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Papers by Laura Sims

Research paper thumbnail of Rethinking Environmental Management: Revisiting Bryant and Wilson ten years later

In 1998, a milestone was reached in the field of environmental management with the release of Ray... more In 1998, a milestone was reached in the field of environmental management with the release of Raymond Bryant and Geoff Wilson’s article “Rethinking Environmental Management” in the journal Progress in Human Geography. In it, the authors were critical of the field of environmental management, which they thought had become an expert-driven, top-down exercise in ‘environmental managerialism’. This theme issue of Environments seeks to revisit the critiques raised by Bryant and Wilson and to assess the extent to which the authors’ argument holds true today. It builds on a series of papers presented in a special session of the 2008 annual meeting of the Canadian Association of Geographers (CAG) which was designed to celebrate the ten-year anniversary of Bryant and Wilson’s provocative article.

Research paper thumbnail of Developing Competencies for Education for Sustainable Development: A Case Study of Canadian Faculties of Education

International Journal of Higher Education, 2013

Education is paramount when trying to enable a change in values and attitudes towards sustainabil... more Education is paramount when trying to enable a change in values and attitudes towards sustainability. Higher education in faculties of education plays an important role in working toward this change because of its impact on future and practicing teachers in the school systems. This study inquires into the current role of education for sustainable development (ESD) in undergraduate and graduate teacher education programs at Canadian universities, with a particular focus on promising practices and initiatives toward a reorientation of teacher education for sustainability. A qualitative case study approach was used identifying promising initiatives as well as challenges and enablers of reorienting teacher education toward sustainability at four Canadian universities. The discussion of results is framed by how identified initiatives relate to the development of core ESD competences for educators as established by UNECE (2012). The results of the study suggest the importance of experiential, inter-disciplinary and inter-institutional learning, of problem-based learning around real-life issues with community and the natural environment, and of building partnerships with colleagues, students, and community organizations.

Research paper thumbnail of Enabling a Voice for the Marginalized: Global examples of community-based approaches to natural resource management

Environments: a journal of interdisciplinary …, 2009

Bryant and Wilson (1998) criticized conventional environmental management as being largely a tech... more Bryant and Wilson (1998) criticized conventional environmental management as being largely a techno-centric state legacy. They argued that there is a clear need for environmental management to be an inclusive process involving multiple stakeholders, ...

Research paper thumbnail of Learning Through Participatory Resource Management Programs: Case Studies From Costa Rica

Adult Education Quarterly, 2008

Based on an ongoing qualitative case study in Costa Rica, this article presents the participatory... more Based on an ongoing qualitative case study in Costa Rica, this article presents the participatory work that the Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad (ICE) is doing with farmers to protect watersheds from erosion and contamination. Specifically, it includes a description of ICE's Watershed Management Agricultural Programme and how farmers participate in it and a qualitative analysis of the kind of learning

Research paper thumbnail of Community-based approaches to strategic environmental assessment: Lessons from Costa Rica

Environmental Impact Assessment Review, 2009

... In the two watersheds, there were a total of 82 community participants, 80 of them primarily ... more ... In the two watersheds, there were a total of 82 community participants, 80 of them primarily small-scale farmers and two interested community members, who participated in at least one of the workshops and 11 governmental institution employees who attended. ...

Research paper thumbnail of Rethinking Environmental Management: Revisiting Bryant and Wilson ten years later

In 1998, a milestone was reached in the field of environmental management with the release of Ray... more In 1998, a milestone was reached in the field of environmental management with the release of Raymond Bryant and Geoff Wilson’s article “Rethinking Environmental Management” in the journal Progress in Human Geography. In it, the authors were critical of the field of environmental management, which they thought had become an expert-driven, top-down exercise in ‘environmental managerialism’. This theme issue of Environments seeks to revisit the critiques raised by Bryant and Wilson and to assess the extent to which the authors’ argument holds true today. It builds on a series of papers presented in a special session of the 2008 annual meeting of the Canadian Association of Geographers (CAG) which was designed to celebrate the ten-year anniversary of Bryant and Wilson’s provocative article.

Research paper thumbnail of Developing Competencies for Education for Sustainable Development: A Case Study of Canadian Faculties of Education

International Journal of Higher Education, 2013

Education is paramount when trying to enable a change in values and attitudes towards sustainabil... more Education is paramount when trying to enable a change in values and attitudes towards sustainability. Higher education in faculties of education plays an important role in working toward this change because of its impact on future and practicing teachers in the school systems. This study inquires into the current role of education for sustainable development (ESD) in undergraduate and graduate teacher education programs at Canadian universities, with a particular focus on promising practices and initiatives toward a reorientation of teacher education for sustainability. A qualitative case study approach was used identifying promising initiatives as well as challenges and enablers of reorienting teacher education toward sustainability at four Canadian universities. The discussion of results is framed by how identified initiatives relate to the development of core ESD competences for educators as established by UNECE (2012). The results of the study suggest the importance of experiential, inter-disciplinary and inter-institutional learning, of problem-based learning around real-life issues with community and the natural environment, and of building partnerships with colleagues, students, and community organizations.

Research paper thumbnail of Enabling a Voice for the Marginalized: Global examples of community-based approaches to natural resource management

Environments: a journal of interdisciplinary …, 2009

Bryant and Wilson (1998) criticized conventional environmental management as being largely a tech... more Bryant and Wilson (1998) criticized conventional environmental management as being largely a techno-centric state legacy. They argued that there is a clear need for environmental management to be an inclusive process involving multiple stakeholders, ...

Research paper thumbnail of Learning Through Participatory Resource Management Programs: Case Studies From Costa Rica

Adult Education Quarterly, 2008

Based on an ongoing qualitative case study in Costa Rica, this article presents the participatory... more Based on an ongoing qualitative case study in Costa Rica, this article presents the participatory work that the Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad (ICE) is doing with farmers to protect watersheds from erosion and contamination. Specifically, it includes a description of ICE's Watershed Management Agricultural Programme and how farmers participate in it and a qualitative analysis of the kind of learning

Research paper thumbnail of Community-based approaches to strategic environmental assessment: Lessons from Costa Rica

Environmental Impact Assessment Review, 2009

... In the two watersheds, there were a total of 82 community participants, 80 of them primarily ... more ... In the two watersheds, there were a total of 82 community participants, 80 of them primarily small-scale farmers and two interested community members, who participated in at least one of the workshops and 11 governmental institution employees who attended. ...

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