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Community Environmental Education as a Model for Effective Environmental Programmes

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 June 2015

Morag Blair
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Abstract

The benefits of community environmental education outlined in environmental education literature are supported by the findings and implications of a research study undertaken in New Zealand. Evidence from a two-case case study suggests that environmental programmes guided by the key principles and practices of community environmental education, that is, public participation, environmental adult education and environmental communication, can produce effective environmental outcomes. Indeed, these cases indicate that the principles and practices of public participation provide a catalyst for genuine collaborative efforts between different organisations and local communities. Results also indicated that environmental adult education strategies can empower community members to critically evaluate local environmental issues, which in turn resulted in a commitment to improving the local environment. I thus argue in this paper that the principles and practices of community environmental education can provide benchmarks for cross-sectoral collaboration and assist communities in reaching environmental solutions.

Keywords

Community environmental educationprinciples and practicescollaborationpublic participationenvironmental adult educationcommunication
Type
Research Article
Information
Australian Journal of Environmental Education , Volume 24 , 2008 , pp. 45 - 53
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2008

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