Fostering ocean literacy through informal marine education programs

Despite general interest in the concept, there is a lack of formal education systems that foster ocean literacy. Informal marine education programs may be filling this gap; where students undertake unique, immersive learning experiences connected to the marine environment. This paper consolidates information about marine education programs within Australia's temperate region - the Great Southern Reef - and evaluates the extent to which ocean literacy is being delivered through these programs under the banner of Australia's national curriculum. Using the mixed methods approach of a survey and semi-structured interviews, we found that participants are familiar with ocean literacy principles (89.4 %), and half of the informal providers (51 %) reported incorporating these principles into their education programs. We discuss the barriers to teaching and learning about ocean concepts reported by respondents, and argue that formal and informal education programs, working in tandem, can improve school curricula and promote greater ocean literacy.

ECOLOGICAL EDUCATION AND ITS RELATIONSHIP WITH STUDENTS' HEALTH

OBJECTIVE

The aim is to assess the state of ecological education in student youth and determine its relationship to the level of students' health.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

Materials and methods: The research was conducted on the basis ofthe Polissya National University (Zhytomyr, Ukraine) and the Sumy State Pedagogical University named after A.S. Makarenko (Sumy, Ukraine) in 2018-2020. The ascertaining experiment, which was conducted to assess the state of ecological education of students according to the questionnaire developed by us involved 503 students. The formative experiment aimed at studying the relationship between the level of ecological education and the level of students' health involved 59 students.

RESULTS

Results: The ascertaining stage of the experiment showed that the vast majority of students of different specialties revealed a low level of mastery of the components of ecological education. The formative stage of the experiment showed that the EG students significantly improved the level of all components of ecological education, as well as the level of their health (p < 0.001). No significant changes were revealed in the CG (p > 0.05).

CONCLUSION

Conclusions: The research showed that purposeful work on the formation of ecological education in the process of fitness and health recreation activities has a positive effect on all its components (knowledge, character building, worldview, culture) and the level of students' health. In general, it will help to improve the efficiency of the educational process of students, improve indicators of their life-sustaining and future professional activities..

The role of climate change education on individual lifetime carbon emissions

Strategies to mitigate climate change often center on clean technologies, such as electric vehicles and solar panels, while the mitigation potential of a quality educational experience is rarely discussed. In this paper, we investigate the long-term impact that an intensive one-year university course had on individual carbon emissions by surveying students at least five years after having taken the course. A majority of course graduates reported pro-environmental decisions (i.e., type of car to buy, food choices) that they attributed at least in part to experiences gained in the course. Furthermore, our carbon footprint analysis suggests that for the average course graduate, these decisions reduced their individual carbon emissions by 2.86 tons of CO₂ per year. Surveys and focus group interviews identify that course graduates have developed a strong personal connection to climate change solutions, and this is realized in their daily behaviors and through their professional careers. The paper discusses in more detail the specific components of the course that are believed to be most impactful, and the uncertainties associated with this type of research design. Our analysis also demonstrates that if similar education programs were applied at scale, the potential reductions in carbon emissions would be of similar magnitude to other large-scale mitigation strategies, such as rooftop solar or electric vehicles.

Local perceptions and factors determining ecosystem services identification around two forest reserves in Northern Benin

BACKGROUND

Ecosystems provide humanity with goods and services known as ecosystem services. The value of these services represents a basis for political decision-making. To be sure that these decisions are made on a valid basis, policymakers require an understanding of the biophysical processes involved. This study was carried out around two forest reserves (Alibori-Supérieur and Ouénou-Bénou) in Northern Benin. It aimed to highlight the knowledge of the surrounding communities and their perceptions about the importance of the ecosystem services provided by these forest reserves as well as the factors that influence their knowledge and perceptions.

METHODS

Primary data were collected from 25 group discussions in 25 villages surrounding the forest reserves based on predefined ecosystems services of the Millennium Ecosystems Assessment (MA). Multiple linear regression models were used to examine how socio-economic characteristics of the communities influenced the ecosystem services identification rate. Perceptions of importance, levels of satisfaction, and trends of services provided were analyzed using descriptive statistics.

RESULTS

Our results showed that education level, poverty index, household size, and proximity to forests played an important role in the variation in knowledge of ecosystem services (P < 0.05). Provisioning services (such as crops supply, fuelwood, lumber, wild food, and medicinal plants) were mostly identified by the poorest villages located very close to the forests (P < 0.05). The importance of the provided services for well-being has been unanimously recognized. The most recognized cultural services were education and knowledge facilitation (84%) and spiritual value (76%). Climate regulation (84%) and pollination (84%) were the best-known regulating services. However, supporting services (soil formation and pest regulation) that are important for improving production systems were unknown to the communities.

CONCLUSION

Education level, poverty index, and village proximity to the forest were important predictors of regulating and supporting services identification. But use of non-tangible services by local rural communities will require more emphasis on targeted environmental education specifically designed according to the needs of each group.

