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Do more natural settings improve students' learning? We collected surveys immediately following 283 U.S.-based environmental education (EE) field trip programs for youth and used land cover data to examine the relationship between levels of naturalness, defined as the percentage of natural land cover of the EE field trip site, and student learning outcomes. We also examined whether differences in levels of naturalness between students' day-to-day environment and the field trip setting were related to student learning outcomes. When controlling for grade and race, both levels of naturalness and novel levels of naturalness accounted for approximately 4% of the variance in student outcomes suggesting that other field trip characteristics are more influential.

Which approaches are associated with better student learning outcomes in environmental education (EE)? We observed a sample of 299 day-long EE field trip programs occurring across the U.S.A. for youth in grades 5-8 (ages 9 to 14). We tracked the extent of use and quality of implementation of 66 programmatic, educator, and setting characteristics and measured student outcomes immediately after the programs using a retrospective survey. A series of complementary tests identified 11 characteristics that were most powerfully and consistently associated with learning outcomes, accounting for 18% of variance in learning outcomes. These included group size, naturalness, novelty, place-based pedagogy, verbal engagement, quality questions, transitions, and staging, as well as the responsiveness, comfort and clarity, and emotional support provided by the educator. Some of the most commonly promoted practices in the EE field were rarely observed. Implications are discussed for both practice and research.

COVID-19 and the Black Lives Matter movement have changed the social and political landscape in which environmental educators work. To meet these challenges and to assess current training needs, we invited members of three national U.S. organizations to rate 28 different professional competencies in terms of importance and preparedness to perform. Our results showed that educators have the greatest need for training in diversity, equity, and inclusion; and communicating about complex and controversial issues. Additionally, environmental educators prefer training that is delivered through in-person exercises, online courses, and participation in learning communities. This information can help prioritize future professional development.

Many environmental educators shifted to online programs in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. We conducted a systematic literature review to identify program characteristics from digital environmental education experiences that are associated with one or more elements of environmental literacy. After reviewing 153 candidate articles, 32 articles that evaluated 47 diverse programs met our selection criteria. For each of these programs, we systematically coded the articles to identify guiding theories, program types, program characteristics, and outcomes assessed. We also identified the authors' explanations and empirical evidence for program characteristics that led to positive outcomes. In this paper, we synthesize the results and present 12 guiding principles that show promise in enhancing outcomes related to environmental literacy in online programs for K-12 students. These principles, which are defined and illustrated with examples from the literature, include: social-ecological connections, relevance, social interactions, role models, autonomy, active involvement, challenge, use of multiple modalities, positive framing, preparation, feedback and reflection.

Evaluation has not been used to its fullest potential in environmental education (EE). Pressures from external stakeholders can cause organizations to focus on reporting requirements at the expense of conducting evaluations that support programmatic improvement. Understanding practitioners' satisfaction with their evaluation processes and the drivers of this satisfaction may reveal strategies for improving evaluation processes in the field of EE. We administered an online survey to EE practitioners in the United States via email and social media. Our results indicate low satisfaction with evaluation processes overall, but greater satisfaction from organizations engaged in systematic "formal" evaluation, particularly processes focused on adaptive management and programmatic improvement, when compared to evaluations focused on satisfying external accountabilities or using "informal" evaluation processes based on nonsystematic observation and reflection. Our results also highlight current gaps in using evaluation for adaptive management and for furthering diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts in the field.

Despite growing calls for greater inclusivity and cultural responsiveness, little is known about how environmental education (EE) may differentially affect diverse audiences. As part of a national study of 334 environmentally focused day field trips for adolescent youth in the United States in 2018, we examined how outcomes differed for students of different grade levels, racial backgrounds, and socioeconomic status. Participants who were younger, Hispanic, and from lower socioeconomic classes exhibited more positive outcomes than older, non-Hispanic, and wealthier participants. Differences in Hispanic populations are likely at least partially attributable to known survey response biases. We also found that programs with non-White instructors tended to yield higher levels of satisfaction in groups where the student majority was not White. We discuss potential explanations for these trends and call for further research on culturally responsive and age-appropriate approaches to EE.

Myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) with ring sideroblasts are hematopoietic stem cell disorders with erythroid dysplasia and mutations in the SF3B1 splicing factor gene. Patients with MDS with SF3B1 mutations often accumulate excessive tissue iron, even in the absence of transfusions, but the mechanisms that are responsible for their parenchymal iron overload are unknown. Body iron content, tissue distribution, and the supply of iron for erythropoiesis are controlled by the hormone hepcidin, which is regulated by erythroblasts through secretion of the erythroid hormone erythroferrone (ERFE). Here, we identified an alternative ERFE transcript in patients with MDS with the SF3B1 mutation. Induction of this ERFE transcript in primary SF3B1-mutated bone marrow erythroblasts generated a variant protein that maintained the capacity to suppress hepcidin transcription. Plasma concentrations of ERFE were higher in patients with MDS with an SF3B1 gene mutation than in patients with SF3B1 wild-type MDS. Thus, hepcidin suppression by a variant ERFE is likely responsible for the increased iron loading in patients with SF3B1-mutated MDS, suggesting that ERFE could be targeted to prevent iron-mediated toxicity. The expression of the variant ERFE transcript that was restricted to SF3B1-mutated erythroblasts decreased in lenalidomide-responsive anemic patients, identifying variant ERFE as a specific biomarker of clonal erythropoiesis.

Positive motivation to perform work tasks has been associated with better performance and outcomes in both the organizational and informal education literature. In environmental education (EE), this means that more motivated instructors are likely to provide better programs for their participants. In this exploratory study across 15 states in the USA, grounded in interviews with EE instructors and their supervisors, we examine the most salient factors motivating EE instructors to perform their work and how the practices of their organizations influenced those factors. Organizational practices related to enhancing EE instructors' feelings of autonomy, competence, relatedness, and meaningfulness of their work each contributed to positive motivations. A strong sense of shared values and interests underpinned each of these factors. We discuss recommendations for maintaining and enhancing instructor motivations, including hiring and onboarding strategies, participatory evaluation processes, and professional development opportunities. We also consider subtle differences in motivations at different career stages.

Climate adaptation planning is increasingly approached locally through a social justice lens to ensure the needs of the most vulnerable are addressed. This study aims to identify trends in how recognitional, distributional, and procedural justice are considered within climate adaptation plans over time and across socio-demographic contexts. We coded these forms of justice in 101 climate adaptation plans and related documents published in the United States between 2010 and 2021 and conducted a series of regressions to understand patterns over time and across contexts. Newer plans more commonly addressed each type of justice, with a marked shift in plans published after 2017. More recent plans addressed new elements of recognitional justice (e.g. historical marginalisation, racial justice), a broader scope of distributional justice approaches (e.g. more strategies related to greenspaces, food, and green jobs), and more procedural justice-related initiatives to engage marginalised residents in adaptation. Plans from more Republican-leaning communities considered recognitional and distributional justice to a lesser degree than those from more Democratic-leaning areas. Plans by larger communities were more likely to address procedural justice and include strategies for monitoring the impacts to marginalised people. Plans from communities with a larger percentage of residents living in poverty addressed distributional justice more often and acknowledged more injustices faced by marginalised groups more often. We observed no trends in the treatment of procedural justice related to racial demographics or income. We discuss potential reasons for these trends and their implications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: In a retrospective study of 86 patients, we identified independent predictors of recurrence-free survival (RFS) and overall survival (OS) after the resection of liver metastases of uveal melanoma using a multivariable Cox model. A disease-free interval of ≤24 months and a chromosome 8q surgain were associated with worse survival. With these two parameters, we built a novel clinico-genetic score that defined three risk groups with distinct prognoses. This novel score identified patients with a high risk of relapse after surgery. These patients may benefit from neoadjuvant or adjuvant systemic therapy following complete surgical resection with the hope of improving survival outcomes. Surgical treatment of liver metastases of uveal melanoma (LMUM) could be proposed for selected patients. This retrospective study examined the prognostic significance of the genetic profiles of liver metastases after LMUM resection. A total of 86 patients treated with resection for LMUM, who underwent genetic analysis of liver metastasis, were included. A multivariable Cox model identified the independent predictors of recurrence-free survival (RFS) and overall survival (OS). The disease-free interval (DFI) and a chromosome 8q surgain (>3 copies) were independent predictors and categorized patients into three risk groups with distinct postoperative prognoses. For the low-, intermediate-, and high-risk scores of recurrence, the median RFS values were 15 months (95% CI: 10–22), 6 months (95% CI: 4–11), and 4 months (95% CI: 2–7), and the median OS values were 86 months (95% CI: 55-NR), 25 months (95% CI: 17–48), and 19 months (95% CI: 12–22), respectively. The predictive accuracy of this scoring system was demonstrated by a mean area under the curve (AUC(t)) of 0.77 (95% CI: 0.65–0.90) for RFS and 0.81 (95% CI: 0.70–0.92) for OS. This novel score, based on a DFI of ≤24 months combined with a chromosome 8q surgain, identifies patients at a high risk of early recurrence and could help clinicians to propose perioperative treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: Data on the effect of transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) on peripheral microcirculation are limited. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study is to evaluate peripheral microvascular tissue saturation (StO2) before and after TAVI in relation to central and peripheral hemodynamics, cardiac and renal function. METHODS: In this single-center prospective study, patients with severe aortic stenosis (sAS) scheduled for TAVI or cardiac catheterization (control) were assessed before and up to five days after the procedure. Cardiac function including cardiac output (CO) was assessed by echocardiography. Brachial (bBP) and central blood pressure (cBP), ankle brachial index (ABI), and parameters of arterial stiffness, including augmentation pressure (AP) and augmentation index adjusted for heart rate (AIx@HR75) were measured to assess hemodynamic changes. StO2 was measured in all extremities using a near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) camera. Renal function was measured by creatinine levels. RESULTS: 26 patients underwent TAVI and 11 patients served as control. Cardiac output was significantly increased, whereas hemodynamic parameters and peripheral StO2 were significantly decreased after TAVI. At follow-up, StO2 returned to baseline values. Changes in StO2 were negatively related to creatinine levels. CONCLUSION: Transcatheter aortic valve implantation causes a temporary decrease in microvascular tissue saturation that is associated with renal function. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Environmental education (EE) aims to create environmentally literate individuals that have the knowledge, skills, and dispositions to solve important environmental issues. However, little research examines whether and which educators' emotional support behaviors, such as responsiveness and positive communications, enhance outcomes in an EE program. Utilizing student surveys, programmatic observations, and qualitative notes collected from 334 EE field trip programs for fifth through eighth grade students (ages 9-12) provided by 90 different organizations across the U.S., this study examined linkages between educators' emotional support behaviors and positive learning outcomes. Past research in formal educational settings suggests that emotional support behaviors yield positive outcomes for students. This research also found that positive emotional support behaviors positively influenced student outcomes and explained 10% of the variance. Based on the resulting model, we suggest that positive emotional support behaviors should be considered in future environmental educator training programs.

