environmental education project work

School-Based Environmental Service Learning

Find ways to engage students in environmental service learning projects in the classroom or on school grounds.

Biology, Earth Science, Astronomy, English Language Arts, Geography, Human Geography, Physical Geography, Social Studies, Civics

Photograph by Jon T. Schneeberger/National Geographic Creative

How can students connect with the natural environment while in school, in both practical and engaging ways? Find ways students can make difference and learn valuable skills through service learning projects.

Promote Natural Disaster Preparation

Find out what forces of nature could potentially strike your community. Discuss how to prepare for natural disasters and how families could respond to the natural disasters they may face in their community. Create and distribute tip sheets for family and community members’ emergency preparedness. Find helpful resources at Ready.gov .

Calculate Daily Water Use at School

Use this online tool to help start a school-wide campaign encouraging everyone to use less water. Get the word out with persuasive writing via posters or skits. Challenge your fellow students to a video public service announcement (PSA) contest. With drought conditions affecting many states, helping to save water in your community will be a step in the right direction.

Raise Ocean Awareness

Watch videos from An Imbalance in the Ocean to examine ways that human actions can throw a marine ecosystem out of balance and lead to species decline. Discuss the threats as well as actions people can take, considering the stakeholders who stand to gain or lose from the success or failures of these actions. Present the data and findings to local stakeholders in a forum or through local news media. Find teacher resources at Earth Echo, an organization founded by the family of legendary explorer Jacques Cousteau and dedicated to inspiring youth to solve environmental challenges that impact waterways: http://earthecho.org .

Investigate Local Environmental Issues

Investigate the effects of human activities in the local community. Create a scrapbook or slideshow of local environmental issues using newspaper and magazine articles, brochures, and other resources. Identify both the direct and the indirect impacts of human actions, including stories of local environmental stewardship projects or other human actions that have helped or had a negative effect on the local area. Present “Hero Awards” to local citizens and fellow students who are environmental stewards.

Grow a School Garden MakerSpace

MakerSpaces, or areas in schools dedicated to innovative, creative pursuits, can help kids become independent thinkers. See School Makerspaces: Growing Farmers, Gardeners, and Cooks to see how seeds and food have sparked creativity, excitement, and wonder. Students might have a small pantry in addition to their school garden and a kitchen. Parent and community groups might enthusiastically supply other needed supplies. Kids can go from reading a recipe to inventively cooking with whatever is on hand, especially if food service providers and science teachers team together.

Innovating around food, of course, doesn’t have to include cooking. In a non-food-focused Makerspace with wood, nails, and glue, students can design and create gardening tools, container beds, or a solar food dehydrator to store summer’s bounty. For schools with a tech budget, 3-D printers allow students to dream and generate parts for gardens and tools that will help them take care of their space. Try Renovated Learning for more ideas.

Create Recycled Art

Create a work of art made of recycled objects. Using your school or classroom’s recycling bin, collect cans, jars, and other recyclables. Add discarded wood, paper, and twine, and let students create sculptures, mobiles, jewelry, or other work. Write a short narrative of what you used and how you recycled the material. Give artwork away as a gifts to family members or to residents of a nursing home in your community.

Start a School-side Recycling Effort

Work with the school principal and food service workers to get bins for recycling in the lunchroom. Ask the school to buy recycled paper and to recycle printer cartridges. Clean up litter around the school and recycle it! Collect and store plastics, glass, cardboard, and cans until you can have it picked up or taken to a recycling center. Use any money earned to keep the recycling effort going, or donate to an environmental cause. Promote the use of reusable water bottles to reduce harmful plastics in the trash as well as the use of fossil fuels. Create video public service announcements (PSAs) to share lessons learned through this project with other schools and community partners.

Raise Money or Collect Food to Help Those in Need

Start a book or coat, fundraising, or canned goods drive to help people affected by natural disasters such as flooding, hurricanes, or wildfires. Schools may also be relocated or otherwise disrupted by disasters. Collect school supplies and write notes of encouragement for the impacted students.

Media Credits

The audio, illustrations, photos, and videos are credited beneath the media asset, except for promotional images, which generally link to another page that contains the media credit. The Rights Holder for media is the person or group credited.

Project Coordination

Educator reviewer, expert reviewer, photo researcher, last updated.

October 19, 2023

User Permissions

For information on user permissions, please read our Terms of Service. If you have questions about how to cite anything on our website in your project or classroom presentation, please contact your teacher. They will best know the preferred format. When you reach out to them, you will need the page title, URL, and the date you accessed the resource.

If a media asset is downloadable, a download button appears in the corner of the media viewer. If no button appears, you cannot download or save the media.

Text on this page is printable and can be used according to our Terms of Service .

Interactives

Any interactives on this page can only be played while you are visiting our website. You cannot download interactives.

Related Resources

You are using an outdated browser. Please upgrade your browser or activate Google Chrome Frame to improve your experience.

• Account Home

Top 10 Benefits of Environmental Education

Whether we bring nature into the classroom, take students outside to learn, or find impromptu teachable moments on a nature walk with our families, EE has many benefits for youth, educators, schools, and communities.

As a long time supporter of environmental education and as an Adjunct Professor of EE at University of Wisconsin – Stevens Point, it is my passion to inspire future educators in this field. Over the years, I have asked each of my classes to share the reasons they teach EE, what it means to them, and how it can benefit learners of all ages. Here are our top ten benefits of EE. 

Imagination and enthusiasm are heightened

Learning transcends the classroom, critical and creative thinking skills are enhanced, tolerance and understanding are supported , state and national learning standards are met for multiple subjects, biophobia and nature deficit disorder decline, healthy lifestyles are encouraged, communities are strengthened, responsible action is taken to better the environment, students and teachers are empowered, want more resources.

• Sign up for The Branch: Project Learning Tree’s newsletter for lesson plans and educator tips, professional development, and grant opportunities. 
• Read more about Why Environmental Education is Important
• Attend a Project Learning Tree environmental education workshop in your state , or  complete an online course  and receive 96 hands-on lesson plans and fun activities that meet academic standards. 
• Top Ten Tips for Teaching Outside – Early Childhood , Elementary , and High School

16 comments on “ Top 10 Benefits of Environmental Education ”

Hi, There is over a decade of research outlining the cognitive and behavioral benefits of exposure to nature. I am interested in research that looks at the effects of nature scenes inside the classroom. In healthcare it has been documented that viewing nature scenes lowers anxiety, blood pressure, and helps with pain management. Has research been conducted to explore the use and benefits of nature scenes in the classroom? I would appreciate any light or direction you can point me in. Thank You, Ernie

Hello Ernie, I’m not aware of research on this topic, but you might wish to explore the Children & Nature Network’s comprehensive database of research and studies, http://www.childrenandnature.org/research/ .

I know this is a little late but here is some research that has been done about the classroom benefits of taking students with ADHD outdoors as well as how nature helps improve attention. Here are links to the articles and their sources.

http://www.businessinsider.com/scientific-benefits-of-nature-outdoors-2016-4/#6-improved-concentration-6 https://ecoelsa.wordpress.com/2018/01/18/10-surprising-physical-and-mental-health-benefits-of-going-outdoors/ http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1087054708323000 http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0013916591231001 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/0272494495900160

I agree with you because many people in the world do not investigate about environmental issues; so, they are unconscious about the damage they are causing to their own environtment

Environmental education provides the following: 1. It enhance the thought of peoples’ experiences 2. It enlighten people to understand their environment 3. It provides room for better living 4. It serves as an engine room in creating awareness 5. It provide aesthetic beauty

excellent.what about reasons of (EE)environmental education being a life long process???

I like what you mentioned about how environmental education encourages research, investigation, and wondering why certain things happen. I’ve heard that the majority of environmental issues arise from a lack of education. I’ll have to make sure my children are aware of the environment around them so that we can create a better world!

Excellent write up! Need of the hour is environmental awareness through environmental education

It also helps in identifying relation between environment and health. It helps to adopt measures to be safe from environment induced diseases.

1.Solve various environment challenges 2.Plays crucial role in town planning. 3.Provide knowledge related to envi.issues 4.Provide various directives for environment

My wife and I have been considering options to help our daughter become active and healthy. We didn’t realize what a great tool environmental education was in encouraging young people to go outside and enjoy nature. What a benefit that would be for our daughter!

Hello Susan,

Glad that your provided info is beneficial related to Environment Education. I’m also an environmentalist who has spearheaded the planting of over a half a million trees in Baltimore City. We are experiencing the Power of Green Goodness. Our mission is to stimulate social and environmental change through education on environmental and sustainability issues. we are providing youth and young adult entrepreneurship development program, based on the fundamentals of gardening, agriculture and ecology.

Teaching students about how their decisions impact the environment seems like a really appropriate learning activity that will help them in the long run as well. Showing students exactly what it is that will happen to an area if certain things aren’t doing would be an enlightening experience for them and help them reduce their carbon footprint and help them increase recycling and other kinds of thrifty actions. If we start students out when they are young in doing these things then they would be much more likely to keep doing them and that could help us preserve the planet much better than we have been doing up to this point.

Hello, we are based out of AZ and have been looking to see how feasible it is to add an ECO Learning Environment at the local Public schools. We are looking to work with others about how to go about this. I’m addressing both Attrition/Retention with community engagement as the primary goal.

Hello I am also working on this topic as well! I am an environmental educator based out of the Midwest. At a previous job I worked part time at a STEM school helping get their students outdoors for all classes and train teachers to teach outdoors. Project Learning Tree is a great program with a lot of activities that can help your teachers take students outdoors but if you are looking for more check out Project Wild, Project Wet, Beetles, the EPA, and the National Wildlife Federation’s activities for students. I am just getting started with my own stuff but feel free to look me up as well!

http://www.projectwild.org/ https://www.projectwet.org/ http://beetlesproject.org/ https://www.epa.gov/students https://www.nwf.org/Educational-Resources/Educator-Tools/Lesson-Plans-and-Webinars https://ecoelsa.wordpress.com/

I love how you said that environmental education is a great way to do hands-on learning that is interactive and helps to increase creativity. This seems like a great school idea for kids who can’t focus really well in a normal classroom. That way they can be out doing something and enjoying themselves while learning as well!

Comments are closed.

Virtual Makeover: Sounds Around

Learn how to adapt our “Sounds Around” student activity for remote instruction, allowing students to tune in to the everyday sounds of nature from home or a nearby outdoor space.

Environmental Education Resources

Every month we carefully select new educational apps, videos, interactive websites, books, careers information, and teacher-generated materials that support PLT lessons.