From our roots, we grow

Located at the head of the Indo-Burma biodiversity hotspot, the Kunming Institute of Zoology (KIZ), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), serves as China's main center for research into the diverse animal and ecological resources of southwestern China, Eastern Himalayas, and Southeast Asia. As of October 2019, it has been 60 years since the inception of KIZ. Since 1959, strong roots have been laid down by generations of researchers, allowing KIZ to grow and evolve into a comprehensive research institution renowned for its remarkable achievements in evolutionary mechanisms of animal biodiversity, animal resources protection, and sustainable utilization. It is now recognized as "a major powerhouse in evolutionary biology research in China" and is"establishing itself in the world stage" (Overseas Experts Review Committee, organized by the Bureau of Development Planning, CAS, during international evaluation in 2014).To celebrate the 60th anniversary of KIZ and the 70th anniversary of CAS, Zoological Research presents this commemorative issue, composed primarily of contributions from KIZ researchers. In addition, it is our great honor to provide here a brief retrospective of the pioneering work undertaken by the earlier scientists at KIZ and recent achievements, which will hopefully serve to motivate and inspire present and future successors.

Identification of Key Success Factors for Private Science Parks Established from Brownfield Regeneration: A Case Study from China

Private science parks (PSPs) are infrastructure elements of national high technology industrial development zones. Increasing private capital is being invested in this field to transform abandoned factories into science parks through brownfield regeneration, which not only effectively utilizes urban space, but also greatly strengthens the power of scientific and technological innovation. The evolution of these PSPs, however, is not satisfactory, and some operation and innovation-related problems often lead to their failures. Therefore, identifying key success factors is crucial for the sustainable growth of PSPs. This study employs Fuzzy Analytic hierarchy process (FAHP) and Fuzzy-DEMATEL (Decision Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory) methods to construct an identification model for key success factors of PSPs established from brownfield regeneration. Associated influencing factors were collected through literature analysis, on-site interviews, and questionnaire, based on which key success factors were identified. The results of the study showed that five factors-resources sharing capacity of the park, park scale, financing and financial services, legal policy services and administrative capability, and construction level of facilities in the park-are the key success factors for such PSPs. The results also provide a theoretical basis for the development of PSPs established from brownfield regeneration, and support the formulation of PSP-related policies.

Exploring challenges and lessons learned in cross-cultural environmental education research

The field of environmental education (EE) has been criticized for scarcity of research findings that can be used to compare the approaches and outcomes of various interventions and contexts. This is particularly problematic for EE programs that are implemented across multi-cultural settings because very little academic attention has been devoted to cross-cultural EE research methods. Intending to address this gap, we set out to develop and pilot a pre/post survey in Costa Rica that could help us investigate the impacts of a bird-focused curriculum on Latin American children's knowledge, attitudes, behavioral intentions, and behaviors toward birds and the natural world. This article describes the challenges encountered and subsequent adaptations made throughout our ongoing, iterative survey development process, in order to appropriately address language, sociocultural context, audience, and research-to-practice tensions. We present key lessons learned, including the importance of having strong local partners, the need to create a realistic research timetable that accounts for unique challenges involved in undertaking cross-cultural EE research, and the limitations of quantitative methods in this sort of research.

High overlap between traditional ecological knowledge and forest conservation found in the Bolivian Amazon

It has been suggested that traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) may play a key role in forest conservation. However, empirical studies assessing to what extent TEK is associated with forest conservation compared with other variables are rare. Furthermore, to our knowledge, the spatial overlap of TEK and forest conservation has not been evaluated at fine scales. In this paper, we address both issues through a case study with Tsimane' Amerindians in the Bolivian Amazon. We sampled 624 households across 59 villages to estimate TEK and used remote sensing data to assess forest conservation. We ran statistical and spatial analyses to evaluate whether TEK was associated and spatially overlapped with forest conservation at the village level. We find that Tsimane' TEK is significantly and positively associated with forest conservation although acculturation variables bear stronger and negative associations with forest conservation. We also find a very significant spatial overlap between levels of Tsimane' TEK and forest conservation. We discuss the potential reasons underpinning our results, which provide insights that may be useful for informing policies in the realms of development, conservation, and climate. We posit that the protection of indigenous cultural systems is vital and urgent to create more effective policies in such realms.

Evaluating a dialogue-based approach to teaching about values and policy in graduate transdisciplinary environmental science programs

This article discusses a formal evaluation of new curricular materials and activities designed to foster understanding of three key issues-expertise, risk, and sociopolitical constraints-related to values and policy in transdisciplinary environmental science. We begin by describing the three issues, along with current thinking about the most appropriate ways to address them in the context of transdisciplinary environmental science. We then describe how we created curricular materials and activities focusing on these three issues that could be tailored for use in a wide range of graduate environmental science programs. The curriculum was adapted by instructors for use in five graduate classes at two US universities, and we used a pre-test, post-test mixed methods design to evaluate its effects on students' ethical reasoning about values and policy. The results of this evaluation suggest that our semi-structured, dialogue-based curriculum enhances student awareness of and reasoning about values and policy in environmental research. We close with several educational recommendations for transdisciplinary environmental science programs that are grounded in our experience with this curriculum.

