Environmental literacy, ecological literacy, ecoliteracy: What do we mean and how did we get here?

Abstract

Abstract. Numerous scholars have argued that the terms environmental literacy, ecological literacy, and ecoliteracy have been used in so many different ways and/or are so all-encompassing that they have very little useful meaning. However, despite the seemingly arbitrary and, at times, indiscriminate use of these terms, tremendous efforts have in fact been made to explicitly define and delineate the essential components of environmental literacy, ecological literacy, and ecoliteracy, and to firmly anchor their characterizations in deep theoretical and philosophical foundations. A driving purpose behind these ongoing conversations has been to advance complete, pedagogy-guiding, and broadly applicable frameworks for these ideals, allowing for standards and assessments of educational achievement to be set. In this manuscript, we review a diversity of perspectives related to the often nuanced differences and similarities of these terms. A classification of the numerous proposed frameworks for environmental literacy, ecological literacy, and ecoliteracy (advanced within the fields of environmental education, ecology, and the broader humanities, respectively) is presented, and used to compare and contrast frameworks across multiple dimensions of affect, knowledge, skills, and behavior. This analysis facilitates close examination of where we have been, where we are, and where we might be headed with respect to these vital conversations. This work also offers points of reference for continued critical discourse, and illuminates a diversity of inspiration sources for developing and/or enriching programs aimed at cultivating these types of literacies.

Building Ecoliteracy Through Adiwiyata Program (Study at Adiwiyata School in Banda Aceh)

“…Ecoliteracy not only the ability to identify, classify and distinguish environmental aspects, but included the ability to react and participate in decision making process to solve environmental issue and problem [Locke et al, 2013]. Ecoliteracy individual is prepared to become member of sustainable community, by combination of head, heart, hand abilities and spirit, which included world understanding and participative action in and with environment [McBride et al, 2013].…”

Social-ecological memory in an autobiographical novel: ecoliteracy, place attachment, and identity related to the Korean traditional village landscape

“…An individual's knowledge, worldview, social-ecological interactions, and approaches to ecosystem management result from the individual's experiences; experiences inform perceptions that define the individual's attitudes and behaviors; and depending on the nature of social feedback, the individual's actions can be either reinforced or corrected. In turn, individuals, through their ecological knowledge, cognitive skills, and behaviors, which are collectively termed as ecoliteracy (Capra 1996), can impact ecosystem patterns and processes (McBride et al 2013).…”

Enhancement of Students’ Biological Literacy and Critical Thinking of Biology through Socio-Biological Case-Based Learning

“…Biological literacy is the development of scientific literacy in a biological context. Biological literacy is the ability to use scientific inquiry to understand and recognize biological issues in society and integrate these ideas into decision making and communicate results to others (McBride et al, 2013). In other words, biological literacy focuses on the use of key concepts in biology to make decisions in solving problems through scientific inquiry.…”