Ecological Identity through Dialogue (original) (raw)
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Environmental Identity and Natural Resources: A Dialogical Learning Process
In this article, we elaborate on the role of dialogical learning in identity formation in the context of environmental education. First, we distinguish this kind of learning from conditioning and reproductive learning. We also show that identity learning is not self-evident and we point out the role of emotions. Using Dialogical Self Theory, we then suggest that individuals do not have an " identity hierarchy " but a dialogical self that attaches meaning to experiences in both conscious and unconscious ways. We describe the learning process that enables the dialogical self to develop itself, and we elaborate on the characteristics of a good dialogue. We conclude with some remarks expanding room for a dialogue that would foster identity learning.
Dialogue as a basis for the design of environmental pedagogies
Colonizing processes take many forms. Although they are generally related to the use of force, they may also happen through subtler means such as education, and subconsciously, whenever educational proposals are designed to suit a wide variety of contexts. This essay suggests that environmental pedagogies should be based on a dialogical mindset and methods, where all participants are seen as subjects and there is no desire to coerce, seduce, correct, convert or persuade others. Based on the bibliographical review, the article unveils the concept of dialogue and recommends four important skills for the creation of dialogical spaces. In times when cultural standardization leads to environmental degradation, dialogical pedagogies foster a better comprehension of individuals’ and collectives’ identities and, by doing so, collaborate with the maintenance of socio-diversity.
Martin Buber’s Philosophy of Dialogue as a Foundation for Environmental Ethics
B.A. (Hons) Thesis, Department of Philosophy, National University of Singapore, 1998
The environmental crisis has motivated the rise of the green movement, and this has been accompanied with the articulation and development of various environmental ethical accounts. In my thesis I shall propose and defend an application of Martin Buber’s philosophy of dialogue as a foundation for environmental ethics. I argue that a philosophy which is to serve as a foundation for environmental ethics has to be able to explain why the environmental crisis has come about, and it also has to show how we can enter into a sound relationship with Nature characterised by respect instead of destructive exploitation.
Narrative Inquiry into the Formative Aspects of Ecological Identity
2004
New leadership continues the vision…………………………… p.10 Rescue Mission Planet Earth…………………………………… p.12 Globe Education Program……………………………………… p.14 Whycocomagh students enter global stage……………………… p.15 A time of victory and a time of loss……………………………… p.17 Eco-lab Development……..…………………………………… p.19 My Background Within This Research Landscape……………………… p.20 Quantitative versus Qualitative Approach to Methodology……. p.21 Spirit Tree Project………………………………………………. p.22 The Mentorship of Five preservice teachers………………… p.22
Ecopedagogy Learning How to Participate in Ecological Consciousn
Consciousness: Ideas and Research for the Twenty First Century, 2019
This paper is the result of an inquiry into ecological consciousness through a participatory paradigm. The dialectical relationship between institutionalized education and consciousness is central to this inquiry’s focus. This exploration into ecological consciousness has lead to the following question: How can institutionalized education be designed, delivered, and experienced in a way that nurtures ecological intelligence, ecological consciousness, and more importantly, ecological activism? The ‘sense of self ‘is a central theme within the paper, and led to the conception of intraearthal and interearthal relationships as a way of communicating our need to identify as being in Earth. The author utilizes an arts-based approach of integrating photography as a means for exploring and communicating the topic. The paper arrives at the conclusion of the vital nature of an ecopedagogy that is highly experiential by design and delivery. The overall inquiry also leads to a place of acknowledging the challenges of nurturing an ecological sense of self within modern sociocultural contexts that can be systemically ecocidal.