EcoEvo-MAPS: An Ecology and Evolution Assessment for Introductory through Advanced Undergraduates

A new assessment tool, Ecology and Evolution-Measuring Achievement and Progression in Science or EcoEvo-MAPS, measures student thinking in ecology and evolution during an undergraduate course of study. EcoEvo-MAPS targets foundational concepts in ecology and evolution and uses a novel approach that asks students to evaluate a series of predictions, conclusions, or interpretations as likely or unlikely to be true given a specific scenario. We collected evidence of validity and reliability for EcoEvo-MAPS through an iterative process of faculty review, student interviews, and analyses of assessment data from more than 3000 students at 34 associate's-, bachelor's-, master's-, and doctoral-granting institutions. The 63 likely/unlikely statements range in difficulty and target student understanding of key concepts aligned with the Vision and Change report. This assessment provides departments with a tool to measure student thinking at different time points in the curriculum and provides data that can be used to inform curricular and instructional modifications.

The effectiveness of a head-heart-hands model for natural and environmental science learning in urban schools

We describe an environmental and natural science program called Nurture thru Nature (NtN) that seeks to improve mathematics and science performance of students in disadvantaged communities, and to increase student interest in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) careers. The program draws conceptual guidance from the Head-Heart-Hands model that informs the current educational movement to foster environmental understanding and sustainability. Employing an experimental design and data from seven cohorts of students, we find some promising, albeit preliminary, indications that the program can increase students' science knowledge and grades in mathematics, science and language arts. We discuss the special adaptations that environmental and sustainability education programs need to incorporate if they are to be successful in today's resource depleted urban schools.

How do environmental governance processes shape evaluation of outcomes by stakeholders? A causal pathways approach

Multi-stakeholder environmental management and governance processes are essential to realize social and ecological outcomes. Participation, collaboration, and learning are emphasized in these processes; to gain insights into how they influence stakeholders' evaluations of outcomes in relation to management and governance interventions we use a path analysis approach to examine their relationships in individuals in four UNESCO Biosphere Reserves. We confirm a model showing that participation in more activities leads to greater ratings of process, and in turn, better evaluations of outcomes. We show the effects of participation in activities on evaluation of outcomes appear to be driven by learning more than collaboration. Original insights are offered as to how the evaluations of outcomes by stakeholders are shaped by their participation in activities and their experiences in management and governance processes. Understanding stakeholder perceptions about the processes in which they are involved and their evaluation of outcomes is imperative, and influences current and future levels of engagement. As such, the evaluation of outcomes themselves are an important tangible product from initiatives. Our research contributes to a future research agenda aimed at better understanding these pathways and their implications for engagement in stewardship and ultimately social and ecological outcomes, and to developing recommendations for practitioners engaged in environmental management and governance.

The Need for Social Ethics in Interdisciplinary Environmental Science Graduate Programs: Results from a Nation-Wide Survey in the United States

Professionals in environmental fields engage with complex problems that involve stakeholders with different values, different forms of knowledge, and contentious decisions. There is increasing recognition of the need to train graduate students in interdisciplinary environmental science programs (IESPs) in these issues, which we refer to as "social ethics." A literature review revealed topics and skills that should be included in such training, as well as potential challenges and barriers. From this review, we developed an online survey, which we administered to faculty from 81 United States colleges and universities offering IESPs (480 surveys were completed). Respondents overwhelmingly agreed that IESPs should address values in applying science to policy and management decisions. They also agreed that programs should engage students with issues related to norms of scientific practice. Agreement was slightly less strong that IESPs should train students in skills related to managing value conflicts among different stakeholders. The primary challenges to incorporating social ethics into the curriculum were related to the lack of materials and expertise for delivery, though challenges such as ethics being marginalized in relation to environmental science content were also prominent. Challenges related to students' interest in ethics were considered less problematic. Respondents believed that social ethics are most effectively delivered when incorporated into existing courses, and they preferred case studies or problem-based learning for delivery. Student competence is generally not assessed, and respondents recognized a need for both curricular materials and assessment tools.

