowledge and fostered empathy. In addition to learning, the approach helped develop teamwork, critical thinking, and creative skills. Quantitative indicators showed shifts in emotions and knowledge post-program, and qualitative data revealed a deep articulation of learned content. We also identified migration and mining activities as socio-political factors impacting local people’s livelihoods and wildlife conservation in this region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractEnvironmental education in primary schools plays a critical role in fostering pro-environmental values and behavior among young children. However, multiple contextual barriers hinder the teaching of environmental issues in schools. Drawing on the evident gap observed in Ethiopian primary teachers’ beliefs and actual practices, the study elucidates the major barriers teachers encounter in teaching environmental issues. Interviews, grounded in phenomenology, were conducted with teachers in four primary schools. The analysis outlined four ranked categories: training and capacity, administrative and logistical, safety concerns, and attitudinal. Most teachers feel hindered by their lack of pedagogical knowledge for teaching children. While most of the barriers are common in global analyses, the current study also identified noble barriers. Suggestions for tackling the barriers and areas for further inquiry are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractConsidering the crucial role of education in offering mitigation and adaptation strategies for climate change, there is a clear need for objective tools to assess its impact on the understanding of the issue among secondary school students. This paper describes the methodological design used to build and validate an instrument that explores secondary education students’ climate change knowledge. The design is organized into several steps: literature and document review; item design; Expert judgment; pilot testing; and instrument quality criteria analysis. Thus, a questionnaire comprising 27 4-points Likert scale items was designed. Two rounds of pilot testing and statistical analyses were conducted on the difficulty indexes, factor analysis, Spearman coefficient (flit-half method), and alpha coefficient. The result is an instrument with a degree of feasibility, validity and reliability suitable for comparative research as was found in a Spanish macro-study involving 6398 secondary school students. Preliminary results for the Spanish context are offered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractEngagement with nature is crucial for child development and kindergarten educators’ pedagogical beliefs about nature play significantly affect children’s access to and experiences of nature in kindergarten. This study examines the role of nature play in children’s holistic development, engaging 12 Chinese kindergarten educators through in-depth interviews. The results demonstrated a consensus among participating educators regarding the significance of nature play in child development. Our analysis further revealed a prominent discrepancy: while most educators see nature play primarily for personal development and aesthetic appreciation of nature, very few recognise it as a strategic tool for environmental education in young children, which includes ecological literacy and sustainability. Their limited exposure to environmental education during their teacher education results in a skewed understanding of nature-based play pedagogy. These underpinnings may unintentionally narrow their holistic perspective on the wider scope of environmental education. The findings suggest the need to foster educators’ richer understanding of environmental education in nature play through teacher training. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human beings exploit natural resources to fulfill their basic needs. Consequently, environmental conservation requires the implementation of a comprehensive system of social, socioeconomic, and technical-productive measures. These measures should be directed towards the judicious utilization of natural resources, preservation of natural ecosystems, and protection of the environment from pollution and degradation. This study aims to scrutinize the factors contributing to the irresponsible utilization of natural resources using neutrosophic statistics. The findings suggest the necessity of proposing environmental legislation reforms to regulate and prevent the overexploitation of natural resources. Additionally, promoting environmental education among the population is crucial to instill responsible ecological behavior in society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Project Based Learning (PBL) offers students the opportunity to develop practical and cognitive skills while addressing real challenges. The objective of this research is to develop a methodological strategy as an effective way for environmental education in children in the seventh year of Basic General Education (EGB) through the implementation of Project Based Learning. A diagnosis of existing practices in environmental education and PBL was carried out. The design of the methodological strategy is governed by the principles of PBL with the objectives of environmental education. The methodological strategy was structured around the identification of relevant and significant environmental topics for students, the planning and execution of interdisciplinary environmental projects, and the formative and shared evaluation of the results obtained. The active participation of students was promoted in all stages of the learning process, encouraging collaborative work, critical reflection and transformative action. The strategy was implemented in the Francisco Febres Cordero Educational Unit in order to evaluate its effectiveness and make necessary adjustments. Qualitative and quantitative data were collected through observations and surveys to analyze the impact of PBL on the environmental education of seventh-year EGB children. The results of the research demonstrated that the methodological strategy developed was effective in promoting meaningful learning and environmental awareness in students. Improvements were observed in the understanding of environmental concepts, the development of practical and socio-emotional skills, and the children's active engagement in environmental conservation and protection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reintroducing locally extinct/extirpated species has been considered as an approach for restoring ecosystems. Although such projects share the same goals of rebuilding previously affected ecosystems, the overall impacts that such reintroductions generate on both ecosystems and human society, i.e., on the social-ecological system, are difficult to measure. We propose a system dynamics approach, a platform on which both natural and social scientists could collaborate to identify the social-ecological impacts of species reintroduction as well as factors that affect such decision making. We use cases in Japan to demonstrate the potential applicability of system dynamics in terms of (1) understanding the impacts of a previously reintroduced species, the Oriental Stork (Ciconia boyciana), and (2) predicting the impacts of reintroduction of wolves (Canis lupus). We