STEM: Get Outside

Use your senses to investigate nearby environments. These enrichments for a new PLT activity, Get Outside!, model the practices of a real scientist by collecting and analyzing data and applying comparison and reflection skills to interpret research findings.

High School – Focus on Forests – Activity 1, Monitoring Forest Health

Students conduct a health checkup of a local forest or wooded area, take forestry measurements, and evaluate the ecological services provided by trees and forests.

MAKE LEARNING FUN

ATTEND A TRAINING

Get our educational materials and professional development by participating in an in-person workshop or an online course.

CONTACT YOUR COORDINATOR

Get information relevant to your state, plus local assistance and connections to resources and professionals in your community.

EDUCATOR TIPS

Get a wealth of up-to-date resources, support, and ideas from teachers and other educators.

SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER,  The Branch

Sign up for our monthly e-newsletter for free tools and resources, new lesson plans, professional development and grant opportunities, and tips from educators for teaching about the environment.

• Email Address *
• First Name * First

Cultivating an Environmentally Responsible Public

We are the national environmental education foundation (neef).

NEEF is the nation’s leading organization in lifelong environmental learning, creating opportunities for people of all ages to experience and learn about the environment in ways that improve their lives and the health of the planet.

At a Glance: Trending Topics

Five New Members Appointed to NEEF Board of Directors

NEEF announces the appointment of five new members to its Board of Directors.

NEEF and Toyota Mississippi Partner for Park Along the River Improvements

NEEF and Toyota launched a new multi-year park revitalization project at the Park Along the River in New...

The Mental Health Benefits of Spending Time in Nature

NEEF's Health program highlights the connection between climate and mental health and how to improve health...

What Sets Us Apart

MEET OUR PARTNERS

SEE THE NUMBERS

NEEF GRANTS

Congressionally chartered in 1990 as a 501(c)(3) non-profit to complement the work of the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the National Environmental Education Foundation (NEEF) is a non-partisan, non-advocacy organization working to make the environment more accessible, relatable, relevant, and connected to people’s daily lives.

EXPLORE OUR PROGRAMS

Diversifying the future STEM workforce while building a youth conservation ethic

Developing employee engagement campaigns to meet CSR and ESG goals

Fostering a sense of stewardship through education and engagement on America's public lands

Offering a variety of grants to help organizations fulfill their mission to educate and improve the environment

Providing resources and training for health professionals to address environmental impacts on health

Creating memorable experiences to motivate individual commitments to positive action for the environment

NEEF Announces Awardees of 2024-2025 Veterans and Nature Grant

Meet the 2024-2025 Veterans and Nature grant awardees. The 10 selected projects foster healing and community...

Why Your Next Family Vacation Should Be Volunteering on Public Lands

Transform your summer break into a family volunteer vacation on public lands—bond through trail maintenance...

The Future of Environmental Education: Celebrating NEEF’s National Park Service AmeriCorps VISTA Members

Learn how AmeriCorps VISTA program members are working on Greening STEM projects at national parks across the...

Introduction to Environmental Education

• Open Access
• First Online: 30 September 2022

Cite this chapter

You have full access to this open access chapter

• Wei-Ta Fang   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-4460-0652 4 ,
• Arba’at Hassan 5 &
• Ben A. LePage   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-3155-7373 4 , 6  

Part of the book series: Sustainable Development Goals Series ((SDGS))

23k Accesses

3 Citations

The concept of education is changing and that of the environment is also becoming different. Is environmental education: (1) a type of education to improve the environment; (2) education to improve the environment of education; or (3) a type of education to improve the education of people? In this chapter we focus on the ontology of the environment. In epistemology, we try to understand the nature and identity of the world around us and what environmental education is about. The purpose of environmental education is to cultivate citizens that: (1) have a working knowledge of environmental systems; (2) have concerns about environmental problems; and (3) have the capabilities to solve and actively participate in implementing solutions. Environmental problems must be solved through a root cause process, and environmental educators need to change the public’s mind on environmental issues using realistic and attainable education targets to establish environmentally friendly behaviors. Through outdoor, classroom, and nature-centered education programs, our goal is to establish important curriculum goals and novel learning methods for environmental education. Our goal is to have stakeholders consider environmental issues with open minds, understand the needs of other stakeholders, take a leadership role recognizing the existing and emerging environmental issues, and internalize them into specific environmental protective action plans.

All education is environmental education. By what is included or excluded, we teach students that they are part of or apart from the natural world. To teach economics, for example, without reference to the laws of thermodynamics or those of ecology is to teach a fundamentally important ecological lesson──that physics and ecology have nothing to do with the economy. That just happens to be dead wrong. The same is true throughout the curriculum. David W. Orr, What is Education for? 1991:52.

You have full access to this open access chapter,  Download chapter PDF

Similar content being viewed by others

Environmental Education

Learning Environments in Higher Education

1 introduction.

There are many definitions of education, but for education theory, Albert Einstein, who was a leader in pioneering educational reform point, had a unique point of view. He said: education is what remains after one has forgotten what one has learned in school (Fig.  1.1 ). Before the nineteenth century, education was the process of remembering or memorization. The  San Zi Jing  (Three-character Sutras) 《三字經》 that had been passed down to the people since the Southern Song Dynasty in China-proposed:

Education is what remains after one has forgotten what one has learned in school (Einstein 1879–1955) (Cheng-Jun Fang at the Busan National Science Museum, Busan, Republic of Korea, 2019) (Photo by Wei-Ta Fang)

Recite them with the mouth, and ponder over them in your hearts. Do this in the morning; do this in the evening.

Sun Zhu (孫洙) (1711–1778) of the Qing Dynasty once said:

After reading three hundred Tang poems, you can at least in tone poems even if you can’t write them.

It has always been the case that students learn as much as possible until they become familiar. However, there are other theories that have always been disgusted with learning. Einstein believed that real learning is the process of internalizing information. Wang Yangming (王陽明) (1472–1529) of the Ming Dynasty stated in the Book of Instructions for Practical Living and Other Neo-Confucian Writings 《傳習錄》 that the most important things reading requires is self-mindedness, understanding second, and finally memorization. A friend once asked him, “How can I read a book but I can’t remember,” Yangming’s response was:

As long as you know, how do you remember? To know that it is the second meaning, you need to know your own self-ontology. If you want to remember, you do not know; if you want to know, you don’t see your own identity in your mind.

In other words, the more a human learns, the more they have yet to learn. If the purpose of learning information is because of a test requirement, then the information stored in our short-term memory serves the purpose of taking the examination, but recalling the information is often not possible because the information is not true memory. As students we’ve all experienced memorizing an amazingly large amount of information for an exam and flushing these data from our minds as soon as the exam was over. However, there are instances where information can be recalled for no apparent reason. These remnants of information that we internalized is what was really learned. Therefore, education and learning were intended to convey human thought through books; however, history shows that we’ve endured at least seventeen global pandemics since the 1300’s (Piret and Boivin 2021 ) and two world wars in the twentieth century. Since then, all established education methods are constantly being recast. Recitation no longer has a place in the original meaning of education. Yuval N. Harari (1976–), the author of Sapiens : A Brief History of Humankind (2011), and Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow (2016), argued in 21 Lessons for the 21st Century (2018) that the existing education system should use critical thinking, problem solving, effective communication, collaboration, and creativity to replace the current emphasis on intellectual indoctrination (Harari 2018 ).

If the concept of education is changing, then the definition of the environment is also changing. David W. Orr (1944–), a professor of environmental and political studies at Oberlin College, once said: All education is environmental education (Fig.  1.2 ; Orr 1991 :52).

All education is environmental education (Cheng-Shun Fang at Fulong, New Taipei City, Taiwan, 2020) (Photo by Wei-Ta Fang)

When we teach environmental education, we often ask our students and ourselves: Is environmental education , the process to improve the environment , to improve the educational environment , or to improve the education of people? We need to understand the own body of human beings and to enhance the thinking from the original human engraved thinking. In the process of interpretation, we understand epistemology to understand the nature of matter and understand what the environment is.

1.1 The Environment is a Concept

The environment refers to the space in which human beings can perceive their surroundings. In space, you can perceive all things that change in structure and function over time. In other words, the true nature of all things must be in a certain environment, even a vacuum is regarded as an environment (Baggini and Fosl 2003 ). Therefore, the environment is a concept that is bounded by space. However, in phenomenology, the environment incorporates the concept of time. The Austrian philosopher Edmund Husserl (1859–1938) believes that the human impression of the environment and the world will not gradually disappear due to the evolution of time, and because of the memory function of the brain, the human impression of the deceased. Therefore, the existence of the deceased can persist in perpetuity in the world as long as the living still remembers those that came before because they are stored in the brain as a living impression. These existing memory phenomena gradually change the human imagination of the dead over time. The concept of the environment means different things to different people because every person has their own interpretation or understanding of their environment, which is based on the spatial and temporal elements that they’ve experienced. In an ideal world, the definition of environment would mean the same to everybody, but inevitably, each person’s view of the environment is different.

For phenomenon scholars, existence is a base on self-awareness of all phenomena. Therefore, the person’s environment is the perceptual medium of a living being to an external stimulus, including the systemic sum of space and time of the instinctive response to the external stimulus (Crowther and Cumhaill 2018 ). What a living organism understands about its environment includes the perception of elapsed time and distance in its space. Therefore, to understand the nature of things, we must also recognize or be cognizant of the changes in our environment through space and time (Baggini and Fosl 2003 ).

The definition of environment varies with context and discipline. For biological/ecological systems, the natural environment refers to the sunlight, climate, soil, hydrology, and other ecosystems in which animals and plants coexist and within which we live. The social environment refers to the constitutive state formed by the social, psychological, and cultural conditions associated with human life and culture. From the perspective of environmental protection, the environment refers to the earth on which human beings depend. Therefore, the effectiveness of achieved protection is a critical indicator for revealing environmental quality in a region (Huang et al. 2014 ). In addition, we also need to understand the definition of environment in terms of regulations.

1.2 Lost in Translation

As it turns out the words environment and education were originally considered nouns and verbs and later translated and adopted into Asian cultures about one hundred years after appearing in English culture. We began to think about the concept of environmental education after World War II. In their 1947 book Communitas , the Goodman brothers talked about the planning of urban space where they discussed the idea of establishing green belts around cities and the design of industrial spaces, which at the time were utopian concepts (Goodman and Goodman 1947 ). They believed that a large part of the environmental education of the children would be based on technology; whereas a child brought up in a modern suburb or city might not even know what work papa does at the office . They also criticized the idea of environmental education because they felt environmental education was very close to the construction education of a built environment. In fact, it was far from the concept of environmental education.

