Two paradigms of professional development in environmental education

Summary In environmental education in this information age, it is particularly important to adopt the approach of enquiring critically into the environmental, educational and social values informing environmental, educational and social actions when and where required, rather than to simply adopt the approach of emphasising the acquisition and retention of information of an alleged universal type — information drawn from the stockpile of objective knowledge collected by others. This paper argues that to achieve this aim, environmental education in an information age requires aparadigm shift in the areas of professional development — a shift from a paradigm of information technology to a paradigm of information critique. A perspective on the form of this paradigm shift in the particular field of professional development in environmental education is the subject of this paper.Dr Ian Robottom is Senior Lecturer in the Curriculum Studies Centre of the School of Education, at Deakin University, Australia. His main interests lie in teacher education, educational enquiry, and environmental education. He conducts an off-campus environmental education course (B.Ed level) for practising teachers studying at a distance, is a member of the Council of the Australian Association for Environmental Education., and Editor of theAustralian Journal of Environmental Education.     

The readability of federal land management plans

Regulations to implement the National Environmental Policy Act state that environmental impact statements shall be written in plain language. Federal land management agencies operate under this guideline when they prepare plans for their lands. We examined 23 agency plans, using the Flesch Reading Ease Scale, to determine if they met this criterion. The scores show that the plans are written for people with three to six years of college education, far beyond the reading ability of the average person. The results suggest that the plans may limit or bias who participates in agency planning. National policy on the readability of the plans needs to be clarified, and agencies need to evaluate, and defend or revise, their writing programs.     

Naturalness In Biological Conservation

Conservation scientists are arguing whether naturalness provides a reasonable imperative for conservation. To clarify this debate and the interpretation of the term natural, I analyze three management strategies – ecosystem preservation, ecosystem restoration, and ecosystem engineering – with respect to the naturalness of their outcomes. This analysis consists in two parts. First, the ambiguous term natural is defined in a variety of ways, including (1) naturalness as that which is part of nature, (2) naturalness as a contrast to artifactuality, (3) naturalness as an historical independence from human actions, and (4) naturalness as possession of certain properties. After that, I analyze the different conceptions with respect to their implications for the three management strategies. The main conclusion is that there exists no single conception of naturalness that could distinguish between the outcomes of the three management methods. Therefore, as long as the outcomes of the different methods are regarded as being of a different value in conservation, we should either abandon the idea of naturalness as the guiding concept in conservation or use the term natural only in the ways that take both its historical and feature dependent meanings into consideration.     

Uncertainties associated with the assessment of vegetation

The Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) attempts to portray the current character of a given ecosystem. This provides a Baseline against which future possible changes can be assessed. Ecosystems, however, are dynamic and in a constant state of change. Consequently, data representing a single year reflect conditions only for that year and can be misleading if compared against any other year. In addition to this temporal variation, considerable spacial variation exists in species composition and cover. Ample sampling is required to compensate for this heterogeneity. Variation, or background noise, can be minimized by the use of similarity indexes and sampling over a period of at least two years.     

An Approach for Estimating Soil Carbon Using the National Nutrient Loss Database

Agricultural lands have the potential to contribute to greenhouse gas mitigation by sequestering organic carbon within the soil. Credible and consistent estimates will be necessary to design programs and policies to encourage management practices that increase carbon sequestration. Because a nationwide survey of soil carbon by the wide range of natural resources and management conditions of the United States is prohibitively expensive, a simulation modeling approach must be used. The National Nutrient Loss Database (NNLD) is a modeling and database system designed and built jointly by the USDA– Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and Texas A&M University to provide science-based inferences on environmental impacts from changes in agricultural management practices and programs at the regional and national level. Currently, the NNLD simulates 16 crops and covers 1.35 × 10⁸ ha. For estimating soil carbon sequestration, the database will be populated with 1.5 × 10⁶ field-level model runs using the EPIC (Environmental Policy Impact Calculator) model, which includes newly incorporated carbon equations consistent with those in the Century model. Each run will represent a unique situation defined by state, crop, climate, soil, irrigation type, conservation practice, tillage system, and nutrient management treatment (nutrient rate, application frequency, application timing, and manure category). Results are to be assigned to specific National Resource Inventory points (NRI) to simulate regional and national baselines. In this article we present the modeling approach and discuss the strengths and limitations. Published online     

Potential conflict between the coal and arable land resources in australia: A case for corporate responsiveness