present a causal loop diagram of the social and ecological effects of Oriental Stork reintroduction, and we discuss how the relationships between factors could be articulated based on empirical data and ongoing projects in Japan. The model demonstrates how local residents began to appreciate the rich biodiversity, including the Oriental Stork, following its reintroduction, and how public support toward such reintroduction enhanced further projects to reintroduce these species in different parts of Japan. A similar diagram, created to illustrate the social and ecological effects of the potential reintroduction of wolves to Japan, demonstrates how social factors such as environmental education and public attitudes could affect decision making as well as ecological factors such as predator-prey dynamics and overall biodiversity. Further, humanwolf conflicts could negatively affect the overall loop. Creating causal loop diagrams can help managers and stakeholders understand that species reintroduction projects need to be considered via an interdisciplinary approach. The models illustrate that these problems are dynamic and that the factors affecting or affected by such projects change over time, implying the importance of both the spatial and temporal scales in managing reintroduction projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Environmental Literacy (EL) is recognized as a fundamental component in directing individuals' environmental preservation behavior. This descriptive-correlation research was conducted with the main objective of explaining the environmental literacy of ecovillages' students. Data were collected from 175 high school students, selected through census, living in eco-villages in western Iran (n= 175). Findings showed that students' EL was moderate. Three dimensions of EL, including knowledge, attitude, and behavior, were higher in students living in developed Eco-villages than in developing and less developed Eco-villages. Gender, father's job, field of study, and level of Eco-village development had a significant effect on students' EL. However, the effect of educational level and participation in environmental training courses was insignificant. The results of stepwise regressions revealed that the number of years of parents' education religiosity, study hours per week, and satisfaction with living in rural areas explain 49% of the variance of students' environmental literacy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the last decades, ecofeminist thought has moved into a 'fourth stage critical ecofeminism' (Gaard 2017, xvi), based on an understanding that humans are unavoidably part of a multifaceted and interconnected global ecosystem. This paper suggests that ecofeminist theory and practice can now grow further into a fifth stage: an era of expanded intersectionality that moves beyond the dualisms and hegemonies of neo-liberal patriarchal and colonial capitalist structures that can limit ecofeminist theorizing and material practice. This fifth stage must be based on an amalgamation of engaged theory, education, and activism, grounded in ancient wisdom and with the understanding that all material-discursive phenomena are interconnected. For this next era of ecofeminism, the terms intraconnectivism and intraconnective education (Siegel 2022) are proposed. Intraconnectivism offers a bridge that connects past theoretical frameworks with ecofeminist presents. It can build a helpful theoretical pathway through and amongst the non-dualistic educational pedagogies that are needed at this time, as well as expand understanding of the role that gender and other identities can play in education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This essay offers a rationale for deploying ecofeminist science fiction stories as object-oriented thought experiments in science and environmental education, with particular reference to developments in genetics and evolutionary biology, and their implications for human (and more-than-human) reproduction and kinship in the period following the determination of the double helical structure of DNA by scientists affiliated with Cambridge University's Cavendish Laboratory in 1953, and the impact of subsequent gene-centric discourses on the biological sciences and the wider culture. The utility and defensibility of this approach is exemplified by reference to two science fiction novels by the late Naomi Mitchison that foreground and anticipate implications of genetic sciences for matters of concern to ecofeminists, including reproductive rights and responsibilities, population control, human relations with the more-than-human, and problematizing gendered (and other) binaries in everyday speech and popular culture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study of ecologically lived experience focuses on walking as a sensory, embodied practice with/in Nature and extends the emergent conceptual and empirical literature on ecopedagogy as/in scapes. The scope is outdoor environmental education in Australia, where walking is practiced as bushwalking in relatively natural environments. This cultural construct of bushwalking is problematic due to the standardized and instrumentalized logics of practice. The embodied ecopedagogical qualities and characteristics are under researched and get lost in the commodified bush. Two purposes are examined. One, to presence the felt and affective dimensions of environmental learning. Second, to contribute to the existing practice theorization of ecopedagogy as/in scapes, both of which advance the field of outdoor and environmental education and their research. In this first person study, two cases are presented and inductively interpreted as a grounded theorization of walkingScapes as ecopedagogy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, there has been a call for the retrieval of indigenous knowledge systems relating to the environment to help provide solutions to current environmental problems. Using phenomenological research design, this study explored Ghanaian college teachers' experiences and perceptions of indigenous environmental beliefs and practices and how these influence their role as environmental educators. Findings from analysis of interviews conducted indicate that some teachers are influenced by indigenous beliefs and practices that promote environmental sustainability and these influence their pedagogical practices. We recommend that training of teachers should explore their personal values, attitudes and behavior toward the environment and environmental education to promote effective teaching practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Energy literacy is a developing field of research and practice that provides a comprehensive way of understanding how energy functions in the universe, on the earth, and in our social and personal lives. This literature review, building on an increasing momentum of research across various disciplines, outlines current energy literacy scholarship focused on a range of educational contexts (i.e., K-12, higher and post-secondary, teacher education and professional programs, and informal education). This review aims to show how energy literacy serves as a multifaceted way of developing knowledge and experiences about energy, which is an integral part of environmental and