This paper develops and explores "lehae-la-rona" and its potential value in environment and sustainability discourse. It draws on African-centred concepts and critiques of dominant Eurocentric theoretical frameworks. In particular, Ani's concepts of "asili," "utamawazo" and "utamaroho" and Indigenous…

In December 2009, the author traveled to the Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan for a week-long workshop, "Educating for Gross National Happiness." At the invitation of the royal government, international participants joined with local teachers, principals, and students to discover ways that Bhutanese schools could better support the country's…

Sites contaminated by heavy metals, such as industrial waste sites, create unwelcoming environments for plant growth. Heavy metals can have a wide range of toxic effects such as replacing essential elements or disrupting enzyme function. While some heavy metals are essential to plant nutrition at low concentrations, high concentrations of any…

"Watershed Manager" is a spreadsheet-based model that is used in extension education programs for learning about and selecting cost-effective watershed management practices to reduce soil, nitrogen, and phosphorus losses from cropland. It can facilitate Watershed Restoration and Protection Strategy (WRAPS) stakeholder groups' development…

While a growing body of research indicates the severe ecological and social costs of biofuel production worldwide, the U.S. government continues to promote the expansion of this fuel sector. Recent congressional testimony regarding the promotion of biofuels via the renewable fuel standard (RFS) offers a strategic research site for sociological…

This introductory article for a themed edition on environmentalism provides a particular context for those articles that follow, each of which engages with different aspects of environmentalism and performance in community-related settings. Responding to the proposition of Bottoms that there is a lacuna in the field of applied drama and…

This article explores and documents the work of leading Midwestern performance artist Julie Laffin, in the years since she developed a serious form of environmental illness (Multiple Chemical Sensitivity). This condition has effectively rendered her housebound and unable to appear in public, so that her previous live performance practice--which…

The modern world is characterized by the extensive use of concrete and asphalt pavement. Periodically, these materials are replaced and the old materials disposed of. In this challenge, students will be asked to develop ways to reuse the old materials. It is important for students to understand how concrete and asphalt are made and applied, as…

Recent years have seen a significant increase in the importance of environmental protection and sustainability to consumers, policy makers, and society in general. Reflecting this, most organizations are at least aware of this new agenda and wish to be seen as taking steps to improve behaviors in this regard. However, there appears to be a gap…

Although studies examining student understanding of key concepts are common throughout the science education literature, few have examined science concepts linked to conservation or environmental issues such as global warming and alternative energy. How students make sense of these complex concepts has the potential to influence their role as…

Public and private universities tasked with incorporating principles of social responsibility (SR) into their activities face the multiple challenges of addressing expectations of diverse stakeholders, establishing mechanisms for dialogue, and achieving greater information transparency. This article has two goals: first, to analyze whether SR has…

Extension, with its access to long-term volunteers, has the unique ability to teach citizen scientists about the connection between climate variability and the resulting effects on plants, animals, and thus, humans. The USA National Phenology Network's Nature's Notebook on-line program provides a science learning tool for Extension's Master…

Despite international attention and attempts to preserve the environmental diversity of the Amazon, it is an accepted fact that those who inhabit the forest must be the ones who preserve it. This article presents an analysis of how children in small rural riverine communities along the Amazon understand the importance of environmental preservation…

The happy chatter and clatter of students bounce off the lunchroom walls at a Northside Elementary School in Sandpoint, Idaho as children eagerly gobble their food and slurp their drinks. Boys and girls with crinkled brown bag lunches filled with disposable products sit next to students with trays heaped with hot lunch and all manner of synthetic…

What promotes action competence for sustainability? This question is phenomenologically explored through researching in depth the life stories of three Swedish young adults who for several years have limited their own ecological footprints, led environmental initiatives of activist character, engaged in ecosystem protection, and participated in…