Thesis (M. Sc.)--University of Hong Kong, 2005.

Thesis (B.A.)--Haverford College, Dept. of Philosophy, 2004. / Includes bibliographical references.

<p> This paper argues the importance of communicating messages to a general public about the important issues of the environmental state of the Earth, and it proposes that solutions need to be offered to help each individual act ecologically responsibly when using Earth&rsquo;s natural resources. Further, this paper suggests that choosing an effective medium to engage in communication with a general public is crucial.</p><p> To this end, I asked two questions that formed the basis of my research: 1. What research or personal experiences suggest that there is an urgent need to communicate messages to a general public about the environmental state of the Earth? 2. Assuming the Earth is in a dire state and its environmental well-being is in jeopardy, through which medium of communication might one achieve the most widespread and significant impact in an effort to spread environmental messages?</p><p> I realized that the best way for the general public to become informed and guided is via short, dramatized films that take one environmental subject at a time, bring attention to an issue, and suggest a solution that each individual can exercise. A short film on fossil fuel use, specifically electricity, serves as the data section of my thesis, and I reflect on the making of that film in my conclusion.</p>

<p> This dissertation analyzes efforts to understand and build urban ecosystem health and justice, extending scholarly literatures on urban ecology, political ecology and environmental justice. Through examination of cases from around the world, as well as from my own sustained work in Albany, New York, the research demonstrates that urban ecosystem health and justice has powerful cultural, social and political economic dimensions as well as (more often acknowledged) ecological and technical dimensions. The research also advances an analytic framework that can guide education as well as entrepreneurial initiatives to build urban ecosystem health and justice. The research strives to provide a theoretical as well as practical guide to the second generation of the global environmental justice movement. Rather than focus on recurrent patterns of environmental injustice, particularly in communities already vulnerable because of race and class, this research identifies positive paths forward through education, community programming, law and technical innovation.</p><p>

Orientador: Marília Freitas de Campos Tozoni-Reis / Banca: Sonia Silveira Ruiz / Banca: Luciana Maria Lunardi Campos / Resumo: A atividade de campo, relacionada à educação ambiental (EA), tem sido uma estratégia de ensino bastante explorada pela escola e pode contribuir para a observação dos fenômenos da natureza como dos fatores integrantes do ambiente, inclusive os de caráter sócio-ambiental. O objetivo deste estudo é refletir sobre essa temática, formulando como problema de pesquisa a construção coletiva de diretrizes metodológicas para o desenvolvimento de aulas de campo em EA, que possam garantir seus princípios básicos de práxis educativa cultural, informativa, fundamentalmente política, formativa, emancipatória, crítica e transformadora. O estudo foi desenvolvido, com um professor e seus alunos de uma classe de 5ª série do ensino fundamental de uma escola pública, e norteado pelos pressupostos da pesquisa-ação-participativa. O processo pedagógico, a concretização da metodologia da pesquisa-ação-participativa, a vivência grupal e as atividades realizadas foram as categorias de análises, nas quais, a estratégia pedagógica de atividade de campo caracterizou-se como importante elemento no desenvolvimento didáticometodológico para a concretização do ensino por pesquisa. / Abstract: The field active, related to environmental education (EE), has been a teaching strategy, explored by the school and it might contribute to the observation of nature phenomena as one of the constituent factors of the environment, including the social environmental character. The aim of this study is reflecting about this subject, formulating as a research problem the collective construction of the methodological directives to the development of field classes in EE, that can assure it basic principles of transforming, critical, emancipatory, formative, political, fundamentally, informative and cultural educational praxis. The study was developed, with a teacher and his 5th grade class of elementary school in a public school, and directed by presumed of the participative action research. The pedagogical procedure, the concretizing of the participative action research methodology, the group habits and the performed activities were the analysis categories, in which, the pedagogical strategies of field activity defined as an important element in the didactical methodological development to the concretizing of the teaching by researching. / Mestre

This narrative study reviews the development of Share-Net, an informal resource materials network, located within the developing environmental education activities of the Wildlife and Environment Society of South Africa. Historical shaping factors within the Society are discussed and changing views on conservation, environmental education and research are described. Rather than the research process being a utilitarian and outside endeavour for clarifying and monitoring, the research orientation of this study is one of grounded activity within and integrally part of processes of change. Within a developing story of resource materials and workshops, themes are traced and emergent tensions are critically reviewed. Teacher workshops from 1981 until 1995 are analysed and developing orientations are described. Within this review changes are evident from an orientation of 'us' informing 'them' to joint, collaborative endeavours within the development and use of resource materials. The study reviews and illuminates the Share-Net project around questions of project orientation and management and this is done through the narration of case studies. Principles and patterns emerging within these are examined to guide future resource development projects. Popularist notions of networking and structural functionalist notions of social change are also examined. Grand, modernist strategies designed to cause change in others are questioned and the role of small-scale nodes of resource material activity cooperating within an open network are clarified as useful alternatives. Local resourcing centres such as these have proved useful in supporting teachers in the development, use and adaptation of resource materials. The study also examines income and expenditure of the Share-Net project since 1988 to review economic sustainability. A case is made for sustaining the project conceptually and financially through the sales of products and services rather than through external donor sources. Finally the study raises questions and challenges within the project and proposes guiding frameworks for future review, in action, as the story continues.