From 1965 to 1970, US industrial production grew at a rate of 18% and at the same time, it boosted the economies of its World War II allies. However, the over-emphasis on development led to increased environmental pollution and since the 1960s, environmental problems arising from industrial development continue to emerge (e.g., love canal, Fowlkes and Miller 1987 ). The green agricultural revolution widely used chemical fertilizers and pesticides and among them, Dichloro-Diphenyl-Trichloroethane (DDT) hindered the reproductive ability of birds and reduced biodiversity. The book, published by Rachel Carson’s book, Silent Spring ( 1962 ) pointed out the consequences associated with the use/abuse of pesticides, which become incorporated into food chains and webs, negatively impacting natural ecosystems and human health. Carson believed that human beings should treat the surrounding environment and animals with a life-loving vision. She said: The public must decide whether it wishes to continue on the present road, and it can do so only when in full possession of the facts (Carson 1962 :30). In the post 1960s, the slogan of environmental protection rang through the sky and the concept of the environmental protection movement gradually espoused the definition of environmental education in conservation.

2 Definition of Environmental Education

The term environmental education appeared in 1947. So, when did the earliest definition of environmental education come into being? The concept of environmental education in terms of modern pedagogy and its evolutionary history feels closely tied to our understanding and development of human psychology, sociology, and how humans learn. In this context, environmental education is a relatively recent field of study and predicated on the acceptance of our hypotheses by a small community of scholars.

If we look further back in time at the development of human cultures at a time when formal education systems did not exist, our ancestors then need to be recognized. In many/most indigenous cultures, the people learned about the environment within which they lived and passed their knowledge and skills to future generations, otherwise, they all died.

We, therefore, also need to identify several elements in indigenous cultures that are related to their knowledge base and resource management systems that could be of value to western science, but the semantic issues associated with Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) and Traditional Ecological Management (TEM) can be overwhelming (Song et al. 2021 ). We may regard that TEK and TEM should be considered to be an element of the environment associated with indigenous cultures that is defined by their relationship and interactions with the environment, including all of the other biotic, abiotic elements present in their habitats. So, let’s take the definition way back and show how we used TEK and TEM to develop our knowledge systems relative to western science.

2.1 Initial Definition of Environmental Education

In 1962, Carson explained the importance of environmental protection and hoped to learn the ecological balance of nature through human awakening would achieve the purpose of harmonious coexistence between human and nature. In 1965 at an education seminar at the University of Keele environmental education was proposed as a theme, becoming the first conference in the UK to use the term environmental education (Palmer 1998 ). The meeting participants agreed that environmental education should become an essential part of all citizens , not only because of the importance of understanding aspects of their environment , but because of its immense educational potential in assisting the emergence of a scientifically literate nation . The meeting emphasized that teachers’ participation in basic education research should be strengthened to accurately determine the teaching methods and content of environmental education that are most suitable for modern needs. Therefore, the United Kingdom held a Council for Environmental Education in 1968.

In 1969, William Stapp (1929–2001), a professor at the University of Michigan, School of Natural Resources and Environment (SNRE), first defined environmental education as a process producing a citizenry that is knowledgeable concerning the biophysical environment and its associated problems , aware of how to help solve these problems , and motivated to work toward their solution (Stapp et al. 1969 :30–31). According to Stapp, the purpose of environmental education was to cultivate citizens who had environmental knowledge, were concerned about environmental problems, and had the ability to solve and actively participate in the resolving the issues. Environmental problems should be resolved using root cause analyses and environmental educators should change the minds of the existing education targets and establish environmentally friendly behaviors.

Stapp is considered the father of environmental education in the United States of America (USA). He helped plan the first Earth Day in 1970, drafted the National Environmental Education Act, served as the first director of United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the first director of the Environmental Education at UNESCO, and promoted the first inter-governmental meeting of 146 countries and territories in Tbilisi, the former Soviet Union, in 1978. In 1984, Stapp assisted students to investigate cases of hepatitis infections from the Huron River, identify the cause of the problem, and worked with the local government to find a solution. In view of the importance of river surveys, he founded the Global Rivers Environmental Education Network (GREEN) in 1989. He cooperated with elementary schools in Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA and conducted many field trips with local elementary students and they investigated and taught students about problems in the natural environment and how to interact with them. He cared about academic research and more about social services, and led college students to promote environmental monitoring programs and successfully rehabilitate the Rouge River. In western science, the roots of environmental education can be traced back 1960s as early as the eighteenth century when Jean-Jacques Rousseau stressed the importance of an education that focuses on the environment (Rousseau and Bloom 1979 ).

2.2 The Extended Definition of Environmental Education

Stapp and his colleagues promoted the definition of environmental education, which was based on American pragmatism. They believed that emphasizing environmental knowledge could change reality through the power of action. Therefore, practical experience in environmental education was considered important because it emphasized taking knowledge and using that knowledge and/or experience to solve problems on natural resource management (Disinger 1985 ; 1990 ). Thus, environmental action or doing was better than dogma, and environmental experience was better than rigid principles. Therefore, the concept of environmental education had evolved to become a critical and creative clarification for research questions and value clarification (Harari 2018 ), interpreting environmental knowledge as a process of assessing the real environment, and scientific exploration (Fig.  1.3 ). The spirit of humanity, the standard of conduct was then incorporated into the real environment of human beings.

Academic institutions need to provide environmental education-related courses such as basic environmental research and environmental science such as a study camp, Taipei, Taiwan, 2019 (Photo by Yi-Te Chiang)

To promote environmental protection, academic institutions needed to provide environmental education-related courses such as basic environmental research, science, planning, management, economics, society, culture, and engineering. At the grade school level, the students should be taught the history of environmental protection and environmental protection measures. The aforementioned courses are meant to be broad because the environment and the associated issues are complicated. The environment and its associated ecosystems are not one size fits all. Not only are ecosystems different from one another the variation within each is vast. As such, Wals et al. ( 2014 ) considered the learning content of environmental education to be multi-disciplinary, based on environmental problem assessment, critical thinking, morality, creativity, and make judgments on environmental issues. The process of environmental education helps observation and problem-solving, with the opportunity for individuals to promote environmental improvement actions to ensure positive environmental behaviors (Fig.  1.4 ). Therefore, environmental education includes the social, abiotic, and biological aspects, of the environment including natural resource conservation, environmental management, ecological principles, environmental interactions and ethics, and sustainability (Fig.  1.5 ).

Environmental education helps develop observation and problem-solving skills and provides opportunities for individuals to promote environmental improvement actions to ensure positive environmental behaviors (Audubon Nature Center, Rhode Island, USA, 2015) (Photo by Wei-Ta Fang)

The target of environmental education should include a continuum from primary school to the university and include theoretical, practical, indoor, and outdoor experiences. This is a group of people enjoying nature in a Swiss environmental education program in 2009 (Matterhorn, Great north faces of the Alps, Valais, Switzerland) (Photo by Wei-Ta Fang)

Environmental Education is defined in many ways, but each definition considers it to be a discipline or process that teaches us how to behave in a manner that promotes the responsible management of our environment and resources. This then helps the environment function in a more natural way, rather than healing anthropogenic wounds. We detected the Environmental Education Act in Taiwan (Republic of China), there is. …as a discipline that enhance the environmental awareness , environmental ethics , and responsibility of the nation taking as a whole, so as to safeguard the ecological balance of the environment , respect lives, promote social justice , and cultivate environmental citizens and environmental learning communities (The Environmental Education Act) (Ministry of Justice 2017 ). Therefore, in terms of education content, environmental education was intended to integrate aspects of biology, chemistry, physics, ecology, earth science, atmospheric science, mathematics, and geography as an integrated discipline toward an education for sustainability (EfS) (Evans 2020 ). Methods of educational research include the applied social sciences such as psychology, sociology, culture, history, anthropology, economics, political science, and information science.

The First International Working Meeting on Environmental Education in the School Curriculum was organized by the UNESCO, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) in Nevada, USA in 1970. A participant resolution developed the statement that the elements of environmental education are not completely combined by any single discipline. It is the product of partnerships built on sound science, public awareness, environmental issues, and outdoor educational methods (Fig.  1.6 ). UNESCO specifically stated that environmental education programs taught students a respect for the nature and natural environments and raised citizens' environmental awareness (UNESCO 1970 ). Therefore, the organization emphasized the importance of environmental education in protecting the society’s quality of life in the future by protecting the environment, eradicating poverty, minimizing inequality, and ensuring sustainable development. Cerovsky ( 1971 , p. 4) defined environmental education as.

…a process of recognizing values and clarifying concepts in order to develop skills and attitudes necessary to understand and to appreciate the interrelatedness among man, his culture, and his biophysical surroundings. Environmental education is also entailed practice in decision-making and self-formulation of code behavior about issues concerning environmental quality.

Environmental education also includes the dissemination of environmental education with outdoor media (Wei-Ta Fang, Ben A. LePage, and their students at Dagouxi Riverside Park, Neihu, Taipei, Taiwan, 2021) (Photo by Yi-Te Chiang)

The target of environmental education includes education in the school system, and education from primary, middle, vocational, and technical schools, universities, and research institutes. However, environmental education also includes the dissemination of environmental education, including print, books, websites, and other media. In addition, aquaria, zoos, parks, and nature centers in social environmental education should all provide ways to teach citizens about the environment (Fig.  1.6 ) (see Box 1.1 ).

Box 1.1: The Legal Definition of Environmental Education, Republic of China (ROC)

The Article 3 of Republic of China’s Environmental Education Act stated as Environmental education : Referring to the adaptation of educational means by which to culminate the citizens to understand their ethnical relationship to the environment , enhance the citizens ’ environmental protection awareness, skills, attitudes and values , and steer the citizens to emphasize the environment and adopt actions to achieve a civility education process that harbors sustainable development .

2.3 The Goals of Environmental Education

The attendees of the Tbilisi Conference in 1977 endorsed goals for environmental education into five categories (UNESCO 1977 ). They are:

Awareness: to help social groups and individuals acquire an awareness of and sensitivity to the total environment and its allied problems;

Knowledge : to help social groups and individuals gain a variety of experiences in and acquire a basic understanding of the environment and its associated problems;

Attitudes : to help social groups and individuals acquire a set of values and feelings of concern for the environment and the motivations for actively participating in environmental improvement and protection;

Skills: to help social groups and individuals acquire the skills for identifying and solving environmental problems; and

Participation: to provide social groups and individuals with the opportunities to be actively involved at all levels in working toward resolving environmental problems (UNESCO 1977 , p. 71).