sustainability education, and that links to educational research and scholarship that supports energy transition in society more broadly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Political polarization in the United States has made many environmental issues strongly partisan, with Democrats largely receptive to environmental messaging and Republicans commonly pitted against it. This phenomenon may have meaningful implications for how environmental education is conducted for people from different sociopolitical contexts. We explored whether certain pedagogical approaches to single-day environmental education field trip programs were linked to better or worse outcomes for early adolescent youth (ages 10–14) from different sociopolitical contexts: majority Republican, majority Democrat, or mixed (roughly even). All observed effect sizes were small with one exception. Play-based pedagogies tended to yield less positive outcomes for students from Republican majority contexts than others, with a medium effect size. The findings suggest that some traditional approaches to play, such as role-playing as animals or pretending to be water droplets, may feel incongruent with the social identities of students from largely Republican communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Program evaluation frameworks that assess organizations as complex adaptive systems can open our eyes to new approaches and understandings. The proposed iterative and adaptive developmental program evaluation framework interrelates developmental evaluation principles with adaptive action approaches. We explain and demonstrate the framework with a mixed methods case study of the Teaching and Researching Environmental Education (TREE) Semester, an undergraduate pre-service environmental and sustainability educator leadership program. To illustrate developmental evaluation rigor, we describe the collection of TREE students' end-of-program quantitative and qualitative self-assessment responses to factors that helped their learning and promoted their learning gains. Analyzing these responses allowed us to continually make adaptive changes to develop a thriving learning community that fosters environmental and sustainability education leadership development. The iterative and adaptive developmental program evaluation framework improved our understanding of TREE's learning community as a complex adaptive system by elucidating five simple, emergent, pattern-forming rules. The rules describe activity selection, enhanced strategies for communication and support, integrating staff and student learning, and program pace. This demonstration of a developmental program evaluation provides a model framework for environmental and sustainability education program evaluators, especially those who work with new, innovative, complex, and re-imagined programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the United States, the two main political parties, Democrats and Republicans, have become increasingly polarized, including with regard to environmental issues. As part of a national study of environmentally focused single-day field trips for early adolescent youth in 2018, we conducted exploratory research to examine how outcomes differed for public school students from different sociopolitical contexts (i.e. predominantly Democratic, Republican, or mixed). Students from wealthier Democratic contexts exhibited less positive outcomes, measured as self-reported changes in environmental literacy, compared to others. The findings suggest that single-day EE field trips in the United States, in their current forms, may be particularly valuable in lower income and more politically conservative contexts, possibly due to the degree of novelty they may provide to these audiences. Meanwhile, EE field trips for students from wealthier Democratic contexts may provide reinforcement rather than meaningful shifts in environmental literacy, suggesting a need for more novel approaches for these audiences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Internationally, academics and social organizations have emphasized the incorporation of the perspective of children and adolescents in the design, evaluation, and execution of environmental education activities. This study sought to identify those contextual factors that influence the implementation of participatory actions in environmental education. An online survey was applied to 78 teachers, non-formal educators, administrators, researchers and journalists involved in environmental education. Through thematic content analysis, 17 determinants of implementation were identified, highlighting the traditional education model, cultural patterns, willing and social support, time, resources, and organizational drivers. It is argued that beyond macro and meso structural conditions, the implementation of these actions falls on a greater measure in the self-efficacy of the people involved in education, as well as in their possibility to manage the implementation conditions and obstacles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When teaching about complex phenomena (e.g. concepts related to the natural environment), good quality questioning could lead to a more profound conceptual change. However, asking questions that help students to construct new knowledge is a challenge for many educators. To help promote better questioning, we analyzed the kind of questions (N = 3168) educators used in "trails" in a digital outdoor learning tool "Discovery Trail" designed for supporting the environmental education field. For analysis we used a model distinguishing cognitively lower-order from higher-order open-ended questions and then categorized the higher order questions by their degree of complexity. Results show that trails created for educational purposes have more cognitively complex questions compared to non-educational trails. Still, only 20% of all the questions used in trails with educational purposes were cognitively complex. Moreover, 60% of all educational trails did not have any cognitively complex open-ended questions, indicating that educators tend not to use the tool for supporting conceptual change. Simple recall questions were mainly used through educational trails. Digital outdoor learning tool creators and users could benefit by considering how to more effectively construct questions that promote conceptual change as this is crucial to support the understanding about complex environmental topics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study highlights the barriers that secondary teachers in Greece face dealing with the implementation of Environmental Education programs throughout a period of more than 30 years in the Greek educational system. Participants were 20 secondary teachers, emanating from various disciplines. Seven were "senior" teachers, having implemented EE projects before its official institutionalization, in 1990, and 13 were "junior", meaning that they implemented EE projects during the Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (2005-2014). In-depth, face-to-face, semi-structured interviews were used to identify teachers' views about the barriers they faced regarding changes or transformations in the realization of EE during the periods under focus. Collected data were subjected to grounded theory analysis