Philosophical Hermeneutics and Critical Pedagogy in Environmental Education Research and Practice
The contributions and challenges of Gadamer's philosophical hermeneutics and Freire's critical pedagogy to research and practice in environmental education are considered. We present the authors' main concepts and relate them to the principles of critical environmental education that have guided our work in Bra-zil. Although a raft of current non-anthropocentric theories question the pivotal role of language in representing experience, our purpose is to outline a critical dialogical perspective suitable for particular education contexts. The respect for the otherness of nature implicit in this process can lead to the recognition and acceptance of our own selves and new forms of solidarity and respect for others, including nonhuman nature. Our interpretive-pedagogical approach informs some of the underlying principles or practices of the critical dimension of environmental education and its research. Résumé Les contributions et défis de l'herméneutique philosophique de Gadamer et de la pédagogie critique de Freire quant à la recherche et la pratique en éducation environnementale sont examinés. Nous présentons les principaux concepts de ces auteurs et les associons aux principes d'éducation environnementale critique qui ont orienté nos travaux au Brésil. Bien qu'un ensemble de théories non anthropocentriques ayant actuellement cours mettent en question le rôle essentiel de la langue dans la représentation de l'expérience, notre objectif consiste à énoncer une perspective dialogique critique destinée aux contextes d'enseignement particuliers. Le respect du caractère unique de la nature inhérent à ce processus peut mener à la reconnaissance et à l'acceptation de soi-même et à de nouvelles formes de solidarité et de respect pour autrui, y compris pour la nature non humaine. Notre approche interprétative et pédagogique est à la base de certains des principes ou pratiques sous-jacents de la dimension critique de l'éducation environnementale et de la recherche dans le domaine.
Environmental consciousness, nature, and the philosophy of education: some key themes
Environmental Education Research, 2021
This book explores alternative ways of understanding our environmental situation by challenging the Western view of nature as purely a resource for humans. Environmental Consciousness, Nature and the Philosophy of Education asserts that we need to retrieve a thinking that expresses a different relationship with nature: one that celebrates nature's otherness and is attuned to its intrinsic integrity, agency, normativity, and worth. Through such receptivity to nature's address, we can develop a sense of our own being-in-nature that provides a positive orientation towards the problems we now face. Michael Bonnett argues that this reframing and rethinking of our place in nature has fundamental implications for education as a whole, questioning the idea of human "stewardship" of nature and developing the idea of moral education in a world of alterity and non-rational agents. Drawing on and revising work published by the author over the last 15 years, this book will be essential reading for students and scholars of environmental studies, environmental education, and the philosophy of education. Michael Bonnett has published widely in the field of philosophy of education, giving particular attention to ideas of learning, thinking, personal authenticity, and the character of the teacher-pupil relationship in education. His book Children's Thinking: Promoting Understanding in the Primary School (1994) explored the importance of poetic thinking for education. More recently, his focus has been on aspects of sustainability and environmental education, including developing a phenomenology of nature and exploring ways in which human consciousness is inherently environmental. His book Retrieving Nature: Education for a Post-Humanist Age was published in 2004, and his edited collection Moral Education and Environmental Concern was published in 2014 by Routledge. ENVIRONMENTAL CONSCIOUSNESS, NATURE AND THE PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION This series brings together international educators and researchers working from a variety of perspectives to explore and present best practice for research and teaching in environmental studies. Given the urgency of environmental problems, our approach to the research and teaching of environmental studies is crucial. Reflecting on examples of success and failure within the field, this collection showcases authors from a diverse range of environmental disciplines including climate change, environmental communication and sustainable development. Lessons learned from interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary research are presented, as well as teaching and classroom methodology for specific countries and disciplines.
2009
This chapter explains why emotions and psyche (and therefore conscience and consciousness in general) have been consistently neglected within education for sustainability, education for sustainable development and their precursors. This is in spite of pioneers like Sir Julian Huxley, the first Director General of UNESCO, and other influential holistic and evolutionary thinkers demonstrating that psycho-emotional capacities must be considered as essential parts of the ecosystem. It shows that the reasons for the resistance to them, ie. in environmental circles, are themselves psychological (and political) and why EfS/ESD have, therefore, not been as effective as they could be. Highlighting important but neglected systemiic thinkers, the article demonstrates how vital it is to include psycho-emotional dimensions and how, without them, EfS/ESD, plus the understanding of ecological problems in general, cannot be considered holistic. Hence the article completes the holistic circle and argues that not to do so not only continues to sabotage the effectiveness of EfS/ESD but also perpetuates the most dangerous and destructive belief that the most human of capacities, the psycho-emotional dimension, are separate from and independent of the ecosystem and ecological breakdown. The relationship between emotions and belief systems is explained, as is how these fit into and enhance the areas most emphasized in EfS/ESD. The recognition and serious application of understanding about the role of psycho-emotional characteristics, such as desire and fear, in learning and resistance is shown actually to be a re-habilitation and development of basic premises of early environmental education.