This study begins with a discussion of environmental education. Various definitions, aims objectives and guiding principles for effective environmental education are included. The term environmental literacy is introduced with its. defmitions and three levels of environmental literacy (nominal, functional and operational). The study also provides an overview of the definitions, aims, principles and goals of sustainable development. The relationship between environmental education, environmental literacy, environmentally responsible behaviour, and education for sustainability is outlined. It appears that many teachers are not well informed about environmental concerns. Therefore, in this study an attempt is made .to develop and standardize an instrument to measure the level of environmental literacy of teachers, from both primary and high schools. Ten concepts related to environmental literacy were developed. A questionnaire was developed using these identified concepts. Content validity was established before the questionnaire was presented to the teachers. An item analysis was carried out for each aspect of environmental literacy as well as for the questionnaire as a whole. It was determined that the questionnaire could be considered as both a reliable and valid instrument to measure the level of environmental literacy of teachers. An important fmding from this study is that there is a significant difference between environmental literacy of teachers who received training in environmental education and teachers who did not receive any training in environmental education. It was also found that there is a significant difference between environmental literacy of teachers teaching in the different learning areas. The instrument developed for this study can be used as a baseline to improve the pre-service and in-service training of teachers in environmental education. The study concludes with recommendations for teacher education and empowerment of local communities through environmental education. Possible further research is also highlighted. / Curriculum and Instructional Studies / D. Ed. (Didactics)

Orientador: Lívia de Oliveira / Banca: Sandra Elisa Contri Pitton / Banca: Ana Tereza Caceres Cortez / Banca: Ivana de Campos Ribeiro Aleixo de Oliveira / Banca: Marlene Teresinha de Muno Colesanti / Resumo: Esse estudo foi feito a partir de um projeto de Educação Ambiental realizado em uma escola de ensino fundamental, que funciona em período integral. O referido projeto passou a fazer parte de sua grade curricular em 1999, sendo que o período da pesquisa decorreu entre 2000 e 2003, constando de observação participante até o ano de 2001 e entrevista com os alunos de oitava série egressos em 2000 e 2001. Mediante a necessidade de uma Educação Ambiental voltada para a cidadania e para uma convivência mais harmoniosa entre indivíduo-sociedade-natureza, a proposta foi investigar, com base no paradigma da complexidade, se os alunos, após vivenciarem um programa de atividades, orientado por um pressuposto metodológico e com grande participação dos professores tendo em vista a interdisciplinaridade, têm, atualmente, colocado em prática suas aprendizagens conceituais, procedimentais e atitudinais, reveladas por mudanças de conduta. Nas conclusões da pesquisa, observa-se que, embora esforços dessa natureza sejam factíveis de bons resultados, tanto em seu caráter imediato como de longo prazo, por consolidar as aprendizagens via processos cognitivos, que incluem a memória afetiva, ainda temos muito que aprender e fazer no sentido de restaurar nossa relação com a Terra, através da Educação Ambiental. / Abstract: This study was done as a pioneering Environmental Education project at an all-day middle school. The project began as part of the curriculum in 1999, with the research period occurring between 2000 and 2003. Research involved an observation phase up through 2001, and was supplemented by interviews of students who were graduating in 2000 and 2001. The Environmental Education project focused on the role of citizenship and encouraging a more harmonius relationschip between nature, society an individuals. An interdisciplinary approach was used involving a specific methodology that included a program of activities, and a high level of participation from the teachers. The goal of this study was to examine if the students retained and put into practice their new knowledge as shown by changes in their habits and conduct. During this research, it was observed that efforts of this nature facilitate positive results, both short and long-term. Nonetheless, consolidating lessons, through cognities processes, that include positive experiences and affectif memories, we still have much to learm and do in the sense of restoring our relationschip with the Earth, through Environmental Education. / Doutor