and revealed that there were similarities and differences concerning the barriers encountered in the periods of study. Barriers are of structural, financial and economic nature as well as pedagogical and epistemological. These refer to the position of EE into the secondary schools and to the orientation of the school within the general educational system. Results indicate rather a restriction of EE into schools instead of expansion and flourishment following the international progress made, in theoretical and practical level, and the experience that have been gained worldwide after decades of practicing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article focuses on factors influencing adolescents' environmental behavior and approaches to promote adolescents' pro-environmental behavior in a school context. The study also explores the possibilities provided by environmental behavior research to environmental education (EE). The study is based on a qualitative meta-analysis, which suggests that a lack of support from home or school, unpleasant emotions, lack of motivation, norms, lack of authoritative space, lack of concrete actions, and the media may prevent students from acting in an environmentally responsible manner. Moreover, the meta-analysis presents enabling and fostering factors to overcome the barriers to pro-environmental behavior. Lastly, the study proposes an educational model that promotes pro-environmental behavior and could be applied to adolescents' school education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To advance the employability agenda in higher education, we need new ideas for embedding career skills into university curricula and novel tools for articulating the capabilities of learners. Situated in the discipline of environmental science, the aim of this study was to examine employer perceptions of the skills needed for a career in the sector and the utility of micro-credentials in recognising and recruiting graduates. Through in-depth interviews with 22 environmental professionals in three Australian states/territories, we found that employers use multiple lines of evidence when recruiting for new positions and that alternative sources of information are highly valued in their decision-making. Questions about the utility of micro-credentials in this process centred around a case study in environmental science. While there was strong support and enthusiasm for the micro-credential and broad approach, employers needed further context about how micro-credentials can be used, and confidence in the rigour and standards applied. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractAlthough sensuous and embodied engagement is an integral part of child–environment relationalities, the intersections of aesthetics, children and environments remain scarcely addressed. As a response, this study develops a concept of ‘aesthetic flux’ to delve into the sensuous dynamics of matter and bodies in the context of a storying workshop in a forest with first graders in a Finnish primary school. An arts-based, post-qualitative methodology guided our analysis of video recordings from the workshop, resulting in visual-sonic montages that draw attention to the intense movements and sounds of children, soap bubbles, air, a research camera and trees. Thinking through the concept of aesthetic flux, our study experiments with the abundance, indeterminacy and potentiality of sensuous dynamics where bodies (human and otherwise) become together and linger. Thus, our study reconfigures aesthetics as a creative and unpredictable force that materialises in both embodied and conceptual ways in environmental education and research with children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract“Speculative Realism in Environmental Education and the Philosophy of Education” was a joint research symposium for the networks on Environmental and Sustainability Education (NW 30) and Philosophy of Education (NW 13), held at the European Conference of Education Research (ECER), 25 August, 2023, in Glasgow, Scotland. The symposium aimed to open up discussion on renewed interest in realisms in the field of philosophy, and what that might mean for education research and the field of environmental education research in particular. As backdrop, environmental education harbours strong democratic traditions as well as recognitions of relationships to a world that is composed by more than human positions and desires. The symposium then forms part of an ongoing discussion of how these positions are understood and intermingle in a rapidly changing world. The expectation of the event was to broaden discussion about the voices present in environmental education, human and otherwise, and sharpen engagement with established traditions within the field. In brief, three paper presentations and discussion by Graham Harman probed questions of: (a) the lightness and darkness of the objects of education, (b) who visibly desires which object in/as education, and (c) the risks of literalisms and correlationalisms in, for example, what is alluring to, and pursued by, educators. In other words, what we care about in and as environmental and sustainability education, what is perceived/treated as peculiar, and what is treated as normal and perverse to the realities of education in the Anthropocene, all matter to the work of speculative realism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractThe increasing interest in climate change and environmental education has highlighted the importance of strategies to enhance the adoption, implementation, and sustainability of these initiatives. However, the field of environmental education has not extensively explored implementation strategies, despite the existence of frameworks and taxonomies. This study aims to address this gap by identifying strategies suggested by environmental education professionals in Chile. A total of 91 participants responded to an online survey that included open-ended questions. Through content analysis, 24 categories aligned with existing frameworks and 7 categories emerging from the local context were identified. These categories were organized in a descending order, revealing the prominence of scale-up, process, capacity-building, integration, and dissemination strategies. While strategies from established frameworks were found, the study also highlights the emergence of strategies specific to the environmental education field, contextual factors, and the implementation phase of environmental education in Chile. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractThe present study attempts to answer if yoga practice belongs to environmental education and how it can contribute to the development of ecological consciousness in the framework of a holistic pedagogical paradigm. Twenty-three post-graduate students participated in an environmental education activity based on performing yoga postures inspired by nonhuman creatures and entities. The participants reflected on their experiences by recording their ideas and feelings. The results of the survey revealed that the participants experienced embodied environmental learning, highlighted a healing dimension of the educational process, and experienced a connection with creatures and entities of nonhuman nature at different levels. Yoga philosophy and practice as a contemplative learning method deserve to be explored more widely in the field of environmental education, and especially regarding the development of ecological consciousness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractToday’s adolescents have grown up with technology as a main element in their lives and are particularly susceptible to experiencing mental health challenges, so-called nature-deficit disorder, and eco-anxiety around the climate crisis. This unique developmental context may necessitate a reconceptualising of adolescents’ relationships with the environment including their connection to nature. We identified nine adolescents from North Carolina who had high levels of connection to nature and participated in environmental education programs. Using reflexive thematic analysis of data gathered through semi-structured interviews, we developed three themes to reflect how this group of US-based adolescents experience their connection to nature: optimism and limitations related to individual actions; environmentalism as more than a phase; and complex relationships (with nature, environmentalism, and technology). This exploratory study has prompted us to reflect upon how traditional conceptualisations of core concepts in the field of environmental education may require more nuance in the twenty-first century. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractRecent research suggests that many environmental education (EE) programs for youth in the United States focus on meeting educational standards rather than using civic engagement and advocacy techniques to promote environmental literacy. We distributed a survey to members of several EE organizations to identify which civic engagement, advocacy, and behavior change techniques a sample of EE providers feel are appropriate to use for youth at different developmental stages (grades 4–5, grades 6–8, and grades 9–12), as well as the extent to which they use them. Educators rated many techniques as less appropriate and were less likely to use them with younger age groups. We also conducted an appropriateness/use analysis to identify techniques that were deemed highly appropriate but were not used as often. The techniques related to civic engagement and advocacy for diversity, equity, and inclusion appeared underutilized. Implications of these findings for policy and practice are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The human presence has been a cause for significant concern in relation to priority areas for conservation and preservation. Environmental perceptions, characterized and promoted through various activities and educational initiatives, enable environmental awareness. The objective was to verify the socioeconomic profile of shellfish harvesters living in an environmental protection area and their knowledge about the marine/coastal environment, algae biodiversity, and environmental education (EE) initiatives. Semi-structured forms were administered to 25 shellfish harvesters from the comunidade dos Tatus, Ilha Grande-PI. The collected data were tabulated, analyzed using an open categorization methodology, and discussed. The majority of participants are female (72 %), adults (64 %), with incomplete elementary education (56 %), have a working relationship (99 %) with the marine/coastal environment, did not know about algae (52 %) and do not know (96 %) of any EE projects for their locality. The high percentage of low educational attainment among participants directly reflects the lack of instruction and information about measures capable of contributing to environmental protection. Integrated-interactive EE actions, with emphasis on algae and shellfish biodiversity, can be implemented in the community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reflecting on and becoming aware of our food consumption practices is a necessity, given the environmental problems we face as humanity. The literature reports that the processes involved in beef production have a negative impact on the environment. Therefore, talking about this in school is relevant to contribute to the development of sustainable consumption practices. However, specific materials to address this issue are scarce. This led us to produce an educational material, which we subjected to an evaluation process using the Delphi method to identify areas of opportunity to improve its design. We conducted 3 rounds of evaluation in which a panel of 5 experts participated, their opinions were categorized into eight dimensions using content analysis. In round 3 we achieved stability of opinions, and throughout the process we identified 34 areas of opportunity, mainly related to the dimension Design of activities. The expert evaluation experience reaffirmed that this is a mechanism that contributes to the quality of educational materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In a context defined by the internationalisation of educational policies and the supranational nature of school programmes, we highlight the desirability of promoting local strategies for teaching environmental sustainability in order to contribute to the formation of global citizenship in children. Based on the experience of a horticultural curricular project in a school in northern Spain, the aim of this article is to reflect on the need for socio-educational communities to transform the objectives of environmental education into tools with which children can co-responsibly build connections to modify or enrich their everyday concepts of caring for the planet. To do this, semiotic analysis of different official school documents is used as a key methodology. Our findings invite consideration of the fact that pedagogies designed to train children in global citizenship competencies should not be limited to the classroom or to reproducing the proposals of institutional documents. Rather, they should be based on the prior knowledge and experiences of all members of the community, above all, of the children. From this perspective, the promotion of empirical learning situations is essential for the acquisition of meaningful and appropriate environmental contents, in the sense that they allow children, as future global citizens, to recognise the ethical repercussions of their own actions and decisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research explores the vital role of the ecological footprint as a pivotal indicator in ecological assessments and its significance in advancing environmental sustainability. Investigating the intricate dynamics of human activities, resource consumption, waste management, and ecological impact, this study underscores the need for a comprehensive understanding. Key aspects such as renewable energy, economic growth, biomass capacity, and trade policy within the expanding field of energy consumption are thoroughly examined, with data collected from 624 randomly selected pupils. The research methodology involved pre- and post-activity knowledge assessments. The research places a particular focus on the innovative examination of early childhood education as a potent tool for reducing the ecological footprint. Drawing on insights from prior research, the authors argue that instilling ecological awareness and sustainable practices at a young age can yield lasting benefits. This article highlights successful collaboration between higher education institutions and elementary schools, specifically through the "Green Ambassadors in the Community" course at the Holon Institute of Technology (HIT). This study not only emphasizes the crucial role of educational institutions in fostering sustainable practices but also advocates for the urgent integration of environmental education into early childhood curricula. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Temperature increases driven by climate change threaten species survival. The concept that temperatures may exceed the physiological limits of species, leading to death, is straightforward to grasp. More nuanced impacts can come from shifts in morphology and or timing of activity that may lead to slower declines. Such shifts can lead to mismatches between peak activity times of animals and their resources, referred to as phenological shifts (e.g., pollinators and blooming of flowers). The link between temperature increases and the decline of species through phenological shifts can be a challenging concept to grasp. A barrier for educators wishing to demonstrate this concept is the expense of incubators. Here we demonstrated the use of a cost-effective homemade incubator set up to investigate the impact of temperature on the development rate and morphology of the painted lady butterfly Vanessa cardui. Using the set-up, we found that the survival rate, development rate, body size and appearance were influenced by temperature in a predictable manner. This study provides the means and a blueprint by which educators can inform students on the impacts of temperature through an experiential approach. Temperature increases mediated through climate change threaten the survival of species. It is of foremost importance to engage citizens and future generations in understanding the mechanisms through which temperatures impose their effects. For educators, this is not straightforward, as tools for examining the impact of temperature over the lifetime of an animal are prohibitively expensive. At the same time, environmental educators need guidance on the appropriate study systems to use with a balance between the species having an obvious response and ensuring the outcomes are ethical and sustainable. In our study, we created and tested a cost-effective experiment meant to be used for environmental education purposes. More specifically, we tested the sensitivity of the painted lady butterfly Vanessa cardui to temperature variations using a homemade incubator. We describe the design of this experiment and report findings on survival rate, morphological variations, development time of various stages and wingspan of adults across a range of biologically relevant temperatures. The information provided gives educators options for testing a variety of hypotheses with regards to the impacts of temperature using an affordable and flexible set-up. Furthermore, the findings can be used by students to develop an understanding of the ramifications of the butterflies' responses in an ecological context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Many environmental problems are due to the unfavorable environmental intentions and cultural–behavioral weaknesses in the relationship between man and nature. This study aims to adopt an environmental psychological perspective to green intention (GI) and green behavior (GB) of agricultural students; to this end, protection motivation theory (PMT) was used as the core of the theoretical base. Design/methodology/approach: This research method was based on descriptive–correlational and causal–relational analyses. The statistical population included agricultural students of Iranian universities with green university standards (N = 5,582). Out of the total population, 384 students were selected as the study sample. The research instrument was a questionnaire whose validity was confirmed using a panel of experts and the average variance extracted. Also, its reliability was verified by Cronbach's alpha coefficients (0.61 ≤ α ≤ 0.92), principal component analysis and composite reliability index. Findings: The results of structural equation modeling showed that the obtained model is able to explain 36.3% and 5.56% of GB and GI variance changes, respectively. In addition, the results revealed that GI has the greatest effect on GB (β = 0.362). Research limitations/implications: It is worth to mention that according to the results, most of the independent variables, besides the direct effects they have on students' GB, also indirectly affect this variable. This effect was performed through the key variable – GI. In other words, it can be concluded that the GI variable successfully mediates the effects of variables such as response efficacy (RE), self-efficacy (SE) and environmental norms (EN). Therefore, it is suggested that in the behavioral changes interventions in GB of agricultural studies, it should be considered that the presence or absence of GI can affect the actual behavior of individuals. In other words, it is recommended that to accelerate actual behavioral changes, behavioral interventionists should first focus on encouraging people's GI. Practical implications: It can be said that the conclusion of this research can provide a basis for the successful encouragement of students to GB. First, GI, as a key element, can mediate the impacts of variables such as RE, SE and EN on students' GB. Second, PS only directly affects students' GB. Third, RE has no significant impact on GB, but its effect on GI is significant. Fourth, RC affects students' GI directly, without mediation. Fifth, SE and EN constructs affect students both directly and indirectly GB of students through GI. Knowing the location of the effect of these variables on each other and the role they have in explaining GI and GB of agricultural students presented some suggestions that can prepare the ground for further development of GB. Hence, managers, students, agricultural educators and other users can use these results to accelerate GB changes. Originality/value: The conclusion of this research might provide a basis for the successful encouragement of students to GB. In interventions to change GB, it would be essential to pay enough attention to the fact that the presence or absence of GI might affect the actual behavior. It is suggested that behavioral interventionists focus on encouraging people's GI so as to be able to accelerate the actual behavioral changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Within the scope of the current study, the researchers developed activities for middle school students to raise their awareness on the harm of plastics and microplastics, which are detrimental to nature and living things. In addition, through the activities developed, the study aimed to provide students with knowledge of and experience with bioplastics, which have emerged as an alternative to plastic materials and are environmentally friendly. Twelve eighth grade students participated in the current study. The activities developed by the researchers within the framework of the REACT strategy covered a four-week period. The researchers made sure that the activities designed included each step of the REACT strategy (Relating, Experiencing, Applying, Cooperating, Transferring) and the researchers used