How a collaborative integrated taxonomic effort has trained new spongiologists and improved knowledge of Martinique Island (French Antilles, eastern Caribbean Sea) marine biodiversity

Although sponges are important components of benthic ecosystems of the Caribbean Sea, their diversity remained poorly investigated in the Lesser Antilles. By organizing a training course in Martinique, we wanted both to promote taxonomy and to provide a first inventory of the sponge diversity on this island. The course was like a naturalist expedition, with a field laboratory and a classroom nearby. Early-career scientists and environmental managers were trained in sponge taxonomy. We gathered unpublished data and conducted an inventory at 13 coastal sites. We explored only shallow water habitats (0–30 m), such as mangroves, reefs or rocky bottoms and underwater caves. According to this study, the sponge fauna of Martinique is currently represented by a minimum of 191 species, 134 of which we could assign species names. One third of the remaining non-identified sponge species we consider to be new to science. Martinique appears very remarkable because of its littoral marine fauna harboring sponge aggregations with high biomass and species diversity dominating over coral species. In mangroves, sponges cover about 10% of the surface of subtidal roots. Several submarine caves are true reservoirs of hidden and insufficiently described sponge diversity. Thanks to this new collaborative effort, the Eastern Caribbean has gained a significant increase of knowledge, with sponge diversity of this area potentially representing 40% of the total in the Caribbean Sea. We thus demonstrated the importance of developing exploratory and educational research in areas historically devoid of biodiversity inventories and systematics studies. Finally, we believe in the necessity to consider not only the number of species but their distribution in space to evaluate their putative contribution to ecosystem services and our willingness to preserve them.

A comparison of traditional plant knowledge between students and herders in northern Kenya

BACKGROUND

The Samburu region of northern Kenya is undergoing significant change, driven by factors including greater value on formal education, improvements in infrastructure and development, a shift from community to private ownership of land, increased sedentary lifestyles and global climate change. One outcome of these changes are an increasingly greater likelihood for adolescent boys to be enrolled in school rather than herding livestock on behalf of the family in a landscape shared with numerous native vegetation and wildlife species.

METHODS

This study compared identification and knowledge of native plant species between boys enrolled in school with boys of similar age but primary responsibility as herders, called moran. Study participants walked an approximately 100 m path with 10 flagged points in which they were asked to identify any plant species at that point and associated facts of each species, within a 1 m radius.

RESULTS

On average, moran identified 38 species compared to 20 for students, including nearly 13 (of a possible 15) species considered to have high cultural significance. Students identified an average of 8.6 culturally-significant plants. Further, moran shared nearly 18 correct facts about the plants, compared with ten for students. In addition, herding frequency was the only significant predictor of plant identification in a linear regression.

CONCLUSION

The results demonstrate that while formal education undoubtedly provides benefits to students, attendance in school in lieu of the traditional role of herders has consequences on young men in Samburu related to ability to identify native and culturally-significant plants. This further shows the importance for communities like those in Samburu undergoing change need to develop alternative options to transmit local traditional knowledge to its younger generations.

Some directions in ecological theory

The role of theory within ecology has changed dramatically in recent decades. Once primarily a source of qualitative conceptual framing, ecological theories and models are now often used to develop quantitative explanations of empirical patterns and to project future dynamics of specific ecological systems. In this essay, I recount my own experience of this transformation, in which accelerating computing power and the widespread incorporation of stochastic processes into ecological theory combined to create some novel integration of mathematical and statistical models. This stronger integration drives theory towards incorporating more biological realism, and I explore ways in which we can grapple with that realism to generate new general theoretical insights. This enhanced realism, in turn, may lead to frameworks for projecting ecological responses to anthropogenic change, which is, arguably, the central challenge for 21st-century ecology. In an era of big data and synthesis, ecologists are increasingly seeking to infer causality from observational data; but conventional biometry provides few tools for this project. This is a realm where theorists can and should play an important role, and I close by pointing towards some analytical and philosophical approaches developed in our sister discipline of economics that address this very problem. While I make no grand prognostications about the likely discoveries of ecological theory over the coming century, you will find in this essay a scattering of more or less far-fetched ideas that I, at least, think are interesting and (possibly) fruitful directions for our field.

Quantifying Ecological Literacy in an Adult Western Community: The Development and Application of a New Assessment Tool and Community Standard

Knowledge and understanding about how the Earth functions and supports life create the foundation for ecological literacy. Industrialisation, urbanisation and population growth have resulted in changed relationships between many human communities and the natural world. A potential consequence is a compromised capability to make well-informed decisions about how to live sustainably. To gain a measure of ecological literacy within the South Australian community, we collaborated with senior scientists and educators to develop and apply an instrument with the capacity to determine indicative levels of ecological knowledge and understanding. A formal, variable credit, multiple-choice assessment instrument was distributed online to groups and individuals within diverse community sectors and industries. Quantitative analyses of scores indicated that levels of ecological knowledge and understanding within a self-selected sample of over one thousand individuals ranged from very low to extremely high, with the majority of respondents achieving moderate to high scores. This instrument has a demonstrated capacity to determine indicative levels of ecological literacy within and between individuals and groups. It is able to capture mastery of ecological knowledge and understanding achieved through both formal and informal pathways. Using the results, we have been able to establish a range of standards and an aspirational target score for the South Australian community. The value of this work is in its potential to deliver insights into relationships between humans and the rest of the natural world, and into characteristics of eco-literate individuals and communities, that might not otherwise emerge.