Hungerford et al. ( 1980 ) organized and suggested that these goals should be operationalized within the school curriculum and categorized into four (4) levels (Table 1.1 and Figs. 1.7 , 1.8 and 1.9 ).

Goals of environmental education (adapted and modified after Hungerford et al. ( 1980 ) and revised by Wei-Ta Fang)

Harold Hungerford (left), Trudi Volk (middle), Arba’at Hassan (right) (Photo by Arba’at Hassan)

Harold Hungerford (left), mentor and advisor of Arba’at Hassan (right) (Photo by Arba’at Hassan)

3 Approaches to Environmental Education

In this section we discuss various methods/pedagogies used in the field of environmental education. Environmental education, like science education, is interdisciplinary and offers a variety of learning strategies, which are determined by learning resources, learning time, learning space, learning curriculum, and student attributes. These differences all affect education approaches in some way. We briefly describe outdoor education, classroom education, and nature-centered education. We include the following seven methods, including: school environmental education, school nature education, place-based education, and projects curricula; and nature center education in social and environmental education, science and environmental education in zoos and museums (Falk 2009 ; Falk and Dierking 2014 , 2018 ; Ardoin et al. 2016 ) or environmental education using surveys, assessments and actions on environmental issues (Hsu et al. 2018), and science-technology-society (STS) (Winther et al. 2010 ). Each approach addresses important curriculum goals and novel learning methods for environmental education. Therefore, environmental educators should choose and apply the most effective methods for their students and environment. We also explore sustainable development education from the perspective of environmental education. We also understand that a well-rounded curriculum aims to strengthen environmental awareness and environmental sensitivity, environmental knowledge, environmental ethics and values, environmental action skills, and environmental action experience. We explore values, topics, and learning in the context of Bamberg and Moeser ( 2007 ), Winther et al. ( 2010 ) and Dillion and Wals ( 2006 ).

3.1 Outdoor Education

Outdoor education is based on a place-based education and project curricula in the United States that include: the Project Learning Tree, Project WILD, and Project WET. In addition, surveys, assessments, and actions on environmental issues, as well as environmental education in STS that can be used for exploration, included the following methods (Braus and Wood 1993 ; Engleson and Yockers 1994 ).

3.1.1 Uses of the Senses

Let the learners use their senses to experience nature directly using their eyes, ears, nose, tongue, and body to feel the environment over the four seasons (Fig.  1.10 ).

Use of the senses (Photos by Arba’at Hassan)

3.1.2 Physical Exercises and Explanations

By using real examples, objects that can be obtained, and through practical methods, the natural or scientific phenomena contained in the environment are directly explained by practical performance, allowing learners to observe directly or actual experience (Fig.  1.11 ).

Physical exercises and explanations (Photos by Arba’at Hassan)

3.1.3 Surveys and Experiments

Let learners think about environmental issues and environmental phenomena through the steps of generating a hypothesis, survey, data collection, experiments, data collection, analysis, writing of small papers, briefings, etc., and actually discuss what happens behind various environmental phenomena problem.

3.1.4 Attractions Travel

Let learners go to various attractions and actually visit forests, mountains, seashores, wetlands and other areas to observe and obtain first-hand tourism and observation experiences (Fig.  1.12 ). Each observation and survey is a purposeful activity, and learners can learn about certain topics in advance through books, the Internet, and scenic spot information.

Outdoor education is based on a place-based education and project. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA), North American for Environmental Education (NAAEE), and Environmental Protection Administration of the Executive Yuan, Republic of China (Taiwan EPA) are the key to promote environmental education as partnerships. They jointly launched the Global Environmental Education Partnership (GEEP) in 2014, with the vision of creating a sustainable future where people and the environment prosper together through the power of education. The GEEP established the Asia–Pacific Regional Center (APRC) in Taiwan as a network center for environmental education in Southeast Asia in 2019 (Toucheng Leisure Farm, Ilan, Taiwan, 2021; please see https://geepaprc.org/en ) (Photo by Wei-Ta Fang)

3.1.5 Research Questionnaires and Interviews

An issue questionnaire is performed through research methods for small papers. Through this approach, learners can obtain relevant environmental information. The perceptions and ideas of different interviewers, in addition to quantified research data, are to conduct interviews to understand qualitative information and to make more environmental issues for an in-depth discussion (Fig.  1.13 ).

Research questionnaire and interview (Photo by Arba’at Hassan)

3.1.6 Outdoor Observation of Nearby Places

Using the method of place-based education, selecting nearby places, conducting environmental surveys or observation activities, actually guiding learners to study in outdoor environments, and helping learners to understand the natural exploration, experience, and awareness (Fig.  1.14 ).

Outdoor observation at nearby mangrove places (Photos by Wei-Ta Fang)

3.1.7 Data Collection and Interviews

Let learners collect the data on specific environmental issues so that they can have a deeper understanding of related environmental issues or areas of study, through the library, Internet, photographs, and interview specific people to help clarify questions when facing environmental problems if more information is needed (Figs. 1.15 ).

Assembly photos. Left side: People need to help clarify questions when facing environmental problems (Yongchunpi Wetland Park, Taipei, Taiwan, 2021) (Photo by Yi-Te Chiang); Right side: Data collection and interview on the charcoal making from mangrove trees, 2008 (Photos by Arba’at Hassan)

3.2 Classroom Education

Classroom education in environmental education includes campus environmental education, which can develop place-based education, project curricula, and STS (Winther et al. 2010 ). During the learning process, teachers are encouraged to participate in professional learning sessions, and fully understand the learner’s learning role, that include:

3.2.1 Reading and Writing

In the classroom, students read environmental issues and events and write their thoughts and feelings in notebooks. Younger students can draw their thoughts and ideas (Fig.  1.16 ).

Reading and writing in the classroom (Photo by Arba’at Hassan)

3.2.2 Case Study

Let learners directly collect and integrate data on environmental issues or discuss and assess the environmental impact of related issues on our day-to-day lives and to think about how to deal with environmental damage (Fig.  1.17 ).

A case study of urban park (Photo by Wei-Ta Fang)

3.2.3 Value Clarification

Let learners use each other’s relationships between value and morality for discussion and communication. During the discussion, through mutual discussions, establish conclusions that everyone can accept to assist learners to establish correct environmental attitudes and values. That is, set up some ground rules so the environment remains safe.

3.2.4 Treemap and Brainstorming

Through brainstorming or treemap thinking, help learners connect different relationships, situations, ideas, and processes to understand the relationship of events (Figs. 1.18 and 1.19 ).

Value clarification (Photo by Arba’at Hassan)

Treemap and Brainstorming session (Photo by Arba’at Hassan)

3.2.5 Debate

Through debate activities, learners can learn from different topics facing the environment, and learn to use data collection, communication, and critical thinking skills (Fig.  1.20 ).

Debate on an environmental issue (Photo by Arba’at Hassan)

3.2.6 Group Learning

Through the process of group learning, in addition to being able to face environmental issues more effectively and conduct more in-depth discussions, learners can learn to establish team tacit understanding, self-social ethics norms, and know the thoughts deep inside themselves. This illustrates the importance of diversity and inclusion in the program (Fig.  1.21 ).

The group learning activity (Photo by Arba’at Hassan)

3.2.7 Environmental Arrangement

Through the environmental arrangement activities of the beginning of school, festivals, or parent-teacher talks, let learners participate in the creation and arrangement of teaching space. In addition, to help learners have a complete learning space, they can also learn to judge the overall environmental learning.

3.2.8 Comprehensive Discussions

Scout courses covering aspects of integrated geography, mathematics, nature, health and hygiene, or Chinese language learning areas, and in-depth research and discussion on environmental issues and issues (Fig.  1.22 ).

All students take part in comprehensive discussions (Photo by Arba’at Hassan)

3.2.9 Activity Workshop

Let learners guide the demonstration and teaching of personnel, learn to operate, or produce a kind of labor course that requires hands-on work, and use hands-on operations. The process of the drill included working experience in farming, forestry, fishing, insect hotel building, animal husbandry, and the creation of handicrafts (Figs.  1.23 and 1.24 ).

An activity workshop (Photo by Arba’at Hassan)

We are just another bug on this planet (Ben LePage at Taiwan Insect Hall, Taipei, Taiwan, 2022) (Photo by Swing Chan)

3.2.10 Game Learning

Game learning is different at different levels. This is important because it brings to mind what today’s youth think is important and fun. For example, we think memorization is boring and old school, what will the younger generation of student’s think about these new approaches in 50 years? 100 years? How do we keep our learning methods current in the face of rapidly changing technologies, norms, and values? In game learning, open-ended play is adopted. The rich teaching materials of games are the basis of learning. In modeled-play, learn using simulated creatures and playing with pets (Fig.  1.25 ). In purpose-framed play, games are used for experience and teacher-student interaction is used (Cutter-Mackenzie et al. 2014 ).

The outdoor game learning (Velsen Otte and the cat “Noodle”) (Photo by Wei-Ta Fang)

3.2.11 Environmental Action

Use STS learning methods to allow learners to participate in practical environmental actions such as ecological management, persuasion, consumerism, political action, and legal action, and work together to improve environmental issues (Fig.  1.26 ).

The Environmental action on wetland (Keita Furukawa, front person, and Jung-Chen Huang at Taijiang National Park, Tainan, Taiwan) (Photo by Wei-Ta Fang)

4 Development of Environmental Education

The implementation of environmental education is to adopt an infusion method and conduct integrated curriculum across learning areas to connect the relationship between the surrounding their environment. Environmental education professionals generally believe that the environmental education be integrated into the school curriculum of each school year, from kindergarten to grade 12 (K-12). However, discipline integration of environmental education has not occurred in countries around the world. How to integrate environmental education into the subject in the school curriculum requires the use of teaching materials and methods (Fig.  1.27 ). This may be related to the type of teaching in each subject (Simmons 1989 ). If the core of environmental education is to incorporate the behavioral decisions of governments, enterprises, families, and individuals into the education process, then the development of environmental education from kindergarten to grade 12 (K-12) needs to be considered and economic development, a parallel trend of environmental development that takes into account social development.