Background information on possible surface-coal-mining operations in arable agricultural areas in Australia is provided. The major co-occurrence of the coal and arable land resources was in the Darling Downs region of Queensland and the Liverpool Plains region of New South Wales; however, coal development will probably only occur in the former region over the next decade. Analysis of the situation in the Darling Downs region, which consists of 11 Shires, found five companies conducting prefeasibility projects for surface-coal development and the size of exploration areas concerned far exceeding final mined-land disturbance estimates. Most of the land included in the prefeasibility studies was classified as arable with moderate crop restrictions requiring intensive management (classes II–IV). The total area of land that may be disturbed at some time in the future was less than 2% of the arable land in the Shires concerned. Project mutual exclusivity and ongoing rehabilitation of disturbed areas further reduce arable land out of production at any one time. It is suggested that, if self-regulation by the coal industry in Australia on rehabilitation issues is to remain a viable option in these areas, an understanding between the corporate and public sectors on the extent and limitations of its responsibilities must be obtained. The current development of a National Conservation Strategy for Australia should assist this to proceed. Research on various rehabilitation issues may be required prior to project commitment to ensure the responsibilities identified are realizable. Integrative problem-solving, incorporating audit procedures, was suggested as a suitable method to achieve these aims and corporate responsiveness was seen as a necessary first step.     

Use and abuse revisited: Response to Pluhar and Varner

In her recent Counter-Reply to my views, Evelyn Pluhar defends her use of literature on nutrition and restates her argument for moral vegetarianism. In his Vegan Ideal article, Gary Varner claims that the nutrition literature does not show sufficient differences among women, men, and children to warrant concern about discrimination. In this response I show how Professor Pluhar continues to draw fallacious inferences: she begs the question on equality, avoids the main issue in my ethical arguments, argues from irrelevancies, misquotes her sources, equivocates on context, confuses safety with morality, appeals to fear, confuses correlation with cause, fails to evaluate scientific studies, draws hasty conclusions from insufficient data, ignores a large amount of data which would call her views into question, does not follow good scientific or moral argumentation, objectionably exceeds the limits of her expertise, and resorts to scapegoating. I also argue that Professor Varner fails to make his case because he offers virtually no evidence from scientific studies on nutrition, relies on outdated and fallacious sources, makes unsupported claims, ignores evidence that would contravene his claims, draws hasty conclusions based on weakly supported hypotheses rather than facts, employs a double standard, appeals to ignorance, does not evaluate arguments from his sources, and makes anad hominem attack on a respected nutritionist when his focus should be on evaluating the evidence and arguments from the scientific studies themselves. Neither Varner nor Pluhar have responded sufficiently to the real issue in my arguments, that of discrimination and bias in the vegan ideal.     

Environmental functions as a unifying concept for ecology and economics

Summary In spite of the increased awareness about many environmental problems, degradation and pollution of the natural environment by human actions still continue on a large scale. Some of the main reasons for man's continued abuse of the natural environment are the short-term nature of the economic planning process, which largely ignores the negative long-term effects of economic production on the environment (e.g. pollution), and the fact that the pricing system mainly concentrates on man-made goods and services while considering most natural resources to be free goods.This paper argues that environmental functions (i.e. natural goods are services) are at least as important to human welfare as man-made goods and services and should, therefore, be included in economic accounting procedures. To this end, it is suggested to replace the term natural resources by the concept of environmental functions and, efforts should be undertaken to increase our understanding of the ecological and socio-economic benefits of environmental functions to human society. Only when ecological principles become an integral part of economic planning and political decision-making is there a chance of achieving a happy global village based on harmony between man and nature.Rudolf S. de Groot is an environmental consultant and a Ph.D candidate in environmental planning and management in the Nature Conservation Department of the Agricultural University Wageningen. As a member of the IUCN Commission on Environmental Planning he is involved in the activities of the European Committee for National Conservation Strategies, to implement, monitor and update National and European Conservation Strategies.     

Crisis,argument, and agriculture

Scholarly critics such as Wendell Berry, as well as the popular media, frequently refer to problems associated with agriculture as the agricultural crisis or the farm crisis. Despite the identification of a problem or problems as symptomatic of this crisis, scant attention is paid to why the situation is a social crisis as opposed to a problem, tragedy, trend, or simple change in the structure of agriculture. This paper analyzes the use of social crisis as applied to the state of modern agriculture and, by extension, other crises such as those in legitimation and morality. It concludes that, although important social values associated with farming as a way of life may be in danger of being lost, the crisis we may be facing with respect to agriculture is more properly understood as a sociopolitical crisis that has broader implications than simply the loss of farms or traditional farming values. Indeed, what is in danger of being lost is our ability to affect a secure and sustainable political-economic system.     

