Learning

Education for Sustainability starts in many places and looks like a lot of different things. From students launching a school-wide lunchroom recycling initiative to advising the neighborhood association on how to make safer walking and biking routes to school, educating for sustainability supports students asking questions and learning about the social, economic and ecological systems in their communities. Through exploring the world right in front of them students will develop an understanding of systems.  They will learn that they are change agents through each decision they make.

All around the country, non-profits and government agencies are developing programs to help define and support this work as it organically grows in individual classrooms and schools. The organizations listed below are leading the way. Learn about the work they are doing, find resources to support your work, and connect with the research supporting sustainability education.

• Check out the US Partnership for Educating for Sustainable Development and stay abreast of the most recent practices and trends in EfS. You can even apply to become an EfS teacher fellow.
• Help define what Education for Sustainability means to the State of Wisconsin by staying connected with the Wisconsin Center for Environmental Education (WCEE) who will be conducting a series of visioning sessions around the state to identify how they can best support this work in our state.
• Join the Wisconsin Green Schools Network to stay connected with those doing the work locally.
• Download a free sustainability curriculum from Facing the Future.
• Check-out Smart by Nature: Schooling for Sustainability a new book by the Center for Ecoliteracy that explores four broad topic areas of schooling for sustainability – food, the campus, community, and teaching and learning using four guiding principles they call “Smart by Nature”.
• Visit the Cloud Institute for Sustainability Education which offers a variety of products and services to help schools and their communities teach and learn for a sustainable future.
• Learn about the work happening in Vermont, Oregon and Washington.
• Understand the research behind Educating for Sustainability. A new study from the National Wildlife Federation Back to School: Back Outside describes the key benefits of outdoor play and learning: students’ motivation and enthusiasm to learn increases, classroom behavior improves, student concentration and engagement increases, and standardized test scores improve. Further research on the positive impacts of place-based learning and educating for sustainability can be found at the Place-Based Education Collaborative.