Posted on May 22, 2002
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Environmental Awareness:
Overcoming Ignorance and Apathy by Getting People 'Outside'
Kelly Robbins
732 E. Browning Ave.
Salt Lake City, UT 84105
(801) 486-8696
kelly.robbins@utah.edu
During
the last one hundred years the industrialized nations of the world have
witnessed an unprecedented rate of growth in wealth accompanied by increasing
consumption of natural resources and material goods.
This pursuit of wealth has had a tremendous effect on ecosystems and the
environment. In Something New
Under the Sun, J.R. McNeill writes that "humans have impacted our
planet more deeply in the twentieth century than we did in all previous history
combined." Indeed, environmental problems now run rampant across the globe.
The more serious issues include: ozone
deterioration; deforestation; global warming; suburban sprawl and other human
developments that disrupt ecosystems; urban air pollution; soil erosion; and
species extinction.
Industrialized
nations are either unaware of these problems or not sufficiently concerned about
this state of affairs to address these issues.
Ignorance and apathy exists at every level of society, from the everyday
consumers who fail to recycle, a United States President who withdraws from
international environmental treaties, and corporations who pressure public
officials to relax standards regarding pollutant emissions.
McNeill
writes that "human history since the dawn of agriculture is replete with
unsustainable societies... many of which changed their ways and survived.
They changed not to sustainability but to some new and different kind of
unsustainability." This shift away from sustainability signaled the
beginning of many environmental problems coupled with a marked ignorance about
the damage being done to the environment.
The
lack of consideration and apathy about environmental problems arises from a
disconnect that has developed between humans and the land on which they live.
The spread of Christianity has helped propagate this disconnect, as
explained by Roderick Nash, who wrote that "the commandment (Genesis
1:28) which gave man dominion over his environment encouraged arrogance rather
than respect." Before the
agricultural revolution, food surpluses did not exist and societies were
intimately tied to the land as their only means of survival.
With the advent of modern agricultural techniques and the beginning of
industrialization, societies lost their historical connection with the
environment. People could live in
cities and still depend on a constant supply of food and material goods.
This disconnect has allowed environmental problems to go unnoticed or
unattended as the industrialized nations of the world continue to increase
economic development and the consumption of natural resources.
The
end result of this disconnect is that we now have societies, especially in the
industrialized world, who do not understand the importance of a healthy
environment and its relation to the overall welfare and health of humans.
Despite efforts to the contrary, industrialized nations are still mostly
ignorant and apathetic in terms of environmental awareness.
Appreciation for the natural beauty of the earth appears to be
non-existent at times.
The
first step in addressing our current environmental problems is to develop an
environmentally-conscious society. Education
is an important key towards achieving the goal of environmental awareness.
In colleges and universities across the country, Environmental Science is
a growing field of study, and high schools are beginning to integrate
environmental studies into their curriculums as well. Despite these efforts, the contributions to environmental
awareness are still limited at this time. Classroom
education has not overcome the disconnect between humans and the environment,
and citizens have yet to reestablish their historical appreciation for the land.
Charles Piller writes in The Fail-Safe Society that "young people
are a time bomb-a sign of growing public disengagement that could soon make
genuine democratic involvement in decisions about environmental health and
safety impossible." These young people must be reached in order to achieve
the goal of environmental awareness, and the approach must be different than
through the traditional textbook and classroom.
I
propose that we move classrooms "outside" and begin to teach
environmental education with a more hands-on approach.
This would be something more than a nature walk in the city park; it
would involve getting people out into the backcountry for extended periods of
time. This would allow people to
actually reside in the particular environment being studied.
An important aspect of raising environmental consciousness includes
reestablishing an appreciation for the land; this can be achieved by taking
people into the backcountry where they can live and learn.
Moving
the classroom "outside" would require a dual approach, combining
environmental education with backcountry education.
The backcountry portion is a necessity because most citizens in the
industrialized world have become insulated from the majority of hazards that
would confront a backcountry traveler: freezing
temperatures; flash-floods; avalanches; dangerous travel routes; water
shortages; and unpredictable wildlife. Many
people are indeed frightened of the backcountry without the modern conveniences
of a motor home.
In
order to convince people to study environmental education outdoors, it is
necessary to provide a component that teaches the technical skills needed to
live and travel safely and comfortably in the backcountry.
This would involve instruction in every aspect of backpacking: campsite
selection; safe travel routes; backcountry first aid and hygiene; cooking; water
purification; common backcountry hazards; orienteering; and proper backpacking
equipment. More advanced technical
backcountry skills to be learned include mountaineering, canoeing, sea and
white-water kayaking, rock and ice climbing, caving, and
caynoneering.
By
teaching these outdoor skills in concert with environmental education, fears
about the dangers of the backcountry will begin to dissipate as people feel more
comfortable away from the developed world.
As this comfort grows, people will be more apt and willing to travel and
study in the backcountry, and the goal of 'outdoor environmental education' will
be furthered.
At
present, there is some progress in combining environmental education with
backcountry travel. Companies such
as the National Outdoor Leadership School, Overland Expeditions, Longacre
Expeditions, and Outward Bound all provide some degree of this type of education
in their curriculums. However, each of
these companies has extremely high tuition rates. The majority of the participants in these programs come from a privileged
minority of people from affluent families. Despite the fact that these companies are providing the type
of education that I am proposing, it is not accessible to enough people to
effect change.
In
order to truly effect social change, a combination of environmental and
backcountry education must be available to each young person that Piller refers
to in The Fail-Safe Society. Because
it would be impractical to begin at a national level, a more realistic strategy
would be to begin at the state level or perhaps even individual school
districts.
Government-subsidized programs similar to the companies
listed above would be a good way to make outdoor environmental education more
affordable for more people.
These ideas could also be integrated into our public school system.
Federal or state funding could assist with both of these efforts.
The
involvement of a large percentage of school-age students with these programs
would produce a core of citizens who would be much more in tune with the
environment. From a grass-roots level to the highest governmental offices
in the country, a society that is environmentally conscious and more willing to
adopt rigorous environmental legislation would be realized.
Current
environmental problems will never be adequately addressed until citizens in the
industrialized world fully comprehend the necessity of a healthy planet.
These citizens will never overcome their ignorance or apathy until they
develop a connection with the land and a desire to gain environmental education.
Acquiring environmental education in an outdoor setting would provide a
unique learning experience and allow students to develop these connections.
Affordable tuition rates for these types of programs would increase this
possibility.
With
a concerted effort from educators and public officials, an
environmentally-conscious society could become a reality.
Once established, greater
protection will be provided for the environment through both legislation and
personal actions. Through outdoor
environmental education, humans will begin to recover their lost appreciation
for planet Earth.
References
McNeill,
J.R. (2000), Something New Under the Sun: An Environmental History of
the Twentieth Century World. W.W.
Norton and Company, New York, NY.
Piller,
Charles (1991), The Fail-Safe Society: Community Defiance and the end
of American Technological Optimism. University
of California Press, Berkeley, CA.
Nash,
Roderick (1982), Wilderness and the American Mind. Yale University Press, New Haven, CT.
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