Description:
Acquiring appropriate knowledge about the natural environment through education
is one of the most vital components in our global efforts for a sustainable future;
however, we—whether we are educators, researchers, policy makers, or community
activists—often face challenges, contradictions, and adversaries at local levels when
planning and practicing such education.1
There is a pressing need to conduct research on the content of, and pedagogical
approaches to, education for sustainability, since questions about how—and, indeed,
if—the human race can sustain the globe and its societies have become topics of
critical concern and debate in nearly all regions of the world in recent years.2
To meet
the challenge, the United Nations General Assembly has designated the years from
2005 to 2014 as the Decade of Education for Sustainable Development, suggesting
that the process of education and educational institutions (e.g., schools) are crucial
for ensuring the world’s sustainable future. As Kazuhiko Takemoto (2011), program
director and senior fellow at the United Nations University,3
puts it:
In order to ensure a sustainable future, people of all ages and walks of life need
to start thinking and acting more responsibly towards our environment. But it is
impossible to ask this of anyone without first making sure that people understand
a right choice from a wrong choice and that they have the information and skills
needed to follow through on whatever choice they make. (para. 4)
For Takemoto, education is “the answer,” as it transforms people’s views and
behaviors and provides the knowledge and skills they need for building a sustainable
future. He further contends that, in order to succeed in education for sustainability, we
need to understand local needs, values, and insights and take bottom-up, grassroots
approaches, since “we will never be able to change people’s behaviors by simply
telling them what to do” (Takemoto, 2011, para. 8). In other words, it is vital to
listen to local voices that often go unheard in discussions of educational policy and
implementation and comprehend layers of perspectives on teaching and learning
about the natural environment.