Attitudes Toward Wilderness Study Areas: A Survey of Six Southeastern Utah Counties

Southeastern Utah is a region of world-renowned red-rock sandstone formations, large tracts of federal public land, rural communities centered on agriculture and extractive industries, and is often at the epicenter of environmental protection efforts in the western United States. Environmental groups have proposed formal Wilderness designations for much of the regions public land—proposals that have been actively fought by rural community leaders who do not want large areas locked-up from traditional livelihood and recreational uses. The debate over wilderness designation in the region has been characterized in the media as one that is particularly contentious and polarizing. A survey of southeastern Utah residents was conducted in order to better understand this conflict. The survey focused on attitudes toward wilderness designation and management. We found that residents of southeastern Utah have negative attitudes towards the designation and management of Wilderness Study Areas. We propose that these attitudes should be carefully considered and engaged in future policy and management decisions. We suggest that negative opinions expressed by residents of southeastern Utah are not directed primarily at the concept of environmental protection but rather at the strong perception that these programs and initiatives have been carried out in a heavy-handed manner and dominated by outside influences that have overwhelmed local voices.     

Who can be morally obligated to be a vegetarian?

Kathryn Paxton George has recently argued that vegetarianism cannot be a moral obligation for most human beings, even if Tom Regan is correct in arguing that humans and certain nonhuman animals are equally inherently valuable. She holds that Regan's liberty principle permits humans to kill and eat innocent others who have a right to life, provided that doing so prevents humans from being made worse off. George maintains that obstaining from meat and dairy products would in fact make most humans worse off. I argue that Regan's liberty principle either contradicts his equal rights view or does not permit the slaughter of another for food. I show that a different view recognizing the moral rights of nonhumans but according them less value than normal adult humans, the unequal rights view, would permit such action if human survival or health depended upon it. However, it would also permit the slaughter of innocent humans in the same circumstances. Finally, I argue that current nutritional research does not support George's contention that most humans would suffer if they ceased eating other animals and their products.     

Relationships between development and disease

Summary The close links which exist between poverty, disease and development are surveyed, particularly with reference to the situation in Africa. Poverty may impede the correct use of the land which can in turn lead to malnutrition and a higher incidence of disease. A population in poor health cannot effectively improve its own economic condition or make full use of aid. Poor health may be due to a colonial heritage of unsatisfactory land use, inappropriate transfer of technology, short-sighted administration, or other causes. Not all development brings improvement in health, for instance, inadequate urban planning can induce health problems.The wealthy and secure nations of the world will realise that they cannot possibly remain either wealthy or secure if they continue to close their eyes to the pestilence of poverty that covers the whole southern half of the globe. They will act, if only to preserve their own immunity from infection.(McNamara, 1968)Paul Milligan, is a Research Assistant in the Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Salford. He has an active interest in the computer analysis of environmental data and has worked on material relating to the control of river blindness in the Volta Basin of West Africa and in a wider African context on attempts to control sleeping sickness.Dr Michael Pugh Thomas, is Deputy Director of the Environmental Institute at the University of Salford. He is actively involved in environmental education and he is the current Chairman of the Institution of Environmental Sciences. His research has been concerned with the environmental impact of economic development and has related to estuarine ecology and the ecological effects of attempts to control insect vector bourne diseases.     

Environmental and social implications of waste in U.S. agriculture and food sectors

Because the agriculture/food sectors appear to be driven by short-term economic and political forces, cheap energy, and agricultural-chemical technologies, waste and environmental/social problems in the agricultural/food sectors are estimated to cost the nation at least $150 billion per year. Most of the waste and environmental/social problems can be eliminated through better resource management policies and the adoption of sustainable agricultural practices.Based on a paper entitled Waste in U.S. Agricultural and Food Sectors—Environmental and Social Costs presented at the Gross National Waste Product Forum, Washington, D.C.     

The world conservation strategy: Environmental education and local initiative

Summary In the spring of 1981, Tufts University and the International Union for the Conservation of Nature began teaching the World Conservation Strategy to environmentalists working at the local level. The fourteen-week course that they offered was the first of a series of initiatives to increase public awareness of the need for local action toward the solution of global environmental problems. The success of the first course has encouraged other groups to adapt it to their own social and ecological settings, but there is a pressing need for even more public education. While several aids to teaching the World Conservation Strategy are now being developed to give local conservation educators access to the Strategy, the initiative for bringing the World Conservation Strategy to the public should continue to come from these local leaders. Frank Thibodeau is an environmental biologist and policy analyst with MA and PhD degrees from Tufts University. He is currently a Research Associate in the Department of Urban and Environmental Policy at Tufts, preparing a book on the World Conservation Strategy as a foundation for local environmental initiative under the auspicies of IUCN and the World Wildlife Fund. In addition to his writing and teaching related to the Strategy, he maintains an active research program examining the development of national and international strategies for the preservation of genetic diversity. Hermann H. Field, an urban planner and Fellow of the American Institute of Architects, was director of the Planning Office of the Tufts-New England Medical Center in downtown Boston for 12 years. In 1972 he initiated and then directed a new graduate department of Urban and Environmental Policy at Tufts University. Since 1978 he has been Professor Emeritus in Environmental Planning there. In addition to continued involvement in his department he is active on a range of levels in conservation from the local to the international, including membership on IUCN's Commission on Environmental Planning.     

