Understanding the connections between education and the natural environment on local scales will enable and empower change in education on a global scale through providing a structure for modeling new approaches to education in support of sustainable development. By applying the emerging education approach of Adventure Learning (AL) (Doering, 2006, 2007; Doering, Miller & Veletsianos, 2008) and harnessing the power of social networking, Earthducation’s technology, pedagogy, and design will reinforce one another to mediate and drive transformational learning experiences.
Learning from the success of the GoNorth! Adventure Learning Series, where the authors used the adventure learning approach to educate students and the general public about the Arctic and its environmental issues in the first circumpolar online educational program that involved more than 3 million students annually, we are taking this interactive educational approach to the next level. This next level involves inviting (literally) everyone from around the world to share his/her insights on two fundamental questions: “What is education?” and “How can education advance sustainability?”
As key members of the Earthducation team travel to climate hotspots on all seven continents, we will collaborate with cultures from around the world to create an ecological narrative of the world’s collective educational beliefs. Teachers, students, global citizens, and the online community will expand upon and discuss these questions to understand how education influences the future of our planet. In return, this ecological narrative will be used within an AL model to enlighten students and the general public through their active participation in the Earthducation EnviroNetwork.
