The Failure of Environmental Education (and How We Can Fix It)

About this book

At a time when wild places everywhere are vanishing before our eyes, this volume offers a passionate indictment of environmental education - along with a new vision for the future.

Writing for general readers and educators alike, Saylan and Blumstein boldly argue that education today has failed to reach its potential in fighting climate change, biodiversity loss, and environmental degradation. They assess the current political climate, including the No Child Left Behind Act, a disaster for environmental education, and discuss how education can stimulate action - including decreasing consumption and demand, developing sustainable food and energy sources, and addressing poverty.

Contents

Preface 1. The Problem(s) 2. Foundations 3. What Went Wrong 4. Accountability and Institutional Mind-Set 5. The Needs of Environmentally Active Citizens 6. Between Awareness and Action 7. A Political Primer 8. Consumption, Conservation, and Change 9. An Evolving Metric 10. And How We Can Fix It Appendix: Greening Schools for Alternative Education Notes Selected Bibliography Acknowledgments Index

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Biography

Charles Saylan is Executive Director of the Ocean Conservation Society. Daniel T. Blumstein is Professor and Chair in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and Professor at the Institute of the Environment at the University of California, Los Angeles. His previous books include A Primer of Conservation Behavior.