SWOT analysis to evaluate the programme of a joint online/onsite master's degree in environmental education through the students' perceptions

This study shows the use of SWOT to analyse students' perceptions of an environmental education joint master's programme in order to determine if it runs as originally planned. The open answers given by students highlight the inter-university nature of the master's, the technological innovation used as major points, and the weaknesses in the management coordination or the duplicate contents as minor points. The external analysis is closely linked with the students' future jobs, their labour opportunities available to them after graduation. The innovative treatment of the data is exportable to the evaluation of programmes of other degrees because it allows the description linked to its characteristics and its design through the students' point of view.

POPs monitoring in Australia and New Zealand using plastic resin pellets, and International Pellet Watch as a tool for education and raising public awareness on plastic debris and POPs

Persistent organic pollutants (i.e. PCBs, DDTs, and HCHs) were analyzed along Australia and New Zealand North Island coastlines. PCB concentrations were high in urban areas (107-294 ng/g-pellet), with Sydney Harbour the most polluted. Hepta-chlorinated PCB was abundant, with ~30% in urban areas suggesting legacy pollution. DDT concentrations showed similar pattern except in rural agricultural sites, Taupo Bay and Ahipara, New Zealand (23 and 47 ng/g-pellet). p,p'-DDE predominance at these 2 sites suggested historical input; they also had high HCH concentrations (17 and 29 ng/g-pellet). The role of International Pellet Watch (IPW) in science communication was studied through feedbacks from IPW volunteers, case studies and examples. IPW data were categorized into understandable terms and tailored reports based on volunteers' backgrounds complemented with pollution maps. The effectiveness of IPW science communication has led to its use in awareness and education activities focusing on both POPs and plastic debris issues.

Participating in a Citizen Science Monitoring Program: Implications for Environmental Education

Tourism is of growing economical importance to many nations, in particular for developing countries. Although tourism is an important economic vehicle for the host country, its continued growth has led to on-going concerns about its environmental sustainability. Coastal and marine tourism can directly affect the environment through direct and indirect tourist activities. For these reasons tourism sector needs practical actions of sustainability. Several studies have shown how education minimizes the impact on and is proactive for, preserving the natural resources. This paper evaluates the effectiveness of a citizen science program to improve the environmental education of the volunteers, by means of questionnaires provided to participants to a volunteer-based Red Sea coral reef monitoring program (STEproject). Fifteen multiple-choice questions evaluated the level of knowledge on the basic coral reef biology and ecology and the awareness on the impact of human behaviour on the environment. Volunteers filled in questionnaires twice, once at the beginning, before being involved in the project and again at the end of their stay, after several days participation in the program. We found that the participation in STEproject significantly increased both the knowledge of coral reef biology and ecology and the awareness of human behavioural impacts on the environment, but was more effective on the former. We also detected that tourists with a higher education level have a higher initial level of environmental education than less educated people and that the project was more effective on divers than snorkelers. This study has emphasized that citizen science projects have an important and effective educational value and has suggested that tourism and diving stakeholders should increase their commitment and efforts to these programs.

Ecological literacy and beyond: Problem-based learning for future professionals

Ecological science contributes to solving a broad range of environmental problems. However, lack of ecological literacy in practice often limits application of this knowledge. In this paper, we highlight a critical but often overlooked demand on ecological literacy: to enable professionals of various careers to apply scientific knowledge when faced with environmental problems. Current university courses on ecology often fail to persuade students that ecological science provides important tools for environmental problem solving. We propose problem-based learning to improve the understanding of ecological science and its usefulness for real-world environmental issues that professionals in careers as diverse as engineering, public health, architecture, social sciences, or management will address. Courses should set clear learning objectives for cognitive skills they expect students to acquire. Thus, professionals in different fields will be enabled to improve environmental decision-making processes and to participate effectively in multidisciplinary work groups charged with tackling environmental issues.

[The sea in the museum: a perspective on education at aquariums]

The musealization of the sea, today spearheaded by aquariums and oceanariums, encapsulated man's relationship with these environments and the techniques used to explore them and keep organisms alive in captivity. Recognizing the combined roles of research and entertainment at aquariums, some aspects of their constitution over time are analyzed, especially the education and communication dimensions they have focused on more in recent times. For this purpose, we investigate in detail a Brazilian institution, Ubatuba Aquarium, indicating how its musealization incorporates clear intentions to promote education and communication in subjects from the realms of zoology, ecology and conservation.