We have developed environmental education programs from kindergarten to grade 12 (K-12) from the supports of Ramsar Regional Center–East Asia and National Geographic Society during 2018 (Taipei, Taiwan, 2018) (Photo by Yi-Te Chiang)

The teaching model of traditional environmental education is centered on environmental issues. However, this kind of teaching method only focuses on knowledge transfer. It does not consider social emotional learning. At the same time, it does not consider the formation of environmental attitudes, and it is difficult to cultivate responsibility—environmental behavior students. Furthermore, environmental education places too much emphasis on analysis of issues, so that students learn learned helpless. It has a sense of despair and helplessness about the future development of the global environment. It is impossible to learn through a position of control—motivation and perseverance to change the world. In addition, emotional changes in environmental education are not easy to change through indoor courses, students are easily frustrated in the classroom, and it is difficult to learn the true meaning of pro-environmental behavior. If we say that the past education focused on one-way narrative transmission, we should then look at environmental issues with a healthy mindset. By caring about environmental protection issues, based on teachers’ pedagogical content knowledge and domain knowledge (Shulman 1986a , b ; 1987a , b ; Fig.  1.28 ), supporting the idea of ​​a sustainable worldview, strengthening the content of various disciplines in a common learning approach, and internalizing it into specific environmental protection actions.

The content of teaching content is a kind of comprehensive knowledge. It is the knowledge that teachers can use in teaching after integrating various kinds of knowledge (Illustrated by Wei-Ta Fang)

The so-called pedagogical content knowledge model, the content includes the teacher’s understanding of specific subject content, the teacher’s grasp and use of specific subject content representation, and the teachers ‘learning and learners’ understanding. The content of teaching content knowledge includes the content of subject knowledge and general teaching knowledge, and goes beyond the teaching material knowledge itself. The teaching content knowledge was proposed by an American educational psychologist, named Lee Shulman (1938–). He believes that the subject teaching knowledge goes beyond the scope of subject expertise and is subject matter expertise at the teaching level. Shulman pointed out that teachers’ knowledge can be divided into three categories, namely, pedagogical knowledge, subject matter knowledge, and pedagogical content knowledge (Shulman 1986a , b ; 1987a , b ). Teaching knowledge emphasizes the principles, methods, and strategies of teaching. Disciplinary content knowledge emphasized teachers’ knowledge on the facts, concepts, principles of the subject areas, and how they are organized. In addition, teaching content knowledge emphasizes that when teaching, teachers know how to use a systematic statement of their subject content knowledge, make it easy for students to understand the subject content through the most effective teaching method, and teachers can understand students’ previous concepts of the subject content, Reasons for learning difficulties and strategies for remedial teaching.

Shulman said: Teaching content knowledge means that teachers must be able to express what they are teaching. In the category of teaching content knowledge, teachers include the most taught topics and the most effective forms of expression in the subject.

They are the most powerful analogies, examples, illustrations, demonstrations, and clarifications. That is, teachers regroup in special subjects of the subject and behave in an appropriate way to promote students to understand the content of the teaching. Knowledge of teaching content also includes teachers understanding what factors make it difficult or easy for students to learn about specific concepts when learning, and to understand the concepts and prerequisite concepts held by students of different ages and backgrounds when studying these topics. (Shulman 1986b :9).

Communication environmental and educational concepts, goals, methods, and strategies are based on the concept of immersive environmental education. Explore the in-depth fields of environmental education according to the different cultural and social backgrounds of teachers (Fig.  1.29 ). Therefore, based on the critical analysis of the problem, the process of learning is more important than the outcome. Moreover, the limitations of environmental, social, and economic issues, are understood, thus the teaching content can be linked to the real world.

Exploring the in-depth fields of environmental education is crucial according to the different cultural and social backgrounds of teachers (Photo by Wei-Ta Fang)

Environmental education is not only about providing tools and technology but also necessary to cultivate students’ environmental literacy. Therefore, the teaching of environmental education, in addition to teaching knowledge, also needs to inspire students’ social responsibility. Therefore, environmental education needs to put forward values and strengthen the thinking of sustainable development in the curriculum. The main core lies in the fundamental values of “sustainable development education.” UNESCO defined the core according to the following topics:

Respect the dignity and human rights of all human beings worldwide and commit to social and economic justice for all;

Respect the human rights of future generations and promise intergenerational responsibilities (Kaplan et al. 2005 ; Liu and Kaplan 2006 );

Respect and care about the diversity of life in large communities, including the protection and restoration of the earth's ecosystem; and

Respecting cultural diversity and promising to build tolerance, non-violence, and a culture of peace locally and globally.

4.2 Exploration Topics

4.2.1 environmental orientation.

Environmentally oriented education needs to include attention on natural resources (like water, energy, agriculture, forestry, mining, air, waste disposal, toxic chemical treatment, and biodiversity), climate change, rural development, and sustainability. The purpose of mitigation and adaptation in the cities, disaster prevention, and mitigation are to strengthen the understanding of the fragility of resources and the natural environment, strengthen the understanding of the negative impact of human activities and decision-making on the environment, and include environmental factors. These factors must be considered in formulating socio-economic policies.

4.2.2 Economic Orientation

The Economic Oriented Education needs to focus on the issues of poverty eradication, strengthening the social responsibility of enterprises and universities, and strengthening the efficiency of the market economy. The purposes are to understand limitation, potential on an economic growth, and how they could affect the society, environment, and culture. The impact of environmental protection, culture, and social justice on the correct assessment of individual and social consumption behavior is consistent with the goal of sustainable development.

4.2.3 Social Orientation

Socially Oriented Education needs to include concerns about human rights, peace and human security, freedom, gender equality, cultural diversity, and cross-cultural understanding, as well as emphasis on social and personal health, and strengthening government management and people’s governance. Its purpose is to understand the role of social systems and environmental change in development and to strengthen models and institutions of democratic participation. The democratic participation system provides opportunities to express opinions, adjust conflicts, decentralize government, build consensus, and resolve differences. In addition, cultural assessments in society need to be strengthened to protect the values , practices, languages, and knowledge systems (Arenas et al. 2009 ). At the same time, the cultural foundations of social, environmental, economic, and the sustainable development, are seen as inter-connected. In other words, sustainable development emphasizes interrelationship through culture. In the process of sustainable development education, it is particularly necessary to pay attention to the diversity of culture and ethnic groups, and each ethnic group tolerates, respects, and understands each other in order to shape the values of equality and dignity.

We can know that the exploration of sustainable development education to embedding sustainability from environmental education can be an overlapping circle model, which is an intersecting system (Purvis et al. 2019 ). This model recognizes the intersection of economic, environmental, and social factors. Based on our research, we resized the circles to show that one factor has advantages over the other two. In the eyes of economists, economy is better than society and society is better than environment. This model means that economy can exist independently of society and environment. Therefore, we use the next more accurate system model for illustration (Fig.  1.30 ).

The environment-oriented, economic-oriented, and social-oriented rendezvous system (Illustrated by Wei-Ta Fang)

Because human beings cannot survive outside of their environment, they do not have an environment. It is just like a fish without water, which makes it difficult for them to survive. If we ask all the fishermen in the sea if overfishing the fisheries is a social disaster or an economic disaster, they will then say that it is all the above. Therefore, the nested dependency model reflects the reality of this common dependency. In other words, human society is a wholly owned subsidiary of the environment. An economic society, without food, clean water, fresh air, fertile soil, and other natural resources, we are “cooked.”

Environmental Education in the twenty-first century and Education for Sustainable Development have also regarded as the key to reconstructing ecologically responsible citizens to embrace a pedagogy grounded in ecosocialism (Arenas 2021 ). With the adoption of the 2030 Global Education Agenda, United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) is now using the United Nation’s recently developed Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to strengthen the Global Action Follow-up Program on Education for Sustainable Development (i.e., GAP 2030). In general, the purpose of environmental education is to cultivate citizens who understand the biophysical environment and related issues, how to help solve problems, and actively understand the ways to solve problems (Stapp et al. 1969 ). Currently, we provided a wider range of services, strengthened appreciation of the multicultural and environmental systems around humanity, and ensure the sustainable development of human society. Shin Wang (1945–), the emeritus professor of the Department of Geographical Environmental Resources, National Taiwan University, once said: “Hometown is the beginning of learning. You need to be based on Taiwan to look at the world.” The transformation of social environment and silent environmental changes to the environmental protection of the aboriginal people has produced their own views of environmental redemption (Fang et al. 2016 ).

At the beginning of the writing of this book, we always told ourselves in the heart: “The environment and ecology are extremely vulnerable, and only those of us who are not fame and fortune environmentalists will help the speechless environment.”

In light of today’s social consumerism, inequality has occurred in three areas: environmental, social, and economic. We strengthen our creativity sharing our experiences within the education system with others to develop a shared social imagination. We communicate the concepts of the environment and education based on the concept of immersive environmental education. Therefore, the environmental education concepts, implementation processes, and education policies listed in this chapter have achieved the feasibility of environmental education in various fields through teaching, research, and practice. Environmental education is not just about providing tools and technologies, it is important to cultivate a learners’ environmental literacy. Therefore, the teaching of environmental education, in addition to teaching knowledge, also needs to inspire students’ social responsibility.

