2012 NAAEE Conference
Detailed Strand Descriptions
Conservation Education
Food and Agriculture
Green Schools
Marine, Bay, and Freshwater Education
Networking and Leadership Development
Socioecological Education
Achieving conservation goals through innovative education, communication, social marketing, and civic tourism strategies
Strand Description
Conservation education connects people to the land by giving them the tools to take informed actions related to sustaining natural and cultural resources. Through formal and nonformal educational experiences and activities targeted to varying age groups and populations, conservation education helps people understand how natural resources and ecosystems affect each other and how we can use resources wisely. This strand addresses these concepts and explores how organizations, agencies, businesses, and communities can work together to achieve conservation goals through innovative education strategies, communication, and social marketing.
Strand Focus
- Innovative practices in the field of conservation education, including environmental communication, social marketing, civic tourism, and media education
- Educational programs that assist in reaching conservation goals
- Current research and case studies on behavioral change as related to conservation education
- Community-based approaches to conservation and education strategies
- Strategies for building capacity for education within the broader practice of conservation
- Building bridges between conservation educators and conservation practitioners
Sample Questions to Be Explored
- How can citizen science and other community-involved conservation initiatives assist in reaching conservation goals?
- How does conservation education address the need to change community practices that affect the success of conservation goals and objectives?
- What unique approaches exist to understand connections between community development, market issues, media influences and the conservation of natural resources?
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What research or models exist to:
- Illustrate the linkages between environmental education and community involvement in an agency, business, or organization’s conservation goals?
- Demonstrate the effectiveness of conservation education in community development initiatives?
- Support the need for public commitment to natural resource conservation, wildlife habitat preservation, and developing a sense of place within a community?
- How can the EE community assist in bridging the gap between conservation practitioners and the communities where their work is based?
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What successful models exist for:
- Addressing community education, natural history education, and conservation education? How do these models demonstrate collaboration among the conservation and EE fields, governments, business, funding sources, and non-profits to achieve broad community participation?
- Social marketing and communication techniques that engage communities in natural resource and Smart Growth planning? How do community growth and land use issues impact the visual character and livability of a community? How do tourist organizations involve communities in planning for civic tourism that creates sustainable communities?
- Roles that nature centers and other non-formal education organizations play in helping children, classroom teachers and adults develop environmental literacy?
- How can the EE community work with business and industry to motivate and prepare a future workforce of conservation professionals?
- How can natural resource agencies provide balanced information on the consequences of environmental actions?
- How can organizations promote conservation education by using children’s needs to develop a personal relationship with the natural world?
Strand Leader
Sandy Perchetti, Sandy_Perchetti@fws.gov
Educating for informed participation in a farm-to-table food system, connecting food, agriculture, personal health, and technological practices and innovations with the environment
Strand Description
Children and adults benefit from knowing how the food choices they make impact both their own health and the health of the environment. This requires thinking critically about food choices and policy decisions. Active research and many educational programs help us understand how to teach people to make such fundamental connections—connections to where our food comes from and how it’s grown; connections to food production, processing, and transporting practices as they relate to our ecological footprint; and connections to eating habits that impact our short- and long-term health. The Food and Agriculture strand calls on educators to think about what children and adults need in order to be informed participants in the farm-to-table food system, participants who understand the interrelationships between food, agriculture, personal health, technological practices and innovations, and the environment, and apply that knowledge in their daily practices.
Strand Focus
- Effects of mainstream agricultural practices on the natural environment and our food system
- Farmers markets, which are on the increase as more fresh, local, whole foods are being served in restaurants, homes, hospitals, and schools
- Accurate information about the production of renewable fuels, including production and consumption of energy crops
- Accurate information about methods of transitioning to more environmentally friendly practices throughout the entire food system
- Thought-provoking ideas, engaging conversation, and solid information for practitioners, researchers, policy makers, community leaders, and K-12 teachers and administrators to increase understanding of how education about food and agriculture can be integrated into educational programs to improve environmental literacy
- Connecting programs to improve school food (including local sourcing and school gardens) with programs or curricula that teach students about food, agriculture, and environmental issues in formal or nonformal settings
- Providing a venue for those specifically involved in issues related to food and agriculture to better communicate with each other about their work
Sample Questions to Be Explored
- How are environmental education and agriculture education mutually supportive?
- How do school gardens support environmental education efforts?
- What are the benefits of having multiple methods of food production (conventional, organic, sustainable, etc.)? Why is it important to understand this process holistically?
