Environmental
literacy can be defined as the cognitive and affective understanding of
the environment that leads individuals toward environmental responsible behaviors,
or actions directed toward the remediation of environmental problems
(EETAP 2002).
In a
survey of environmental literacy at colleges and universities,
environmental literacy was defined as “a basic understanding of the
concepts and knowledge of the issues and information relevant to the
health and sustainability of the environment as well as environmental
issues related to human health” (Rowe 2002).
Why is Environmental Literacy Important?
Research
studies suggest that students who are exposed to environmental literacy
develop:
An
increased caring about the future of society
An
increased belief that they can make a difference
An
increased willingness to participate in civic engagement and help solve
societal and environmental problems.
Research
indicates that as little as one course in environmental literacy produces
more environmentally responsible behavior (Rowe 2002).
All
students, as the consumers of the future, should know about the causes of
environmental problems and how they can help create an environmentally
healthy and more humane world.
In a
world increasingly plagued by environmental problems, environmental
education is central to achieving future sustainable development and
maintaining an ecologically healthy planet.
Environmental Literacy at Colby
Colby
College is committed to promoting environmental awareness through its
academic program as well as through its activities on campus and
beyond.Colby seeks to model
morally responsible, environmental stewardship.
Colby
offers over 60 courses, which cover topics included in David Orr’s
definition of environmental literacy. Orr suggests that no student should
graduate from an educational institution without a basic understanding of
the laws of thermodynamics, the basic principles of ecology, carrying
capacity, energetics, least cost and end-use analysis, limits of
technology, appropriate scale, sustainable agriculture and forestry,
steady-state economics, and environmental ethics.These topics foster an
understanding of environmental literacy.Click here for the list of courses.
The
members of the Class of 2006 had a total of 829 course enrollments inenvironmental literacy courses
over their four years at Colby.The number of environmental literacy course enrollments each year
(approximately 221) was similar for the first, sophomore, and senior
years.Fewer course
enrollments occurred in the junior year (164) because many Colby students
study abroad in that year.
Of the
464 students in the Class of 2006, 72% took at least one environmental
literacy course and 39% took two or more courses.28% did not take an environmental
literacy course.
Of the
254 female students in the Class of 2006, 76% took at least one
environmental literacy course and 39% took two or more courses.
Of the
210 male students in the Class of 2006, 68% took at least one
environmental literacy course and 38% took two or more courses.
This
graph indicates the number of environmental literacy courses taken by
members of the Class of 2006 over their four years at Colby.
Summary
·Approximately, three quarters of the Class of 2006 took
at least one course that would foster environmental literacy.
References:
EETAP.2002.Wildlife-based
Environmental Education in a Natural Setting.Environmental Education and Training Partnership Resource
Library (US EPA).http://eelink.net/pages/EE+Publications+-+Online.Accessed 12/12/05.
Orr, D.W.1994.Earth in Mind - On
Education, Environment, and the Human Prospect.Island Press, Washington, DC.213 pp.
Rowe, D.2002.Environmental
Literacy and Sustainability as Core Requirements: Success Stories and
Models.Reprinted from Teaching
Sustainability at Universities, Walter Leal Filho, ed., Peter Land, New York.
Environmental literacy courses offered at Colby from
2002-2006.
AY 252j
Hunger, Poverty, and Population
AY 256
Land, Food, Culture, and Power
AY 398
Anthropology and the Environment
BI 131
Biodiversity
BI 164
Diversity and Evolution
BI 211
Taxonomy of Flowering Plants
BI 235
Horticulture
BI 237
Woody Plants
BI 257j
Winter Ecology
BI 271
Introduction to Ecology
BI 334
Ornithology
BI 352
Advanced and Applied Ecology
BI 354
Marine Ecology
BI 358
Ecological Field Study
BI 373
Animal Behavior
BI 451
Applied and Environmental Microbiology
BI 493
Problems in Environmental Science
BI 498
Behavioral and Physiological Ecology
CH 112
Chemistry for Citizens
CH 217
Environmental Chemistry
CH 481
Special Topics in Environmental Chemistry
EC 231
Environmental and Natural Resource Economics
EC 476
Advanced Topics in Environmental Economics
ED 315
US Environmental Justice Issues
ED 315
US Environmental Justice Issues
ED 316
Education, the Environment, and Social Justice
ED 493B
Senior Seminar in Environmental Education
EN 126
Environmental Literature
EN 321
The British Romantic Period: Green Romanticism
EN 376
Land and Language
EN 382
Environmental Writing: Writing on Place
ES 113
Women and the Environment
ES 118
Environment and Society
ES 173
Environmental Law and Indian Tribes
ES 233
Environmental Policy
ES 235
Sustainable Development
ES 281
History of Global Environmental Change
ES 237j
Environmental Law
ES 298 A
The Emerging Challenge of Climate Change
ES 298 B
The Environment and Human Health
ES 319
Conservation Biology
ES 334
International Environmental Regimes
ES 336
Endangered Species: Policy and Practice
ES 338
Climate Change Politics
GE 131
Introduction to Environmental Geology
GE 141
Understanding Earth
GE 171
Oceanography
GE 353
Groundwater Hydrology
GE 494
Advanced Environmental Geology
HI 244
Changing Notions of Progress
HI 246
Luddite Rantings: A Historical Critique of Big Technology