Multilingual education of students on a global scale and perspective-international networking on the example of bioindication and biomonitoring (B&B technologies)

Living or formerly living organisms are being used to obtain information on the quality of the general health status of our environment by bioindication and biomonitoring methods for many decades. Thus, different roads toward this common scientific goal were developed by a lot of different international research groups. Global cooperation in between various scientific teams throughout the world has produced common ideas, scientific definitions, and highly innovative results of this extremely attractive working field. The transdisciplinary approach of different and multifaceted scientific areas-starting from biology, analytical chemistry, via health physics, up to social and economic issues-have surpassed mental barriers of individual scientists, so that "production" of straightforward common results related to the influence of material and immaterial environmental factors to the well-being of organisms and human life has now reached the forefront of international thinking. For the further sustainable development of our common scientific "hobby" of bioindication and biomonitoring, highest personal energy has to be given by us, being teachers to our students and to convince strategically decision makers as politicians to invest (financially) into the development of education and research of this innovative technique. Young people have to be intensively convinced on the "meaning" of our scientific doing, e.g., by extended forms of education. One example of multilingual education of students on a global scale and perspective is given here, which we started about 3 years ago.

[The role of civil society in constructing scientific questions: focus on the work of the CESTM at the Aquarium La Rochelle]

The relation between experts and civil society raises profound questioning. The first of them is the role of civil society in their evaluation work and in their research. We note that the involvement of citizen leds not only to build scientifical questions, but also to enrich and to answer them. In that way, civil society becomes a key player and an irreplaceable actor of the scientific research. This article highlights action carry out by the Centre d'Etudes et de Soins pour les Tortues Marines of the Aquarium La Rochelle which asks civil society to help it everydays to fulfill his duties. At the end of a training period, or thanks to a spontaneous initiative, volunteers get involve to move research.

Revising the economic imperative for US STEM education

An essential economic imperative for US STEM education is empowering students to reduce ecological degradation to improve economic welfare.

Over the last decade macroeconomic studies have established a clear link between student achievement on science and math tests and per capita gross domestic product (GDP) growth, supporting the widely held belief that science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) education are important factors in the production of economic prosperity. We critique studies that use science and math tests to predict GDP growth, arguing that estimates of the future economic value of STEM education involve substantial speculation because they ignore the impacts of economic growth on biodiversity and ecosystem functionality, which, in the long-term, limit the potential for future economic growth. Furthermore, we argue that such ecological impacts can be enabled by STEM education. Therefore, we contend that the real economic imperative for the STEM pipeline is not just raising standardized test scores, but also empowering students to assess, preserve, and restore ecosystems in order to reduce ecological degradation and increase economic welfare.

Incorrect citations give unfair credit to review authors in ecology journals

The number of citations that papers receive has become significant in measuring researchers' scientific productivity, and such measurements are important when one seeks career opportunities and research funding. Skewed citation practices can thus have profound effects on academic careers. We investigated (i) how frequently authors misinterpret original information and (ii) how frequently authors inappropriately cite reviews instead of the articles upon which the reviews are based. To reach this aim, we carried a survey of ecology journals indexed in the Web of Science and assessed the appropriateness of citations of review papers. Reviews were significantly more often cited than regular articles. In addition, 22% of citations were inaccurate, and another 15% unfairly gave credit to the review authors for other scientists' ideas. These practices should be stopped, mainly through more open discussion among mentors, researchers and students.

Preparing to understand and use science in the real world: interdisciplinary study concentrations at the Technical University of Darmstadt

In order to raise awareness of the ambiguous nature of scientific-technological progress, and of the challenging problems it raises, problems which are not easily addressed by courses in a single discipline and cannot be projected onto disciplinary curricula, Technical University of Darmstadt has established three interdisciplinary study concentrations: "Technology and International Development", "Environmental Sciences", and "Sustainable Shaping of Technology and Science". These three programmes seek to overcome the limitations of strictly disciplinary research and teaching by developing an integrated, problem-oriented approach. For example, one course considers fundamental nuclear dilemmas and uses role-playing techniques to address a controversy in the area of nuclear security. At the same time, incorporating interdisciplinary teaching into a university that is organized around mono- or multi-disciplinary faculties also poses a number of challenges. Recognition in disciplinary curricula, and appropriate organizational support and funding are examples of those challenges. It is expected that science and engineering students, empowered by such interdisciplinary study programmes, will be better prepared to act responsibly with regard to scientific and technological challenges.

A case study of teaching social responsibility to doctoral students in the climate sciences

The need to make young scientists aware of their social responsibilities is widely acknowledged, although the question of how to actually do it has so far gained limited attention. A 2-day workshop entitled "Prepared for social responsibility?" attended by doctoral students from multiple disciplines in climate science, was targeted at the perceived needs of the participants and employed a format that took them through three stages of ethics education: sensitization, information and empowerment. The workshop aimed at preparing doctoral students to manage ethical dilemmas that emerge when climate science meets the public sphere (e.g., to identify and balance legitimate perspectives on particular types of geo-engineering), and is an example of how to include social responsibility in doctoral education. The paper describes the workshop from the three different perspectives of the authors: the course teacher, the head of the graduate school, and a graduate student. The elements that contributed to the success of the workshop, and thus make it an example to follow, are (1) the involvement of participating students, (2) the introduction of external expertise and role models in climate science, and (3) a workshop design that focused on ethical analyses of examples from the climate sciences.