- How can we connect California’s large urban population to agriculture in a meaningful way?
- How can we connect farmers to schools in their local communities?
- How can we help administrators understand agriculture literacy and how it can support academic goals and meet state standards?
- What curriculum and/or resources exist to help support agriculture literacy? What are some successful techniques for developing agriculture education?
- How can environmental educators convey the water needs of agriculture and feasible water conservation practices?
- How can environmental educators convey the pros and cons of biotechnology so as to lead to informed decision-making?
Strand Leader
Richard Jurin, Richard.Jurin@unco.edu
Exemplary practices that enhance student achievement, conserve natural resources, and reduce the operating costs and environmental footprints of schools
Strand Description
There is growing consensus that a “green school” provides a healthy environment that enhances student achievement, conserves natural resources, and reduces operating costs, while also reducing the school’s environmental footprint. Practices in high achieving green schools include: engaging curriculum that incorporates environmental literacy and education for sustainability; learning experiences that support the development of cultural and earth stewardship; a school culture that promotes social, emotional, and physical health through character development, fitness, and healthy food choices; management practices that incorporate sustainable design and facilities management; and strong community partnerships.
Strand Focus
- Exemplary practices that enhance student achievement, conserve natural resources, and reduce operating costs and environmental footprint of schools and school systems
Sample Questions to Be Explored
- What are the success stories in the green schools movement, and what more should be done to scale up such efforts so that all children can attend a green school?
- What forces have constrained the ability of K-12 education to make the transition to green and healthy schools?
- How can nonformal education settings, such as museums, zoos, and public libraries become better partners with schools in their efforts to become green AND make their Annual Yearly Progress targets?
- How can we establish EE research capacity in this new and emerging movement?
Strand Leader
Jennifer Seydel, jseydel@elschools.org
Marine, Bay, and Freshwater Education
Using the ocean and other aquatic environments as an integrating context for teaching multiple concepts and across disciplines
Strand Description
The ocean and other aquatic environments provide an integrating context for teaching multiple concepts from a broad range of disciplines (arts and humanities, language arts, science, technology, engineering, and mathematics). Presentations in this strand will demonstrate the importance of fresh- and salt-water to our daily lives and why they deserve protection, and help us move our audiences from awareness to deeper understanding and caring.
Note: Presentation proposals with an oceanic or estuarine focus should identify which Essential Principles and Fundamental Concepts of Ocean Literacy (http://oceanservice.noaa.gov/education/literacy/ocean_literacy.pdf) and/or Great Lakes Literacy (http://greatlakesliteracy.net/principles/1/) will be addressed. Sessions that focus on the role of the ocean in climate or the impacts of climate change on the ocean and freshwater should identify the relevant concepts and principles described in the Climate Literacy Guide (http://www.climatescience.gov/Library/Literacy/).
Strand Focus
- How to use the ocean and other aquatic environments as an integrating context for teaching multiple concepts and/or teaching across multiple disciplines
- Current research and program evaluations documenting successful approaches for moving audiences from awareness to a deeper understanding of those concepts and caring for these environments and our impact on them, especially during this time of rapid global change
Sample Questions to Be Explored
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What is the current state of knowledge about:
- Existing gaps in improving public literacy about our ocean, coasts, estuaries, rivers, and lakes?
- Climate change impacts on marine, bay, and freshwater systems?
- Evidence of the effects of environmental education programs with respect to improving understanding of, and finding solutions to concerns about, the ocean and related environments?
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How are some innovative programs:
- Focusing climate change education on marine, bay, and freshwater systems?
- Fostering personal involvement in the protection of marine, bay, and freshwater systems?
- Using structured versus unstructured time in outdoor experiential opportunities that encourage learners to connect to marine, bay, and freshwater systems?
- Using digital technologies to engage younger audiences in learning about marine, bay, and freshwater systems?
- Relating marine, bay, and freshwater topics to casual visitors at nonformal education sites?
- Integrating the best-available science into their products and services?
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How can environmental educators:
- Build their competency levels in teaching about marine, bay, and freshwater systems?
- Encourage underrepresented audiences to learn about marine, bay, and freshwater systems?
- Use archived and real-time data to teach about marine, bay, and freshwater systems?
- Form effective partnerships to deliver marine, bay, and freshwater education?