Ardoin NM, Schuh J, Khalil K (2016) Environmental behavior of visitors to an informal science museum. Visit Stud 19(1):77–95

Article   Google Scholar  

Arenas A (2021) Pandemics, capitalism, and an ecosocialist pedagogy. J Environ Educ 52(6):371–383

Arenas A, Reyes I, Wyman L (2009) When indigenous and modern education Collide. In: Zajda J, Freeman K (eds) Race, ethnicity and gender in education. Globalisation, Comparative Education and Policy Research, vol 6. Springer, Dordrecht

Google Scholar  

Baggini J, Fosl PS (2003) The philosopher’s toolkit: a compendium of philosophical concepts and methods. Wiley-Blackwell, Oxford

Bamberg S, Möser G (2007) Twenty years after Hines, Hungerford, and Tomera: a new meta-analysis of psycho-social determinants of pro-environmental behaviour. J Environ Psychol 27(1):14–25

Braus A, Wood D (1993) Environmental education in the schools-creating a program that works. NAAEE Peace Corps Washington, DC

Carson R (1962) Silent spring. Fawcett, Greenwich

Cerovsky J (1971) Environmental education: yes—but how? In: Handbook of environmental education with international studies. Wiley, London, p 4

Crowther T, Cumhaill CM (2018) Perceptual ephemera. Oxford University Press, Oxford

Book   Google Scholar  

Cutter-Mackenzie A, Edwards S, Moore D, Boyd W (2014) Young children’s play and environmental education in early childhood education. Springer, New York

Dillion J, Wals AEJ (2006) On the danger of blurring methods, methodologies, and ideologies in environmental education research. J Environ Educ Res 12(3–4):549–558

Disinger JF (1985) What research says: environmental education’s definitional problem. Sch Sci Math 85(1):59–68

Disinger JF (1990) Environmental education for sustainable development? J Environ Educ 21(4):3–6

Engleson DC, Yockers DH (1994) A guide to curriculum planning in environmental education. Wisconsin Dept. of Public Instruction, Madison

Evans N (2020) What ought to be done to promote education for sustainability in teacher education. J Philos Educ 54(4):817–824

Falk JH, Dierking LD (2014) The museum experience revisited. Left Coast Press, Walnut Creek

Falk JH, Dierking LD (2018) Learning from museums, 2nd edn. Rowman & Littlefield, Lanham

Falk JH (2009) Identity and the museum visitor experience. Left Coast Press Walnut Creek

Fang W-T, Wu H-W, Lee C-S (2016) Atayal’s identification of sustainability: traditional ecological knowledge and indigenous science of a hunting culture. Sustain Sci 11(1):33–43

Fowlkes MR, Miller PY (1987) Chemicals and community at Love Canal. In Johnson BB, Covello VT (eds) The social and cultural construction of risk. Technology, risk, and society, vol 3. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-3395-8_3

Goodman P, Goodman P (1947) Communitas: means of livelihood and ways of life. Vintage Books, New York

Harari YN (2018) 21 Lessons for the 21st century. Spiegel & Grau, New York

Huang C-W, Chiu Y-H, Fang W-T, Shen N (2014) Assessing the performance of Taiwan’s environmental protection system with a non-radial network DEA approach. Energy Policy 74:547–556

Hungerford HR, Peyton RB, Wilke RJ (1980) Goals for curriculum development in environmental education. J Environ Educ 11(3):43–44

Kaplan MS, Liu ST, Steinig S (2005) Intergenerational approaches for environmental education and action. Sustain Comm Rev 8(1):54–74

Liu S-T, Kaplan MS (2006) An intergenerational approach for enriching children’s environmental attitude and knowledge. Appl Environ Educ Comm 5(1):9–20

Ministry of Justice (2017) The environmental education act, Amended Date: 29 Nov 2017, Category: Environmental Protection Administration, Taiwan, ROC. https://law.moj.gov.tw/ENG/LawClass/LawAll.aspx?pcode=O0120001

Orr D (1991) What is education for? Six myths about the foundations of modern education, and six new principles to replace them. Context 27(53):52–58

Palmer J (1998) Environmental education in the 21st century: theory, practice, progress, and promise. Routledge, London

Piret J, Boivin G (2021) Pandemics throughout history. Front Microbiol 3594. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2020.631736

Purvis B, Mao Y, Robinson D (2019) Three pillars of sustainability: in search of conceptual origins. Sustain Sci 14(3):681–695

Rousseau J-J, Bloom A (1979) Emile: or on education. Basic Books, New York

Shulman LS (1986a) Paradigms and research programs in the study of teaching: a contemporary perspective. In Wittrock MC (ed) Handbook of research on teaching, 3rd edn. Macmillan, London, pp 3–36

Shulman LS (1986b) Those who understand: knowledge growth in teaching. Educ Res 15(2):4–14

Shulman LS (1987a) Knowledge and teaching: foundations of the new reform Harvard Educ Rev 57:1–22

Shulman LS (1987b) Learning to teach. AAHEA Bull 5–9

Simmons D (1989) More infusion confusion: a look at environmental education curriculum materials. J Environ Educ 20(4):15–18

Song KS, LePage B, Fang W-T (2021) Managing water and wetlands based on the Tayal’s interpretation of Utux and Gaga. Wetlands 41(92) https://doi.org/10.1007/s13157-021-01473-y

Stapp WB (1969) The concept of environmental education. Environ Educ 1(1):30–31

UNESCO (1970) International working meeting on environmental education in the school curriculum, Final Report, at Foresta Institute, Carson City, Nevada. IUCN and UNESCO, Paris

UNESCO (1977) Intergovernmental conference on environmental education, Tbilisi Declaration (USSR) 14–26 Oct 1977 (final report). UNESCO, Paris

Wals AEJ, Brody M, Dillon J, Stevenson RB (2014) Convergence between science and environmental education. Science 344(6184):583–584

Winther AA, Sadler KC, Saunders GW (2010) Approaches to environmental education. In: Bodzin A, Klein S, Weaver S (eds) The inclusion of environmental education in science teacher education. Springer, Dordrecht

Download references

Author information

Authors and affiliations.

Graduate Institute of Environmental Education, National Taiwan Normal University, Taipei, Taiwan

Wei-Ta Fang & Ben A. LePage

Open University Malaysia Kota, Sabah, Malaysia

Arba’at Hassan

Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, PA, USA

Ben A. LePage

You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Wei-Ta Fang .

Rights and permissions

Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ ), which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

The images or other third party material in this chapter are included in the chapter's Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the chapter's Creative Commons license and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder.

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2023 The Author(s)

About this chapter

Fang, WT., Hassan, A., LePage, B.A. (2023). Introduction to Environmental Education. In: The Living Environmental Education. Sustainable Development Goals Series. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4234-1_1

Download citation

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-4234-1_1

Published : 30 September 2022

Publisher Name : Springer, Singapore

Print ISBN : 978-981-19-4233-4

Online ISBN : 978-981-19-4234-1

eBook Packages : Social Sciences Social Sciences (R0)

Share this chapter

Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content:

Sorry, a shareable link is not currently available for this article.

Provided by the Springer Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative

• Publish with us

Policies and ethics

• Find a journal
• Track your research

Energy. Environment. Economy.

A reporting project of   npr member stations.

Jim Altemus, a forest health program specialist with Pennsylvania’s Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR), looks for signs of Hemlock Wolly Adelgid in Bald Eagle State Park.

 Karen Hendricks / For Climate Solutions

Pa. environmental education programs get $1 million from state

Karen Hendricks / For Climate Solutions

The Department of Environmental Protection is giving nearly $1 million to 56 programs across the state that prioritize water quality, climate change mitigation, or environmental justice.

The Environmental Education Grants Program was created in 1993. DEP must set aside 5% of the pollution fines and penalties it collects each year for the program. To date, DEP says it has awarded more than $14 million to support more than 2,200 projects.

This year’s projects range from running summer camps to helping people protect their homes from stormwater.

DEP says almost all of the programs will benefit environmental justice communities, which are places where people are more threatened by climate change and air and water pollution than the general public.

“These projects help connect people to the ways we can protect the air we breathe and the water we drink, and many of them encourage learning at any age whether you’re a kid or an adult,” said DEP Acting Secretary Jessica Shirley.

Pennsylvania Envirothon is getting $53,938 to help run its annual environmental knowledge competition among high school teams statewide.

Bucknell University plans to use $5,000 dollars to raise public awareness of firefly conservation efforts in Lycoming County.

The Watersmith Guild plans to use $26,750 to run workshops in six western Pennsylvania counties. The “First Waves” project will teach young people to be waterway stewards through stream biology and climate change investigations, tree plantings, water samplings, and paddle boarding.

The National Audubon Society is getting $25,000 to develop a climate resilience and community health workshop series in Philadelphia.

In Dauphin County, the county conservation district will put $5,000 into educating homeowners about managing stormwater runoff.

The full list of awards can be found here .

Grants are open to schools and colleges, environmental and community-based organizations, county conservation districts, and businesses.

Groups can apply for the next round of grants later this summer.

Editor's Picks

Centralia, wash.’s coal plant has to close next year. can pa. communities learn from centralia’s transition, coal transition: how a weatherization grant helped a music venue build community, coal transition: betting on hydrogen with an energy technology grant, coal transition: raising fish and a workforce with an economic development grant, about stateimpact pennsylvania.

StateImpact Pennsylvania is a collaboration among WITF , WHYY , and the Allegheny Front . Reporters Reid Frazier , Rachel McDevitt and Susan Phillips  cover the commonwealth’s energy economy. Read their reports on this site, and hear them on public radio stations across Pennsylvania.

Climate Solutions partners

(listed by story count)

• The Marcellus Shale, Explained 873
• The Pennsylvania Guide to Hydraulic Fracturing, or 'Fracking' 740
• DEP: The Department That Regulates and Oversees Drilling 654
• Climate Change 581
• Delaware Watershed 454
• Mariner East: A pipeline project plagued by mishaps and delays 301
• Pipelines: The new battleground over fracking 216
• Your guide to pipelines 201
• Gov. Tom Wolf 185
• Tom Corbett (Pa. governor, 2011-2015) 169

Climate Solutions , a collaboration of news organizations, educational institutions and a theater company, uses engagement, education and storytelling to help central Pennsylvanians toward climate change literacy, resilience and adaptation. Our work will amplify how people are finding solutions to the challenges presented by a warming world.

StateImpact Pennsylvania Team

• Yekaterinburg
• Novosibirsk
• Vladivostok

• Tours to Russia
• Practicalities
• Russia in Lists

Rusmania • Deep into Russia

Out of the Centre

Savvino-storozhevsky monastery and museum.

Zvenigorod's most famous sight is the Savvino-Storozhevsky Monastery, which was founded in 1398 by the monk Savva from the Troitse-Sergieva Lavra, at the invitation and with the support of Prince Yury Dmitrievich of Zvenigorod. Savva was later canonised as St Sabbas (Savva) of Storozhev. The monastery late flourished under the reign of Tsar Alexis, who chose the monastery as his family church and often went on pilgrimage there and made lots of donations to it. Most of the monastery’s buildings date from this time. The monastery is heavily fortified with thick walls and six towers, the most impressive of which is the Krasny Tower which also serves as the eastern entrance. The monastery was closed in 1918 and only reopened in 1995. In 1998 Patriarch Alexius II took part in a service to return the relics of St Sabbas to the monastery. Today the monastery has the status of a stauropegic monastery, which is second in status to a lavra. In addition to being a working monastery, it also holds the Zvenigorod Historical, Architectural and Art Museum.

Belfry and Neighbouring Churches

Located near the main entrance is the monastery's belfry which is perhaps the calling card of the monastery due to its uniqueness. It was built in the 1650s and the St Sergius of Radonezh’s Church was opened on the middle tier in the mid-17th century, although it was originally dedicated to the Trinity. The belfry's 35-tonne Great Bladgovestny Bell fell in 1941 and was only restored and returned in 2003. Attached to the belfry is a large refectory and the Transfiguration Church, both of which were built on the orders of Tsar Alexis in the 1650s.  

