PS 1-7 - MOVED TO BOARD 6 ON WED - Toward a Global Framework of Education for Ecology

Background/Question/Methods

The multifaceted character of the ecological crisis calls for comprehensive frameworks of action across timescales, sectors, and systems. We are living at times where our abilities to rethink our relationships with and within the planetary systems will prove determinant. In this context, and because of the intrinsic social and political character of ecological issues, questions of education on ecology must hold a central place in our discussions. I argue that we cannot align our actions to the socio-ecological systems we live in without providing everyone with the opportunities, skills, and abilities to learn and live within these systems. I suggest engaging in a collective project of crafting comprehensive educational frameworks of ecology.

Until now, the global educational response to ecological issues has been fragmented and gaps remain in education systems’ abilities to provide an understanding of ecological processes. With the aim of supporting the global community’s effort to bridge the transformative potential of education with the need for coordinated action to answer ecological challenges, I ask: How can a global framework of education for ecology contribute to answering transnational ecological issues? Through a mapping of educational governance and ecological literacy, I provide pathways for advancement in the field of education.

Results/Conclusions

This research offers political guidance to the international community on possible governing structures and educational content of a global framework of education for ecology. The preliminary results suggest the need for a global framework that is rooted in collective thinking and aware of the deep interconnections between the living and non-living world. In terms of governance, this means we need an educational framework that embodies the interconnection of all members of the living and nonliving world and builds its institutional structures accordingly. It must also rely on governing structures that are coordinated, inclusive, multi-scalar, and horizontal. Inspired by the literature on polycentric systems of governance, a global framework of education could be designed so that all governing scales, from local to global, are based on equal relationships. In terms of approaches to education, collective thinking calls upon radical shifts in the way we think about our agency in the world and requires humans to accept we are one species among so many others. This means educational programs must foster a general understanding of social and ecological systems, of local ecosystems and their interconnectedness with global systems, of related social and ecological justice issues, and of global citizenship values.