Studies of individual environmental education (EE) field trip programs have found that pre-visit preparation and post-visit follow-up activities can enhance desired student outcomes. We examined these relationships across a broad sample of single-day EE field trip programs for adolescent youth (grades 5-8) across the United States. We measured student outcomes, reflecting environmental literacy, 21st century skills, positive youth development, and student learning, through end-of-visit retrospective student surveys and follow-up surveys with visiting teachers two weeks after the field trip. Pre-visit logistical preparation as well as both pre-visit preparation and post-visit follow-up related to the subject matter were each associated with more positive student outcomes. The study provides further evidence across a large sample of programs that pre-visit preparation and post-visit follow-up can have meaningful impacts on student outcomes for EE field trips. We discuss the implications of the findings and provide examples and guidance for future programming efforts.

Environmental education (EE) typically occurs in natural settings, which research suggests may enhance learning outcomes. Although field trips are commonly used to teach EE, few studies have isolated the influence of different setting characteristics for enhancing participant outcomes during an EE field trip. According to the literature, certain attributes of the natural setting, including novelty, beauty, and naturalness, as well as how the setting is used such as through place-based education, immersion, and time spent inside vs. outside, are thought to positively impact people's experiences with nature. In this study, we collected data from 334 EE field trip programs for 5-8th grade students to investigate the influence of these natural setting characteristics on positive learning outcomes. Results suggest that the naturalness and novelty of the setting, the use of place-based education, and spending more time outside vs. inside all positively correlated with more positive student outcomes. The implications of the results for environmental educators are discussed.

In this study, we explore the influence of student engagement on middle school students' environmental literacy outcomes at a residential environmental education (EE) program. We observed 80 lessons and 17 educators, observing six measures related to engagement. We also administered immediate post-experience surveys measuring students' self-reported levels of engagement and environmental literacy outcomes. Only self-reported student engagement was significantly associated with more positive outcomes. As such, observations of engaged or enthusiastic EE participants may not necessarily be indicative of achieving desired learning outcomes. The study reveals the importance of systematic evaluation over simplistic observations for gauging participant learning.