Each month, I will be featuring one of more of the organization listed on The Great Turning page of this blog. The first is an organization called The Center for Ecoliteracy, cofounded by the notable author of The Tao of Physics and The Systems View of Life Fritjof Capra. I will focus on the part of the organization that deals with the “education for sustainability movement.” http://www.ecoliteracy.org/discover

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VlndDwo8rX8

The Center for Ecoliteracy epitomizes and encapsulates the education for sustainability movement. It highlights many wonderful organizations that are:

• bringing sustainable practices to their teaching and learning
• cultivating relationships within the larger community
• creating more sustainable food systems in their buildings and campuses
• collaborating to clarify and solidify the principles, practices, and resources of sustainability of thousands of educators

There are four parts to this section of the website:

1. First is Ecoliteracy

Like Terra Promus, they describe how really examining ecological challenges can trigger strong emotions, such as fear and grief. Many are afraid of seemingly negative emotions such as these, but they carry important messages and are vital to facing and dealing with the challenges we face. The capacity to do so requires the development of

emotional and social intelligence. In collaboration with Daniel Goleman, the author of Emotional Intelligence and Social Intelligence, former communications director Lisa Bennett and executive director Zenobia Barlow have written Ecoliterate: How Educators Are Cultivating Emotional, Social, and Ecological Intelligence. http://www.ecoliteracy.org/essays/becoming-ecoliterate

In addition, five ecoliterate practices are described that integrate emotional, social, and ecological intelligence:

1. Developing Empathy for All Forms of Life
2. Embracing Sustainability as a Community Practice
3. Making the Invisible Visible
4. Anticipating Unintended Consequences
5. Understanding How Nature Sustains Life

We also get to meet “ecoliterate leaders;” community activists, educators, and students who are using emotional, social, and ecological intelligence to creatively deal with sustainability issues.

2. Next is featured is the book Smart by Nature, Schooling for Sustainability, which is a framework for education for sustainable living, and features success stories, lessons learned, and “What You Can Do” suggestions for applying this framework. It is based on four guiding principles:

• Nature Is Our Teacher
• Sustainability Is a Community Practice
• The Real World Is the Optimal Learning Environment
• Sustainable Living Is Rooted in a Deep Knowledge of Place

 

3. The third part is Education for Sustainable Living; the knowledge, skills, and values to address the environmental and social challenges of the coming decades. This is described by Fritjof Capra: http://www.fritjofcapra.net/

 

“We do not need to invent sustainable human communities. We can learn from societies that have lived sustainably for centuries. We can also model communities after nature’s ecosystems, which are sustainable communities of plants, animals, and microorganisms.”

 

4. Finally, the Center identifies and highlights what it considers “Exemplary Schools,” those that:

• connect children with the natural world

• offer place-based education (teaches students about the people, history, culture, and natural features of their local community and region)

• facilitate environmental project-based learning (involving students in local projects that are meaningful and make real contributions to their communities)

• integrate in-class learning with hands-on experiences

• address whole children

There are also many excellent essays, particularly dealing with school-food, to inspire eco-educators.

 

To purchase Ecoliterate: http://www.ecoliteracy.org/books/ecoliterate-how-educators-are-cultivating-emotional-social-and-ecological-intelligence