Ecological Literacy: Education and Ecological Consciousness

Current and future environmental issues reveal the urgency of raising an ecologically literate society that possesses the necessary skills to address the needs of a changing world. The future of all depends on lifelong learners whose actions and intellect are strongly tied to the environments that shape them. The experiences children have in nature, and their education, have the capability of directing and changing their trajectories throughout life. Environmental education expands beyond childhood education and can guide one's tertiary and even lifelong learning experiences. Our educational and environmental experiences influence not only our identity but how we ultimately decide to thrive and survive within interdependent systems in a global world. Thus, ecoliteracy is as much an educational issue as it is an economic, cultural and environmental one. The future of the planet, and ultimately of humankind, demands an ecologically literate human population that is prepared to take on the daunting issues of our time. This thesis defines ecoliteracy, or ecological literacy, in the context of American culture and education. It then explores the current presence of ecoliteracy in Utah's higher education through a content analysis of university education programs, which shows that ecological literacy is not a priority or even on the periphery of teacher education at the University of Utah. A survey of future Urban Ecologists at the University of Utah reveals that childhood experiences with nature influenced these future professionals and that the majority of these students perceive themselves to be ecologically literate to an extent.