Strand Leaders
Sarah Schoedinger, sarah.schoedinger@noaa.gov
Atziri Ibañez, Atziri.Ibanez@noaa.gov
Networking and Leadership Development
Strategic approaches to building our capacity to promote, support, and advance high quality environmental education programs on local, state/provincial, and national levels
Strand Description
Many national, state/provincial/territorial, and local organizations work together to provide the infrastructure for environmental education. Each individual organization is crucial for promoting, supporting, and advancing high quality environmental education programs. Yet these organizations are also challenged with sustaining themselves through fundraising, board/staff development, and membership development. This strand is for those interested in examining strategic approaches, both individually and as larger networks, to build the capacity of organizations, provide effective leadership both within and outside the environmental education community, and promote advocacy for environmental education at local, state/provincial/territorial, and national levels.
Strand Focus
- Sharing and learning from organizations that have implemented tools from the environmental education capacity-building toolbox: leadership clinics, environmental education summits, the “wheel” of comprehensive environmental education programs, and organizational assessment tools
- Exploring organizational best practices that include capacity-building tools such as strategic plans, business plans, fundraising and communication plans, computer software, web-based tools, and other approaches
- Learning how NAAEE’s quality assurance initiatives such as the National Project for Excellence, Environmental Educator Certification, and other programs can be implemented at the state/provincial/territorial and organizational levels
- Discussing approaches for both traditional and non-traditional advocacy for environmental education, including collaborations and coalitions with non-environmental education organizations
- Addressing leadership questions such as nurturing new leaders, retaining current leaders, and increasing leadership skills
- Exploring strategies for developing strong and sustainable partnerships to build the capacity of environmental education in states/provinces/territories/regions
Sample Questions to Be Explored
- How can we create wider public support for and increase general participation in environmental education?
- How can we influence policy decisions and legislation that addresses environmental education?
- How do we build and nurture partnerships and networks to increase our capacity, reduce duplication of effort, or add new strengths?
- How can we measure our effectiveness in meeting our mission?
- How can organizations become strong, effective, sustainable, and transparent to ensure they are able to achieve their mission?
- How does research and evaluation support leadership and organizational development?
- What leadership skills are required as organizations grow and change?
- How do we attract, identify, and cultivate future leaders for environmental education?
- How can organizations/programs use the NAAEE Guidelines for Excellence and other quality assurance initiatives in program development, implementation, and evaluation?
- What are best practices for building strong, effective advisory boards?
- What are successful techniques for developing strong environmental education organizations through strategic planning, fundraising, volunteer recruitment and management, and public relations?
Strand Leader
Andree’ Walker Bravo, director@usee.org
Exploring the vital connections between societal, cultural, and environmental concerns; integrating education and activism
Strand Description
This strand reflects the vital connection between humans and our ecosystems, our society and culture, and the environment. It is time to bring forward narratives of empowerment, community interdependence, authentic engagement, and rediscovery and (re)valuing indigenous knowing. These socioecological ideas will be explored within the broadest contexts of learning and activism. Sessions that address the urban and rural interface in education, sustainable living practices, and political activities are welcome. Also invited are programs that tackle key social and community issues such as obesity, limited employment opportunities, the local food movement, poverty, exposure to toxins, and many more. The strand will also examine approaches that leverage non-traditional partnerships, teaching practices such as critical pedagogy and multicultural education, and research approaches such as critical ethnography and action research.
Strand Focus
- Youth development, community art, new media, cooperatives, community land trusts, intergenerational learning, local food, microenterprise, and/or youth culture programming
- Environmental education approaches that focus on culture, identity, class, gender, and/or race, and that integrate critical pedagogy and social justice concerns
- Ways that environmental education can effectively serve populations that are culturally diverse
- Practices and programs not usually defined as environmental education that achieve significant environmental goals
- Current research on socioecological pedagogies
- The interface between rural, urban, and suburban environmental education audiences and relationship between place and cultural relevancy
- Global, national, and regional educational policies and their role in contributing to or remediating cultural colonization and ecological loss
- Similarities and differences among pedagogies and policies that share a concern with socioecological justice and community engagement
Sample Questions to Be Explored
- What can it mean to design socioecological programming that is locally responsive to place and culture?
- How are authentic engagement and empowerment manifested in environmental education?
- How can environmental education incorporate local knowledge and ways of knowing?
- What can environmental education learn from practices and research on Indigenous education, youth development, service learning, youth corps, community-based learning, and/or other related fields?
- What programs exist that are socioecological in nature, yet are not currently considered environmental education?
- Where are the gaps within environmental education practice and research that impede approaches to addressing socioecological issues?
Strand Leaders
Sandi Funke, SFunke@pepperwoodpreserve.org
Peta White, petajwhite@wn.com.au