EIA — Its potential application to appropriate technology in developing countries

Summary Many developed countries in the Western world employ some form of Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). A number of sophisticated procedures are used for the assessment of the impact of large- scale developments upon the environment. In developing countries there are both large-scale schemes that are often financed by foreign aid, and small-scale projects in which technology is less sophisticated but more appropriate to human needs. Standard EIA procedures are followed for large-scale developments but assessment of the impact of small-scale projects is often ignored.This paper attempts to define appropriate technology and to describe some of the often less apparent adverse effects of such technology upon society and the environment. The need for assessment of small-scale projects is established and the possibility of applying current EIA procedures to such developments is considered. The final paragraphs refer to the advantages and disadvantages of environmental impact assessment of small-scale technology.Dr Pamela M. Goode and Alastair I. Johnstone are both members of staff at the Environmental Institute, University of Salford, UK.     

Options and limitations in fisheries management

Conclusion As a final thought, I want to conclude with the cliche that a problem recognized is half solved. Certainly, I cannot be accused of laying out a solution to solving the major fisheries management problems, but it is hoped that the problems managers face are now clearer. The complexity of fisheries assystems to be managed is clear to even the most casual observer. The second point, a broad theory of fisheries management, should provide a framework to categorize all of the disjointed activities that we associate with management of our fisheries resources.     

India's Action plan for Wildlife Conservation and role of voluntary bodies

Summary This theme paper introduces India's Action plan for Wildlife Conservation. The author describes the historic development of conservation management as related to India's remarkably diverse range of wildlife, and briefly describes the National Wildlife Action Plan.This paper was presented to the Centenary Seminar of the Bombay Natural History Society. 6–10 December, 1983. The theme of the seminar was Conservation in Developing Countries — Problems and Prospects. Complete copies of the paper and theNational Wildlife Action Plan are available directly from the author.     

Biosphere II: Meeting ground for ecology and technology

Summary Biosphere II is a new project to build a self-contained ecological system containing humans, plants, and as many other living organisms as necessary for long-term sustenance. Soviet space scientists have already designed Bios 3, simulating conditions on board a flight to Mars. In building Biosphere II, the Institute of Ecotechnics (IE), in collaboration with Space Biospheres Ventures, Decisions Teams Limited, The Environmental Research Laboratory associated with The University of Arizona, and Sarbid Limited, plan to build the prototype of an artificial world in which environmental and ecological processes can be observed closely; An educational, scientific, and ethical laboratory, Biosphere II will raise public consciousness of the interdependence of all life. It will also serve as a control world where possibly harmful environmental effects can be modelled before they reach a crisis stage. Eventually the biospheres are to be marketed and set up in space as the biosphere, no longer in conflict with but aided by human technology, puts forth its young upon other celestial bodies.Dorion Sagan's most recent books areMicrocosmos andOrigins of Sex, both co-authored with Lynn Margulis. He is working onBiospheres, a book on closed ecological systems which is to be published shortly.     

Flood information systems: Needs and improvements in Eastern India

Flood warning systems offer a large potential for reducing human losses and property damage in flood-prone regions. This article illustrates why official organized systems should not be relied on completely in either developing or developed societies. It then discusses an indigenous flood warning system in a rural area of Eastern India, its value, and its importance in providing an alternative means of detecting, interpreting, and relaying flood warning information to the ultimate users of this information, i.e., those populations most at risk from floods.The National Center for Atmospheric Research is operated by the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research and is sponsored by the National Science Foundation.     

Biosphere reserves in Germany: A contribution to support sustainable development

Summary Biosphere reserves are protected areas of representative environments internationally recognised for their value for conservation and for their ability to provide the scientific knowledge, skills and human values to support sustainable development. Biosphere reserves — as a part of the UNESCO programme Man and the Biosphere (MAB) — make up a world-wide network sharing research information on ecosystem conservation, management and development. They include strictly protected core-areas — representative examples of natural or minimally disturbed ecosystems. Core areas are surrounded by buffer zones in which research, environmental education and training and recreation can take place. Buffer zones are, in turn, surrounded by transition areas, large open areas where the aim is to ensure rational development of the natural resources of the region. At present, twelve biosphere reserves are designated in Germany, covering in all an area of 11,589 km². The role of biosphere reserves to support sustainable development in Germany and Europe is discussed.Karl-Heinz Erdmann is a geographer and Deputy Secretary General at the Secretariat of the German National Committee for the UNESCO Programme on Man and Biosphere (MAB), Federal Agency for Nature Conservation. He is also a Committee Member of the Society for Man and Environment (GMU).