PR and environmental education materials

courtesy : PR and environmental education materials.

introduction

The pursuit of sustainable development and environmental conservation policies, objectives and targets requires the public to be sufficiently sensitized about the multiple dimensions of environment and development. Awareness and understanding of environmental issues provide the basis and rationale for commitment and meaningful action towards environmentally sound and sustainable development. This chapter provides an overview of developments in environmental education, information, awareness and training in the Asian and Pacific region during the 1990s. The trends and patterns in environmental education in formal and non-formal sectors, and initiatives and programmes
that have been undertaken by governments, non-governmental organizations, communities and by regional and international organizations are also identified. The underlying needs for environmental education, information and communication are also discussed with a particular emphasis on the constraints and key issues that need attention.

ENVIRONMENTAL TRAINING
Agenda 21 states that training is one of the most important means to develop human resources and facilitate the transition to a more sustainable world. “It should have a job-specific focus, aimed at filling gaps in knowledge and skill, and would help individuals find employment and be involved in environmental and developmental work. At the same time, training programmes should promote a greater awareness of the environment and development issues as a two-way learning process” (United Nations 1993).

Environmental Education Benefits Students by

• Improving Academic Achievement. EE improves test scores by providing students with engaging lessons about the natural world that can be applied to all subject areas and grades.
• Breaking the Indoor Habit. EE offers an antidote to the plugged-in lives of today’s generation, which is the first to grow up indoors. Children who experience school grounds or play areas with diverse natural settings are more physically active, more aware of good nutrition, more creative, and more civil to one another.
• Improving Student Health. EE gets students outdoors and active, and helps to address common health issues in children today, such as obesity, attention deficit disorder, and depression.
• Supporting STEM. EE offers an engaging platform for gaining and applying knowledge and skills in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).
• Meeting 21st Century Needs. EE emphasizes skills essential for succeeding in tomorrow’s world, such as questioning, investigating, defining problems, analyzing, interpreting, reasoning, developing conclusions, and solving problems.
• Cultivating Leadership Qualities. EE emphasizes cooperative learning with others, critical thinking and discussion, and a focus on action strategies with real-world applications.
• Improving Focus and Cognition. EE increases the ability of students to focus and improves their cognitive abilities. Children with attention-deficit disorder also benefit from more exposure to nature–the greener a child’s everyday environment, the more manageable are their symptoms.
• # PR and environmental education materials.
• #ISBC
• # EE improves test
• #sustainable development
• #environmental conservation policies