Environmental, institutional, and demographic predictors of environmental literacy among middle school children

Building environmental literacy (EL) in children and adolescents is critical to meeting current and emerging environmental challenges worldwide. Although environmental education (EE) efforts have begun to address this need, empirical research holistically evaluating drivers of EL is critical. This study begins to fill this gap with an examination of school-wide EE programs among middle schools in North Carolina, including the use of published EE curricula and time outdoors while controlling for teacher education level and experience, student attributes (age, gender, and ethnicity), and school attributes (socio-economic status, student-teacher ratio, and locale). Our sample included an EE group selected from schools with registered school-wide EE programs, and a control group randomly selected from NC middle schools that were not registered as EE schools. Students were given an EL survey at the beginning and end of the spring 2012 semester. Use of published EE curricula, time outdoors, and having teachers with advanced degrees and mid-level teaching experience (between 3 and 5 years) were positively related with EL whereas minority status (Hispanic and black) was negatively related with EL. Results suggest that school-wide EE programs were not associated with improved EL, but the use of published EE curricula paired with time outdoors represents a strategy that may improve all key components of student EL. Further, investments in teacher development and efforts to maintain enthusiasm for EE among teachers with more than 5 years of experience may help to boost student EL levels. Middle school represents a pivotal time for influencing EL, as improvement was slower among older students. Differences in EL levels based on gender suggest boys and girls may possess complementary skills sets when approaching environmental issues. Our findings suggest ethnicity related disparities in EL levels may be mitigated by time spent in nature, especially among black and Hispanic students.

Misconceptions are "so yesterday!"

At the close of the Society for the Advancement of Biology Education Research conference in July 2012, one of the organizers made the comment: "Misconceptions are so yesterday." Within the community of learning sciences, misconceptions are yesterday's news, because the term has been aligned with eradication and/or replacement of conceptions, and our knowledge about how people learn has progressed past this idea. This essay provides an overview of the discussion within the learning sciences community surrounding the term "misconceptions" and how the education community's thinking has evolved with respect to students' conceptions. Using examples of students' incorrect ideas about evolution and ecology, we show that students' naïve ideas can provide the resources from which to build scientific understanding. We conclude by advocating that biology education researchers use one or more appropriate alternatives in place of the term misconception whenever possible.

Lost in translation: conflicting views of deforestation, land use and identity in western Madagascar

This paper focuses on the interplay between environmental narratives, identity politics and the management of forest resources in Madagascar. While efforts to conserve the island's biological diversity have centred primarily on the designation of protected areas, policies have increasingly focused on local communities. The experiences of the last 20 years have shown that community-based approaches to conservation offer considerable challenges due to the complex politics of natural resource use, which involve multiple and diverse stakeholders, often with very different and sometimes conflicting values. In this paper, I focus on the environmental perceptions and values of two groups in the Central Menabe region of western Madagascar – conservation organisations and rural households – revealing a contrasting set of views regarding the region's forest. I show that the conservation discourse has changed over time, increasingly emphasising the biological diversity of the region's tropical dry-deciduous forest and prioritising non-consumptive uses of natural resources. Although policy has changed in response to changing values, I show that it has been underpinned by the notion that hatsake (‘slash-and-burn’ agriculture) is an irrational practice driven by necessity rather than choice. Policy has thus sought to provide livelihood alternatives, firstly through forestry, then through changes in cultivation and increasingly through tourism. This misunderstands the local view of the forest, which sees hatsake as a way to make the land productive, as long as it is carried out responsibly according to local fady (taboos). As well as facing problems of translating conservation goals into local values and misunderstanding the motives for forest clearance, policy has been based on a narrative that attaches particular land use practices to ethnic identities. I argue that this ignores the history and fluid reality of both identity and land use.

Knowledge gain and behavioral change in citizen-science programs

Citizen-science programs are often touted as useful for advancing conservation literacy, scientific knowledge, and increasing scientific-reasoning skills among the public. Guidelines for collaboration among scientists and the public are lacking and the extent to which these citizen-science initiatives change behavior is relatively unstudied. Over two years, we studied 82 participants in a three-day program that included education about non-native invasive plants and collection of data on the occurrence of those plants. Volunteers were given background knowledge about invasive plant ecology and trained on a specific protocol for collecting invasive plant data. They then collected data and later gathered as a group to analyze data and discuss responsible environmental behavior with respect to invasive plants. We tested whether participants without experience in plant identification and with little knowledge of invasive plants increased their knowledge of invasive species ecology, participation increased knowledge of scientific methods, and participation affected behavior. Knowledge of invasive plants increased on average 24%, but participation was insufficient to increase understanding of how scientific research is conducted. Participants reported increased ability to recognize invasive plants and increased awareness of effects of invasive plants on the environment, but this translated into little change in behavior regarding invasive plants. Potential conflicts between scientific goals, educational goals, and the motivation of participants must be considered during program design.