To the left of the belfry is another, smaller, refectory which is attached to the Trinity Gate-Church, which was also constructed in the 1650s on the orders of Tsar Alexis who made it his own family church. The church is elaborately decorated with colourful trims and underneath the archway is a beautiful 19th century fresco.

Nativity of Virgin Mary Cathedral

The Nativity of Virgin Mary Cathedral is the oldest building in the monastery and among the oldest buildings in the Moscow Region. It was built between 1404 and 1405 during the lifetime of St Sabbas and using the funds of Prince Yury of Zvenigorod. The white-stone cathedral is a standard four-pillar design with a single golden dome. After the death of St Sabbas he was interred in the cathedral and a new altar dedicated to him was added.

Under the reign of Tsar Alexis the cathedral was decorated with frescoes by Stepan Ryazanets, some of which remain today. Tsar Alexis also presented the cathedral with a five-tier iconostasis, the top row of icons have been preserved.

Tsaritsa's Chambers

The Nativity of Virgin Mary Cathedral is located between the Tsaritsa's Chambers of the left and the Palace of Tsar Alexis on the right. The Tsaritsa's Chambers were built in the mid-17th century for the wife of Tsar Alexey - Tsaritsa Maria Ilinichna Miloskavskaya. The design of the building is influenced by the ancient Russian architectural style. Is prettier than the Tsar's chambers opposite, being red in colour with elaborately decorated window frames and entrance.

At present the Tsaritsa's Chambers houses the Zvenigorod Historical, Architectural and Art Museum. Among its displays is an accurate recreation of the interior of a noble lady's chambers including furniture, decorations and a decorated tiled oven, and an exhibition on the history of Zvenigorod and the monastery.

Palace of Tsar Alexis

The Palace of Tsar Alexis was built in the 1650s and is now one of the best surviving examples of non-religious architecture of that era. It was built especially for Tsar Alexis who often visited the monastery on religious pilgrimages. Its most striking feature is its pretty row of nine chimney spouts which resemble towers.

Plan your next trip to Russia

Ready-to-book tours.

Your holiday in Russia starts here. Choose and book your tour to Russia.

REQUEST A CUSTOMISED TRIP

Looking for something unique? Create the trip of your dreams with the help of our experts.

• Search Jobs
• Sign in or Create Account
• Why Choose UC

Ohio Innocence Project, Client Support Specialist

Current UC employees must apply internally via SuccessFactors > http://bit.ly/UCEMPL

Founded in 1819, the University of Cincinnati ranks among the nation’s best urban public research universities. Home to more than 50,000 students, 11,000 faculty and staff and 340,000 alumni, UC combines a Top 35 public research university with a physical setting The New York Times calls “the most ambitious campus design program in the country.”

With the launch of Next Lives Here, the Cincinnati Innovation District, a $100 million JobsOhio investment, nine straight years of record enrollment, worldwide leadership in cooperative education, a dynamic academic health center and entry into the Big 12 Conference, UC’s momentum has never been stronger. UC’s annual budget tops $1.65 billion and its endowment totals $1.8 billion. The University’s overall regional economic impact exceeds $10.6 billion, paving the way for the future of Cincinnati.

Provide direct social work and case management services to freed Ohio Innocence Project (OIP) clients.

• Meet with recently freed clients to assess needs, build rapport, and develop short- and long-term goals specific to economic, emotional, and physical stability.
• Facilitate necessary preparations for client release, including but not limited to provision and delivery of clothing, housing, vital documents, food, transportation, cell phone, and any other necessary goods and services.
• Facilitate necessary payment for immediate and subsequent client-post release needs, goods and services. 
• Work closely with OIP’s clinical director to provide post-release services, develop individualized service and case management plan, and make referrals to agencies and other providers of health care, psychological care, counseling, educational and employment services as needed.
• Develop client-focused initiatives and activities to help OIP clients successfully transition back into society.
• Ensure comprehensive client needs assessment for mental health, substance abuse, co-occurring disorders, and medical needs.
• Hold regular meetings and check-ins with clients and conduct follow-up as appropriate.
• Work closely with OIP’s director of policy and engagement on client-centered education and development programs.
• Establish and maintain consistent and thorough case files, and document findings in client records.
• Develop effective working relationships with external partners including other re-entry organizations, community mental health providers, and other service providers.
• Organize client-focused gatherings or events as appropriate.
• Work closely with OIP’s clinical director to design, implement and support clients’ involvement at the national innocence network’s annual conference.
• Work flexible work hours and some evenings and weekends.
• Perform related duties based on departmental need. This job description can be changed at any time.

Master's Degree in Social Work or related field

Bachelor's required, but 5 or more years of relevant work experience and/or other specialized training can be used in lieu of Mater's requirement.

Valid driver’s license with an acceptable record

• Three (3) years of experience in clinical counseling and working with social services, procuring public benefits, and/or enrollment in entitlement programs
• Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to collaborate
• Strong active listening skills and the ability to negotiate positive outcomes
• Strong organizational skills, including a well-developed attention to detail and follow through
• Ability to prioritize tasks, manage multiple projects at a time, work well under pressure, and meet deadlines in a fast-paced environment
• Creative problem-solving skills
• Licensed Clinical Social Worker or Licensed Clinical Counselor
• Experience working with formerly incarcerated population, their support networks, and community-based organizations in supporting re-entry
• Office environment/no specific unusual physical or environmental demands.

Compensation and Benefits

UC offers a wide array of complementary and affordable benefit options, to meet the financial, educational, health, and wellness needs of you and your family. Eligibility varies by position and FTE.

• Competitive salary range dependent on the candidate's experience.
• Comprehensive insurance plans including medical, dental, vision, and prescription coverage.
• Flexible spending accounts and an award-winning employee wellness program, plus an employee assistance program.
• Financial security via our life and long-term disability insurance, accident and illness insurance, and retirement savings plans.
• Generous paid time off work options including vacation, sick leave, annual holidays, and winter season days in addition to paid parental leave.
• Tuition remission is available for employees and their eligible dependents.
• Enjoy discounts for on and off-campus activities and services.

As a UC employee, and an employee of an Ohio public institution, if hired you will not contribute to the federal Social Security system, other than contributions to Medicare. Instead, UC employees have the option to contribute to a state retirement plan (OPERS, STRS) or an alternative retirement plan (ARP).

To learn more about why UC is a great place to work, please visit our careers page at https://www.uc.edu/careers.html .

For questions about the UC recruiting process or to request accommodations with the application, please contact Human Resources at [email protected] . 

The University of Cincinnati is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

REQ: 96140 

SF:OMJ SF:RM SF:HEJ, SF:INS SF:HERC SF:DIV SF:LJN SF:IHE

Cincinnati, OH, US

Nearest Major Market: Cincinnati Job Segment: Behavioral Health, Substance Abuse, Counseling, Developer, Healthcare, Technology, Research

• Clery and HEOA Notice
• Notice of Non-Discrimination
• eAccessibility Concern
• Privacy Statement

University of Cincinnati | 2600 Clifton Ave. | Cincinnati, OH 45221 | ph: 513-556-6000

An official website of the United States government

Here’s how you know

Official websites use .gov A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS A lock ( Lock A locked padlock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

JavaScript appears to be disabled on this computer. Please click here to see any active alerts .

Environmental Education (EE) Grants

The 2023 Environmental Education grant competition closed on November 8, 2023.

Under the Environmental Education Grants Program, EPA seeks grant applications from eligible applicants to support environmental education projects that promote environmental awareness and stewardship and help provide people with the skills to take responsible actions to protect the environment. This grant program provides financial support for projects that design, demonstrate, and/or disseminate environmental education practices, methods, or techniques. Since 1992, EPA has distributed between $2 and $3.5 million in grant funding per year, supporting more than 3,920 grants.

We encourage you to  subscribe to the EE Grants Listserv  and review our  answers to frequent questions  to stay up-to-date on all EPA Environmental Education information, including announcements related to future grant competitions.

You can find the most recent Request for Applications (RFA) on our Environmental Education (EE) Grant Solicitation Notice page.

How to Apply

Application forms.

• Helpful Resources
• Webinar / Teleconference Information
• Grants Awarded

Determine Eligibility.

• local education agency
• state education or environmental agency
• college or university
• non-profit organization as described in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code
• noncommercial educational broadcasting entity
• Tribal education agency (which includes schools and community colleges controlled by an Indian Tribe, band, or nation and which are recognized as eligible for special programs and services provided by the United States to Indians because of their status as Indians and which are not administered by the Bureau of Indian Education.)
• Applicant organizations must be located in the United States or territories and the majority of the educational activities must take place in the United States; or in the United States and Canada or Mexico; or in the U.S. Territories.

Complete the Application and Budget Forms, according to the directions in Section IV of the NOFO.

Submit the Applications Materials.

• Applications must be submitted electronically through www.grants.gov , by following the instructions in Section IV of the NOFA.

You are required to submit standard government forms as part of your application. Please refer to the latest solicitation notice for specific requirements.

Helpful Resources for Applying

• Learn how to apply for a grant through www.grants.gov with a video tutorial series.
• Learn how to Develop a Budget with a video tutorial series .
• Find general resources on how to apply for an EPA grant and training on grants management .
• Application Checklist of Required Elements of an Application (docx) (41 KB)
• Work Plan Template (docx) (42.4 KB)
• Logic Model (docx) (39.8 KB)
• Detailed Budget Table (docx) (39.8 KB)
• Timeline (docx) (45.8 KB)
• Community Description (docx) (89.4 KB)
• Review the Frequently Asked Questions about the EE Grant Program

Webinar and Teleconference Information

The EPA Office of Grants and Debarment offers periodic webinars on general issues relating to grant applications and management.

The Office of Environmental Education hosted a webinar where EE Grants Program staff provided a general overview of the 2023 Environmental Education Local Grants Notice of Funding Opportunities, discussed how to write a competitive application, and addressed commonly asked questions.

2023 Informational Webinar Details

• A recording of the October 12, 2023 webinar can be found below.
• FY23 EE Grant webinar recording EPA Environmental Education Grants Webinar, October 12, 2023 – Helpful Links (pdf) (130.7 KB)

Archived PowerPoint Presentations and Transcripts

• FY21 EE Grant PowerPoint and transcript (pdf) (2.5 MB)

EPA Contacts for EE Grants

If you have questions regarding an open EE grants solicitation, please send them to [email protected] or read the Frequently Asked Questions for the current RFA. For other any questions regarding the environmental education grants program, please contact your regional coordinator.

