In this book, Paul Clarke argues that in order to live sustainably we need to learn how to live and flourish in our environment in a manner that uses finite resources with ecologically informed discretion. Education is perfectly placed to create the conditions for innovative and imaginative solutions and to provide the formulas that ensure that…

This study examined the mental models of the desert environment held by fourth- and seventh-grade students in the USA and whether those mental models could be affected by: (1) classroom field trips to a desert riparian preserve, and (2) interaction with family members at the same preserve. Results generally indicated that students in this study…

There are thousands of school gardens in the United States, and there is anecdotal evidence that school garden programs can enhance students' learning in academic, social, and health-related domains. There has been little rigorous research, however, on the effects of school gardens or on the factors that promote the sustainability of these…

It is no coincidence that many of the "Grand Challenges for Engineering" (National Academy of Engineering, 2007-2010)--such as carbon sequestration--address environmental problems that were precipitated by human inventiveness and engineering achievements. Although people recognize their dependence upon environmental processes to provide…

This article explores the problematic tensions between schooling and environmental education in the United States, with a special focus on the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. Today in the United States, this powerful federal legislation dominates the discourse and practice of schooling, and works against the aims of environmental education in…

How to design environmental education (EE) programs in ways that encourage children to influence the environmental knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors of adults has intrigued researchers for more than a decade. The authors review and synthesize results from 7 studies that sought to answer this question. The studies reviewed were conducted between…

The Building Migratory Bridges (BOMB) program--a collaboration between the Marvel wood School and Audubon Sharon in Connecticut and Conservation Research Education Action (CR EA), a U.S. not-for-profit in Panama--uses nontropical migratory bird research in the United States and Panama to demonstrate how negative environmental impacts in one…

Short-term study abroad (STSA) is an important alternative for students not likely to participate in semester-long or yearlong international study abroad programs. The authors present an assessment of their short-term study abroad program, Environmental and Cultural Conservation in Latin America. The authors show that STSA programs appeal to…