Perceptions of the value of traditional ecological knowledge to formal school curricula: opportunities and challenges from Malekula Island, Vanuatu

BACKGROUND

The integration of traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) into formal school curricula may be a key tool for the revitalisation of biocultural diversity, and has the potential to improve the delivery of educational objectives. This paper explores perceptions of the value of TEK to formal education curricula on Malekula Island, Vanuatu. We conducted 49 interviews with key stakeholders (local TEK experts, educators, and officials) regarding the use of the formal school system to transmit, maintain, and revitalise TEK. Interviews also gathered information on the areas where TEK might add value to school curricula and on the perceived barriers to maintaining and revitalising TEK via formal education programs.

RESULTS

Participants reported that TEK had eroded on Malekula, and identified the formal school system as a principal driver. Most interviewees believed that if an appropriate format could be developed, TEK could be included in the formal education system. Such an approach has potential to maintain customary knowledge and practice in the focus communities. Participants identified several specific domains of TEK for inclusion in school curricula, including ethnomedical knowledge, agricultural knowledge and practice, and the reinforcement of respect for traditional authority and values. However, interviewees also noted a number of practical and epistemological barriers to teaching TEK in school. These included the cultural diversity of Malekula, tensions between public and private forms of knowledge, and multiple values of TEK within the community.

CONCLUSIONS

TEK has potential to add value to formal education systems in Vanuatu by contextualising the content and process of curricular delivery, and by facilitating character development and self-awareness in students. These benefits are congruent with UNESCO-mandated goals for curricular reform and provide a strong argument for the inclusion of TEK in formal school systems. Such approaches may also assist in the maintenance and revitalisation of at-risk systems of ethnobiological knowledge. However, we urge further research attention to the significant epistemological challenges inherent in including TEK in formal school, particularly as participants noted the potential for such approaches to have negative consequences.

Introducing data-model assimilation to students of ecology

Quantitative training for students of ecology has traditionally emphasized two sets of topics: mathematical modeling and statistical analysis. Until recently, these topics were taught separately, modeling courses emphasizing mathematical techniques for symbolic analysis and statistics courses emphasizing procedures for analyzing data. We advocate the merger of these traditions in ecological education by outlining a curriculum for an introductory course in data-model assimilation. This course replaces the procedural emphasis of traditional introductory material in statistics with an emphasis on principles needed to develop hierarchical models of ecological systems, fusing models of data with models of ecological processes. We sketch nine elements of such a course: (1) models as routes to insight, (2) uncertainty, (3) basic probability theory, (4) hierarchical models, (5) data simulation, (6) likelihood and Bayes, (7) computational methods, (8) research design, and (9) problem solving. The outcome of teaching these combined elements can be the fundamental understanding and quantitative confidence needed by students to create revealing analyses for a broad array of research problems.

The BP oil spill and the bounty of Plaquemines Parish

The source of 25 to 30 percent of America's seafood, the Mississippi River Delta's cornucopian world is now uncertain. And yet, even if shrimp, oysters, and finfish are unaffected by the BP Oil Spill - a big if - one can already reflect on the passing of the culture once built upon gathering them. For almost three centuries, levees made life possible along the riverbanks and in the wetlands beyond. Those same levees also ensured the wetlands would eventually melt away into the Gulf. Cutting off the silt left behind during annual river inundations subjected the fragile land to erosion. Sulfur, natural gas, and oil production companies dug twenty thousand miles of canals to gain more direct routes to their fields and to pump out their mineral wealth. This caused salt-water intrusion that killed off plant life and caused more erosion. The world that sustained my Plaquemines ancestors was less subject to collapse following disasters not only because the ecosystem before the wetlands' ongoing loss was then more vibrant, complex, and robust; but also because their lives, especially their culinary lives, were more vibrant, complex, and robust. Life was hard, but when it came to putting food on the table, life followed the seasons.

College and university environmental programs as a policy problem (part 1): integrating knowledge, education, and action for a better world?

The environmental sciences/studies movement, with more than 1000 programs at colleges and universities in the United States and Canada, is unified by a common interest-ameliorating environmental problems through empirical enquiry and analytic judgment. Unfortunately, environmental programs have struggled in their efforts to integrate knowledge across disciplines and educate students to become sound problem solvers and leaders. We examine the environmental program movement as a policy problem, looking at overall goals, mapping trends in relation to those goals, identifying the underlying factors contributing to trends, and projecting the future. We argue that despite its shared common interest, the environmental program movement is disparate and fragmented by goal ambiguity, positivistic disciplinary approaches, and poorly rationalized curricula, pedagogies, and educational philosophies. We discuss these challenges and the nature of the changes that are needed in order to overcome them. In a subsequent article (Part 2) we propose specific strategies for improvement.