CT, ME, MA, NH, RI, VT

Olivia Lopez U.S. EPA, Region 1 5 Post Office Square, Suite 100 Mail Code: ORA 1-4 Boston, MA 02109-3912 [email protected]

NJ, NY, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands

Chiamaka Alozie  U.S. EPA, Region 2 290 Broadway 26th Floor New York, NY 10007-1866 [email protected]  

DE, DC, MD, PA, VA, WV

Stephanie Branche U.S. EPA, Region 3 1650 Arch Street Mail Code: 3OCTEA Philadelphia, PA 19103-2029 [email protected]

AL, FL, GA, KY, MS, NC, SC, TN

Melba Table U.S. EPA, Region 4 61 Forsyth Street SW Mail Code: 9T25 Atlanta, GA 30303 Region4ee @epa.gov

IL, IN, MI, MN, OH, WI

Megan Gavin U.S. EPA, Region 5 77 West Jackson Boulevard Mail Code: RM-19J Chicago, IL 60604 [email protected]

AR, LA, NM, OK, TX

Alexandra Olson U.S. EPA, Region 6 1201 Elm Street, Suite 500 Dallas, TX 75270 [email protected]

IA, KS, MO, NE

Brandy Reed U.S. EPA, Region 7 11201 Renner Blvd. Mail Code: ORA/OIA Lenexa, KS 66219 [email protected]

CO, MT, ND, SD, UT, WY

Wendy Dew U.S. EPA, Region 8 1595 Wynkoop Street Mail Code: 80C Denver, CO 80202-1129 [email protected]

AZ, CA, HI, NV, American Samoa, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Guam, Marshall Islands, Republic of Palau

Eileen Shanahan U.S. EPA, Region 9 75 Hawthorne Street Mail Code: OPA-1 San Francisco, CA 94105 [email protected]

AK, ID, OR, WA

Sally Hanft U.S. EPA, Region 10 1200 Sixth Avenue, Suite 900 Mail Code: RAD 12-D12 Seattle, WA 98101 [email protected]

Headquarters - Washington, DC

Michael Band U.S. EPA, Headquarters 1200 Pennsylvania Ave, NW Mail Code: 1704A Washington, DC 20460 [email protected]

EE Grants Awarded Since 1992

Grantees are located in all 50 states and various U.S. territories. Each grant addresses one or more environmental issue, and an educational priority such as teacher training, educational advancement, or career development. More than 3,800 grants have been awarded nationwide since 1992.

Explore EE Grant Projects

View a searchable list of all environmental education grants to explore details about the types of projects supported by the EE grants program. The list can be filtered by year, state, and EPA Region and the data can be downloaded. You can also conduct a keyword search to find grants, such as those related to environmental topics, types of audiences, and educational methods.

National Environmental Education Statistics

View charts and data that depict national statistics for all EE Grants awarded since 1992. The charts illustrate the number of EE grants and amount of funds awarded competitively through the EE grants program, including:

EE Grants Listserv

Sign up to receive updates about the environmental education grant program.

EE Grant Calculator

EE grants are required to have a non-federal match of 25% of the total cost of the project. Additionally, 25% of EPA funding must be used for subawards, with each subaward having a value of $5,000 or less. Use this simple calculator to figure out your requirements.

Enter Your Request

Your results, alert alert questions.

• Review the Frequent Questions about the EE Grant Program.
• Read about previous grants.
• For specific questions regarding the EE Grants Program, email  [email protected] . 
• Environmental Education Home
• Learn About Environmental Education
• National Environmental Education Advisory Council (NEEAC)
• National Environmental Education Training Program
• Presidential Innovation Award for Environmental Educators
• President's Environmental Youth Award
• Grant Solicitation Notice

Norilsk: The city built by gulag prisoners where Russia guards its Arctic secrets

Environmental activists are frustrated by how authorities handled a diesel spill which poured into two Arctic rivers in late May.

International correspondent @DiMagnaySky

Friday 3 July 2020 23:41, UK

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

The drive from Norilsk airport to the city takes you past mile after mile of crumbling, Soviet-era factories.

It looks like an endless, rusting scrapyard - a jumble of pipes, industrial junk and frost-bitten brickwork. If you were looking for an industrial apocalypse film setting, this would be your place - but you're unlikely to get the permissions.

Norilsk was built in Stalin's times by gulag prisoners. This gritty industrial city is a testament to their endurance both of the cruelty of Stalin's regime and of the harsh polar climate. There were no thoughts then on how to build to protect the environment, just to survive it.

Vasily Ryabinin doesn't think much has changed, at least in ecological terms. He used to work for the local branch of the federal environmental watchdog, Rosprirodnadzor, but quit in June after exposing what he says was a failure to investigate properly the environmental impact of the gigantic diesel spill which poured into two Arctic rivers in late May.

At 21,000 tonnes, it was the largest industrial spill in the polar Arctic .

Despite the Kremlin declaring a federal emergency and sending a host of different agencies to participate in the clean-up, just last week Mr Ryabinin and activists from Greenpeace Russia found another area where technical water used in industrial processes was being pumped directly into the tundra from a nearby tailing pond. Russia's investigative committee has promised to investigate.

"The ecological situation here is so bad," Mr Ryabinin says.

"The latest constructions such as the tailing pond at the Talnack ore-processing plant were built exclusively by Nornickel chief executive Vladimir Potanin's team and supposedly in accordance with ecological standards, but on satellite images you can see that all the lakes in the vicinity have unnatural colours and obviously something has got into them."

Mining company Nornickel would disagree. It has admitted flagrant violations at the tailing pond and suspended staff it deems responsible at both the Talnack plant and at Norilsk Heat and Power plant no 3 where the diesel spill originated from.

On Thursday it appointed Andrey Bougrov, from its senior management board, to the newly-created role of senior vice president for environmental protection. It has a clear environmental strategy, provides regular updates on the status of the spill, and its Twitter feed is filled with climate-related alerts.

But what investors read is very different to the picture on the ground.

Norilsk used to be a closed city - one of dozens across the Soviet Union shut off to protect industrial secrets. Foreigners need special permissions approved by the Federal Security Service (FSB) to enter the region. It would take an invitation from Nornickel to make that happen and, for the past month since the spill, that has not been forthcoming.

Unlike in Soviet times, Russian citizens are now free to come and go. That's why our Sky News Moscow team were able to fly in and travel around the city, even if getting to the spill site was blocked. What they were able to film provides a snapshot of the immense challenge Russia faces in upgrading its Soviet-era industrial infrastructure, particularly at a time when climate change is melting the permafrost on which much of it was built.

Just downwind from one of the rusting factories on the city outskirts is a huge expanse of dead land. The skeletal remains of trees stand forlorn against the howling Arctic winds. Sulphur dioxide poisoning has snuffed the life out of all that lived here. Norilsk is the world's worst emitter of sulphur dioxide by a substantial margin.

"For 80km south of here everything is dead," Mr Ryabinin says, "and for at least 10km in that direction too. Everything here depends on the wind."

Immediately after the spill, Mr Ryabinin filmed and took samples from the Daldykan river just a few kilometres from the fuel tank which had leaked. By that point the river was a churning mix of diesel and red sludge dredged up from the riverbed by the force of the leak. Norilsk's rivers have turned red before and the chemical residues have sunk to the bottom, killing all life there. Nothing has lived in those rivers for decades.

In his capacity as deputy head of the local environmental watchdog, Mr Ryabinin says he insisted that he be allowed to fly further north to check the levels of contamination in Lake Pyasino and beyond.

Nornickel at the time claimed the lake was untouched by the spill. Mr Ryabinin says his boss encouraged him to let things be.

"I can't be sure I would have found anything, but this sort of confrontation - making sure I didn't go there with a camera, let alone with bottles for taking samples, it was all very clear to me. It was the final straw."

Rosprirodnadzor refused to comment to Sky News on Mr Ryabinin's allegations or suggestions that the agency was working hand in hand with Nornickel.

Georgy Kavanosyan is an environmental blogger with a healthy 37,000 following on YouTube. Shortly after the spill, he set out for Lake Pyasino and to the Pyasina River beyond to see how far the diesel had spread.

"We set out at night so that the Norilsk Nickel security wouldn't detect us. I say at night, but they've got polar nights there now, north of the Arctic Circle. So it's still light but it's quieter and we managed to go past all the cordons."

He is one of the few to have provided evidence that the diesel has in fact travelled far beyond where the company admits. Not just the 1,200km (745m) length of Lake Pyasino but into the river beyond.

He says his measurements indicated a volume of hydrocarbons dissolved in the water of between two and three times normal levels. He thinks after he published his findings on YouTube, the authorities' vigilance increased.

Greenpeace Russia have spent the last two weeks trying to obtain samples from Lake Pyasino and the surrounding area. They have faced difficulties getting around and flying their samples out for independent analysis.

They are now waiting for results from a laboratory in St Petersburg but say the samples remain valid technically for just four days after collection and that they weren't able to make that deadline due to the authorities' actively obstructing their work.

Elena Sakirko from Greenpeace Russia specialises in oil spills and says this has happened to her before. This time, a police helicopter flew to the hunter's hut where they were staying and confiscated the fuel for the boat they were using. Then a deputy for the Moscow city parliament tasked with bringing the samples back from Norilsk was forced to go back empty-handed.

"We were told at the airport we needed permission from the security department of Nornickel," Ms Sakirko says. "We asked them to show us some law or statement to prove that this was legal or what the basis for this was, but they haven't showed us anything and we still don't understand it."

Nornickel announced this week that the critical stage of the diesel spill is over. The company is now finalising dates for a press tour for foreign media and for other international environmentalists.

Mr Ryabinin thinks this should have happened weeks ago.

"If we don't let scientists come to the Arctic region to evaluate the impact of the accident, then in the future if anything similar happens, we won't know what to do."

A spokesperson for Nornickel said the company "is actively cooperating with the scientific community and will meticulously assess both the causes and effects of the accident."

Nornickel considers permafrost thawing to be the primary cause of the accident, but is waiting for the end of investigation before making a final statement, the spokesperson said.

They added that the company "accepts full responsibility for the incidents on its sites these past two months and holds itself accountable for any infrastructural deficits or poor decisions by personnel.

"The imperative is to do everything to clean up our sites, instil a stronger culture of transparency and safety in our workforce, and ensure that such situations do not occur in the future."