different tools (mind map, concept map, Vee diagram). The study suggests that activities designed for classroom use should be integrated with tools such as Vee diagram, concept map and mind map in order to increase students' knowledge and awareness about global environmental problems as well as support students' ability to produce solutions to such problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gamified-integrated STEM is a technique that combines integrated STEM stages with gamification elements and can engage individuals in climate change communication. This paper presents a gamified-integrated STEM activity focused on global climate change. The activity includes gamified-integrated STEM instructional stages implemented in 6 lesson hours. The game elements used in the activity were time, rewards, points, badges, leaderboards, materials, stories, goals, and rules. Badges included: Decoders, Explorer, Meteorologist, Climatologist, Benevolent Koala, Scientist, and Engineer. The activity was designed for middle school students and aligned with the Next Generation Science Standards. Educators are encouraged to incorporate this pedagogical activity within their instructions to elucidate fundamental concepts related to the consequences of climate change. In doing so, teachers can promote student engagement, improve awareness, and refine problem-solving competencies pertinent to climate-centric challenges. The activity has been evaluated and recommendations for enhancement have been made to ensure optimal efficacy in cultivating gamification and a nuanced understanding of climate-related topics among learners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Capacity strengthening activities – be that in the form of courses, workshops, seminars – have become embedded in research projects as a requirement for funding and as a means for researchers to demonstrate positive societal impacts. We apply qualitative research techniques including interviews, questionnaires and observations to scrutinise and document an international capacity strengthening course aimed at informing and supporting environmental management practice and policy in the Philippines. We appraise power gradients and dynamics between course instructors and participants from different cultures and geographical locations in the design and delivery of this course. We identify five key factors that course instructors should consider as part of their pedagogy: (i) active learning, (ii) knowledge scaffolding and consolidation, and (iii) situated learning, as well as being attuned to (iv) the language dynamics and (v) expertise and networking within the room when teaching the course. Practical efforts to address these issues require that instructors work with participants to co-produce knowledge, rather than assuming epistemic authority and imposing knowledge. This entails reflexive and adaptable practices before, during and after the course. It is recommended that such practices should be central to projects that include capacity strengthening activities, whether delivered locally or internationally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Green innovation is pivotal to events. However, little is known about how exhibitors manage the challenge of adopting green innovation in the fast-paced and short-oriented events. Drawing upon institutional theory and organisational learning perspective, this study investigates how institutional pressures are linked to exhibitors' willingness to adopt (WTA) eco-exhibiting via two temporal variables: future orientation (mediator) and past experience (moderator). PLS-SEM is applied to analyse a survey from 685 event exhibitors. Results show that coercive and normative pressures are significantly associated with exhibitors' future orientation, which then predicts WTA. Besides, past experience moderates the relationship between institutional pressures and WTA. Specifically, experienced exhibitors learn by doing and their WTA is more associated with normative pressure, while novice exhibitors learn vicariously and their WTA links stronger to mimetic pressures. This paper integrates macro-level institutional pressures and organisational-level learning heterogeneity, offering a multi-level explanation of green innovation adoption. This research also contributes to the green events and sustainable tourism literature with novel insights from the time perspective, verifying events as pro-environmental learning spaces for exhibitors. We highlight time perspective and environmental education for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to contribute to the field of knowledge surrounding Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) curricula with a view to filling a gap in ESD literature by identifying features that may help ESD course designers. The study asks the questions: what is taught in ESD courses in higher education? and what content do students say they like? Working within the constructivist tradition, this study involved two groups of participants: 13 ESD design/delivery participants from six universities based in five countries (Group One) and 737 ESD students (Group Two) from three of those universities. The overarching methodology of comparative analysis was used to address the research questions. Data collection included course learning materials, participant questionnaires, one-on-one interviews, focus groups, and feedback on teaching. Group One data was analysed using comparative/descriptive analysis and reflexive thematic analysis was used for Group Two data. The methods were complementary to de/reconstruct data for comparability of features. NVivo software was employed to acquire results which are presented visually using tables and concept maps. The study identifies common content taught in stand-alone ESD courses and makes recommendations for course modelling based on Group One data contributions and what content Group Two say they like. The recommendations are presented as seven categories of consolidated curricular themes including science and sustainability based, contextually relevant, and futures hope. Consideration is given to student internal/external motivational domains and possible connection to curricular themes. Recommendations are practical and flexible, not prescriptive. The original contribution to knowledge lies in suggestions for ESD course content. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the increasing focus on incorporating the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) into education through curriculum mainstreaming, related research remains lacking. This study explored the representation of SDGs in Taiwan's national curriculum in terms of selection and organization. Through a content analysis of the social studies and natural sciences curriculum guidelines, the findings revealed that SDG-related content comprises a minor part of the guidelines and is not well organized, possibly due to limitations on discipline characteristics and curriculum types. A subtle but complex implicit curriculum reflects neoliberalism, which addresses SDG-related issues through market mechanisms and shifts the focus from power, politics, and citizenship to consumers' choices and lifestyles. The results provide a reference for policymakers and educators in re-examining underrepresented SDGs and dimensions and organizing them coherently. They also bridge the gap between the international framework and national curricula, laying the foundation for international comparisons, discussions, and debates on ESD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How to support young people's agency is a key question of sustainability education. Action competence for sustainability is suggested covering the essential components of youth's readiness to act both individually and collectively, but empirical tests of these associations are scarce. Therefore, this study explores the relationship between action competence and sustainability action among young people. We conducted a national survey of 15 to 29-year-old youths (N = 940) in Finland. Results of structural equation modeling show that self-perceived action competence for sustainability predicts private sphere behavior, but not sustainability action. Further analysis on the components of action competence reveals that high perceived knowledge and low outcome expectations predict low engagement in sustainability action. Knowledge and outcome expectations also affect behavior indirectly via willingness to act. We argue that actions and behaviors have different antecedents, and that the ability to recognize outcome uncertainty affects how young people's sustainability agency is manifested. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Science education is increasingly integrating a focus on socio-scientific issues. Policy makers and scholars also suggest education for sustainable development (ESD) is important for tackling current and future sustainability issues. ESD may foster students' action competence in sustainable development (ACiSD; knowledgeability, willingness, capacity expectations and outcome expectancy) regarding contributing to sustainability action. However, reports on effectiveness research relating to ACiSD as a learning outcome of action-oriented ESD are scarce. The current study explores (1) how early adolescents perceive their teachers' ESD implementation and (2) whether perceived ESD (holism, pluralism, and action-orientedness) affects students' self-reported ACiSD. We administered two questionnaires to 12-16 year-old secondary school students, tapping into (1) their self-reported ACiSD and (2) their perceptions of teachers' ESD implementation efforts. Students' ESD perceptions were measured through descriptive statistics. Next, multilevel linear models were estimated to explore whether ESD and its components affect students' ACiSD. Our results suggest students did not distinctly perceive ESD implementation (esp. a participative approach). Holism and action-orientedness were neither perceived to be completely present nor completely missing. However, action-orientedness significantly affected students' reported ACiSD. While confirming the challenge an ESD implementation poses, our results may support efforts made. Implications for education and teacher development are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study engages with how sustainability stories can assign meaning to sustainability matter in different ways. The study contributes to discussions on how to combine facts, norms, and the democratic action competence in pluralistic approaches in Environmental and Sustainability Education. A special focus is put on how co-created sustainability stories can be used to provide, explore, and expand shared experiences of sustainability. The analysis engages with how content is defined and made relevant through stories, how they represent matter as pre-defined problems and solutions or as an invitation to exploration and reinterpretation, and how competences for sustainable development are made visible through the characters. The method used is a holistic narrative content analysis of 21 sustainability stories, co-created by pre-school teachers and their children. Three selected stories exemplify the results and show how some stories manage to move back and forth between on the one hand assembling sustainability matter as concrete problems to be solved, and on the other hand as open-ended issues promoting critical reflection. The main conclusion is that these, promising but yet uncommon, stories best represent pluralistic perspectives, creativity, and democratic action competence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Some human activities have caused a serious environmental crisis, producing irreversible damage and loss of resources and diversity, which is why a strong sustainability approach is required to keep human activities within planetary boundaries. However, a strong sustainability concept can be difficult for teachers to convey and for students to grasp, because it has few practical examples and applying it seems utopian. This article presents a teaching strategy of active learning for teaching strong sustainability at the university level and evaluates its usefulness for empowering students for another type of relationship with the environment. The teaching strategy is supported by a pedagogy that promotes critical thinking and recognizes learning as a way of questioning and empowering oneself. The teaching strategy was successfully applied in three university subjects that promote environmental education. Based on an online questionnaire to enrolled students (N = 87; 46F, 41M), the perspective of the teacher and the critical-thinking of authors, it was demonstrated that the teaching strategy allowed the strong sustainability concept to be appropriated by students of different disciplines, and demonstrated the feasibility of its practical application. Finally, the teaching strategy can be useful for teaching several disciplines, for curricular integration, and for promoting societal changes to achieve sustainability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Embedding environmental concepts in the minds of young students within a traditional classroom setting poses challenges due to the abstract nature of these concepts and the temporal dilemma associated with environmental change, as students are unable to observe the immediate consequences of their actions directly. To address this, innovative instructional methods incorporating technology were explored. Based on socio-constructivism, a quasi-experimental study employed a web tool to teach environmental concepts. The experimental group utilized the 7E constructivist learning model, while the control group followed traditional instruction. The results of the data analysis indicated a statistically significant disparity in students' motivation levels to learn about environmental challenges, with active learning strategies receiving the highest scores due to engaging students in online discussions and collaborative tasks. The active and constructive learning techniques encouraged collaboration and cooperation and also embraced the students' autonomy. Furthermore, students felt motivated to act and solve community issues, fostering civic responsibility for long-term growth and a sustainable future. The learning performance in the posttest significantly increased for the experimental group. These findings suggest the importance of integrating technology and active learning approaches to enhance environmental education among young students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]