Resumo: Esta pesquisa tem como objetivo caracterizar a temática ambiental presente no currículo proposto pela Secretaria Estadual de Educação do Estado de São Paulo para a modalidade de Ensino Fundamental (Ciclo II) na rede de ensino oficial a partir de 2008, analisando a educação ambiental que ela permite contemplar. A investigação, uma análise documental, realizou-se através da metodologia de pesquisa qualitativa, tendo sido escolhida a análise de conteúdo (BARDIN, 2009) para a apreciação do conjunto das documentos, quais sejam, o "Caderno do Professor" de todas as disciplinas que compõem o Ciclo II (5ª a 8ª séries) na rede paulista. Nosso olhar apóia-se nas três dimensões apontadas por Carvalho (1999, 2006) como fundamentais para se trabalhar com EA: os conhecimentos, os valores éticos e estéticos e a participação política do indivíduo, bem como na opção pela EA crítica como capaz de formar/transformar os indivíduos. Consideramos, ainda, como fundamental para este trabalho as reflexões de Amaral (2004, 2010) acerca do currículo escolar e da EA realizada na educação formal. Para a apreciação do material foram definidas três categorias de classificação da temática ambiental nele presente: sociedade e natureza, sociedade e natureza/problemas ambientais e natureza (sem foco na ação humana). Através da pesquisa verificamos a possibilidade de acontecer uma EA escolar com base nesse currículo, uma vez que temas ambientais estão presentes em todas as séries. Consideramos ainda enquanto um aspecto positivo, a abordagem da crise ambiental e a presença da temática ambiental em disciplinas "não tradicionais" em tal prática, como matemática e língua portuguesa. No entanto, foi verificado no currículo analisado uma grande ênfase na transmissão de conhecimentos e nos aspectos naturais do ambiente... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: The objective of this research is to characterize the environment issue present in the 2008 proposed curriculum by the State Board of Education - Secretaria Estadual de Educação - of the State of São Paulo to the official Fundamental School - Cycle II- analyzing Environment Education and its implication in the individual development. The investigation considered here as a documentary analysis, was carried out through the qualitative research methodology, having been chosen content analysis (Bardin, 2009) for assessment of all documents of the Caderno do Professor - The teacher‟s notebook - which includes all disciplines of Cycle II (5th up to 8th grade) in São Paulo State School. Our view is supported by the three dimensions highlighted by Carvalho (1999, 2006) as fundamental to work with Environmental Education: knowledge, ethical and aesthetical values, and the political participation of the individual; moreover the critical option was also taken into account as capable of build/transform the individual. This work is also based in the thoughts of Amaral (2004, 2010) about school curriculum and environmental education within formal education. In order to assess the material three classification categories were defined: society and nature, society and nature/environment problems and nature (no focus in human action). The research showed the possibility of learning about environment education in all levels from 5th throughout 8th grade since environment aspects are present in all grades. It was considered as a positive aspect the involvement in approaching the environment crisis as well as the environment issue in „non-traditional‟ disciplines such as Mathematics and Portuguese Language. However, it was verified a great knowledge transmission of environment issue where human being is presented as... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Orientador: Dalva Maria Bianchini Bonotto / Coorientador: Rosa Maria Feiteiro Cavalari / Banca: Luiz Marcelo de Carvalho / Banca: Ivan Amorosino do Amaral / Mestre

Orientador: Rosa Maria Feiteiro Cavalari / Banca: Clarice Sumi Kawasaki / Banca: Luiz Marcelo de Carvalho / Resumo: Os projetos de educação ambiental desenvolvidos em escolas tiveram um crescimento bastante significativo nos últimos anos. Entretanto, ainda há poucas informações sistematizadas sobre os mesmos. Concomitantemente, as pesquisas em educação ambiental também têm apresentado grande crescimento, inclusive de dissertações e teses que analisam projetos de educação ambiental desenvolvidos em escolas, e não há uma sistematização do conhecimento resultante de tais trabalhos. Nesse contexto, a presente investigação tem o objetivo de caracterizar e discutir as pesquisas que analisam projetos de educação ambiental desenvolvidos em escolas brasileiras. Trata-se de uma pesquisa documental do tipo "estado da arte" e, para a análise dos dados, utilizou-se como referência a "análise de conteúdo" proposta por Bardin (2009). Para a constituição do corpus documental, foi consultado o banco de teses e dissertações da Coordenadoria de Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES). Por meio de buscas neste banco, a partir de critérios, elaborados previamente, e da análise dos resumos, foi delimitado o corpus documental da presente pesquisa, constituído por 87 trabalhos. Realizou-se o mapeamento dessa produção quanto aos locais de produção, contextos educacionais, focos temáticos, entre outras características, tendo por base os resumos e demais informações apresentadas no banco da CAPES. Constatou-se a existência de dissertações e teses sobre o tema produzidas em todas as regiões brasileiras, principalmente nas regiões Sudeste e Sul, e uma expressiva participação das instituições privadas de ensino na produção desses trabalhos. Posteriormente, foi realizada uma análise de 24 textos completos, selecionados por meio de determinados critérios, na... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: The environmental education projects held in school have been growing significantly in recent years. However there is a lack of systematized data about them. At the same many researches on environmental education have also increased, especially dissertations and thesis that analyze these projects, nonetheless there is not a systematization of knowledge as a result of these researches. Thus, this present study intends to distinguish and discuss all about the environmental education issues developed in Brazilian schools. Such documental research treated more specifically as "state of the art ". The analysis of data was based on Bardin's concept of "content analysis". In order to compound the documental corpus the database of Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) was consulted. The focus of this research was determined by searching this sources, following pre-established elaborate criteria and analyzing several summaries. To this essay, it was conducted a survey on the works related which includes the local production, educational contexts, thematic focus, among others. It was verified the existence of dissertations and theses on this subject produced nearly in all Brazilian regions but mainly in South and Southeast regions, and a significant participation of private institutions in the production of these researches. Subsequently 24 full texts were analyzed, selected by determined criteria in which were described and discussed the general and pedagogical features, and the boundaries and possibilities of the projects addressed in the research. An astonishing fact is a notable amount of projects developed over one year and the existence of projects held three, even seven years ago in school. Another relevant fact is that 46% of researches analyze projects were sponsored by external institutions... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Mestre