Environmental Health Education: A Participatory Holistic Approach

In response to the lack of theoretical foundations in the emerging field of “environmental health education,” this article presents a proposal for a theoretical framework which integrates complementary elements drawn mainly from the fields of environmental education, health education, and risk education. This framework is centred on a participatory holistic approach; it seeks to stimulate the development of personal and collective competencies for citizen involvement in improving the relationship between communities and their environment in order to simultaneously promote human health and the integrity of the closely interrelated life systems. The development of this proposal is based on an initial theoretical construct, produced from an anasynthesis of existing literature and results of previous projects, that is being validated and enriched by actual empirical fieldwork. The latter involves the collaborative design and experimentation of educational-intervention projects, among social groups in the region of Lac Saint-Pierre, concerning the issue of fish consumption, its benefit, and also the risks associated to lake chemical contamination.     

Environmental Health Education in Schools as Strategy for Rodent Control: An Experience in a Shantytown of Buenos Aires,Argentina

The general aim of this study was to assess the possibility of including elements of environmental health education within the curriculum of a school located in a shantytown of Buenos Aires city, Argentina. An environmental health education campaign was designed to introduce school-aged children to the problems posed by the lack of environmental sanitation, by using rodents as indicators of environmental disorder. The methodology implemented consisted of a lecture and two practical activities where the participating children were the evaluators of their neighborhood environment, recording the environmental factors that indicate direct or indirect presence of rodents and carrying out a survey about rodents among their neighbors. To assess the impact of the activities, an anonymous questionnaire was performed with the students before and after the campaign. The results showed that students were able to identify the man-made factors which favor the presence of rodents and were encouraged to propose strategies related to environmental sanitation to reduce rodent proliferation and the transmission of their parasites. This study demonstrated the feasibility of performing environmental health education campaigns in school-aged children by using practical activities to stimulate observation, participation, and comprehensive understanding of the problems posed by urban pests.     

基于“环境育人”理念的校园景观设计思考

校园景观因其教育属性有别于城市景观,对学生的学习、成长起到重要的审美熏陶和精神引领作用。新时期教育理念要求校园景观设计实现“环境育人”,笔者从功能、审美、精神这3个层面展开讨论环境育人的机制,并提出在校园景观设计中应把握景观环境与规划、建筑的整体关系,注重校园生态环境的可持续发展,营造地域性、文化性、时代性相融合的校园环境,实现环境育人的目的。     

Environmental,Institutional, and Demographic Predictors of Environmental Literacy among Middle School Children

Building environmental literacy (EL) in children and adolescents is critical to meeting current and emerging environmental challenges worldwide. Although environmental education (EE) efforts have begun to address this need, empirical research holistically evaluating drivers of EL is critical. This study begins to fill this gap with an examination of school-wide EE programs among middle schools in North Carolina, including the use of published EE curricula and time outdoors while controlling for teacher education level and experience, student attributes (age, gender, and ethnicity), and school attributes (socio-economic status, student-teacher ratio, and locale). Our sample included an EE group selected from schools with registered school-wide EE programs, and a control group randomly selected from NC middle schools that were not registered as EE schools. Students were given an EL survey at the beginning and end of the spring 2012 semester. Use of published EE curricula, time outdoors, and having teachers with advanced degrees and mid-level teaching experience (between 3 and 5 years) were positively related with EL whereas minority status (Hispanic and black) was negatively related with EL. Results suggest that school-wide EE programs were not associated with improved EL, but the use of published EE curricula paired with time outdoors represents a strategy that may improve all key components of student EL. Further, investments in teacher development and efforts to maintain enthusiasm for EE among teachers with more than 5 years of experience may help to boost student EL levels. Middle school represents a pivotal time for influencing EL, as improvement was slower among older students. Differences in EL levels based on gender suggest boys and girls may possess complementary skills sets when approaching environmental issues. Our findings suggest ethnicity related disparities in EL levels may be mitigated by time spent in nature, especially among black and Hispanic students.     

Environmental Understanding for All

Real education in environmental understanding is about inspiring and enlarging people's curiosity. It is about generating a breadth of interest and not just a depth of expertise. It should encourage appreciation of the environment, not just understanding, and it helps if it also leaves some room for wonder.
'Environmental Understanding for All' is the clear aim of the Field Studies Council. We have set ourselves to this difficult but exciting task. We have tried to develop some environmental understanding in all sorts of people; young and old, rural and urban, committed and indifferent, despoilers and conservationists, politicians and pressure groups, industry and commerce, academic and non-academic.
The main thrust of our attack is based at one Day Centre, one main Research Unit, six Residential Centres in England and three in Wales. These Centres are up mountains, by the coast, in forests, on the shores of lakes and tarns. Some of them are almost in fields! We have well over a hundred professional and dedicated staff helping us to look after many thousands of customers each year.
In the spectrum of scientific and conservation organizations concerned with the environment, we have an important and honoured place. We have, perhaps, stood too passively on the sidelines and we need a higher profile to get the resources and recognition to move forward–but we can be proud of the start we have made towards 'Environmental Understanding for All'.     

Environmental scenarios for the future nitrogen policy in Flanders,Belgium

The agricultural sector accounts for two thirds of nitrogen losses in Flanders, Belgium. Since 1991 both the government and the farmers have been taking measures to reduce the nitrogen surplus. Initially, the manure policy was aimed at distributing the manure surplus equally across Flanders. At the same time, the growth of livestock was stopped by a strict licensing policy, which required "command and control" measures. In recent years, the policy has switched to the use of individual target commitments by farmers. The Flemish manure policy will be tightened even more as a result of international pressures. An ex ante evaluation of possible policy options was carried out using three different scenarios spread out until 2010 (Business As Usual, Additional Measures, and Sustainable Development). To do this, a sector-economic, regionalized, environmental, comparative static, partial equilibrium, mathematical programming model of the Flemish agriculture was developed. The nitrogen emission into the agricultural soil was calculated by means of a regional soil balance. European targets can only be reached with manure processing, reduced fertilizer usage, and a strong reduction of intensive livestock breeding activities. The atmospheric deposition of nitrogen compounds will strongly decrease in 2010 if additional measures are taken. This will also result in a strong reduction of nitrous oxide emissions.     

Environmental biosensors for organochlorines, cyanobacterial toxins and endocrine disrupting chemicals

Environmental biosensors and related techniques for monitoring organochlorines, endocrine disrupting chemicals and cyanobacterial toxins are described. The practical requirements for an ideal environmental biosensor are analyzed. Specific case studies for environmental applications are reported for triazines chlorinated phenols, PCBs, microcystins, and endocrine disrupting chemicals. A new promising approach is reported for microcystins and alkylphenols that utilize electrooptical detection.     

Environmental DNA/RNA for pathogen and parasite detection,surveillance, and ecology

Detection of pathogens, parasites, and other symbionts in environmental samples via eDNA/eRNA (collectively eNA) is an increasingly important source of information about their occurrence and activity. There is great potential for using such detections as a proxy for infection of host organisms in connected habitats, for pathogen monitoring and surveillance, and for early warning systems for disease. However, many factors require consideration, and appropriate methods developed and verified, in order that eNA detections can be reliably interpreted and adopted for surveillance and assessment of disease risk, and potentially inclusion in international standards, such as the World Organisation for Animal Health guidelines. Disease manifestation results from host–symbiont–environment interactions between hosts, demanding a multifactorial approach to interpretation of eNA signals.     

Environmental Change, Injustice and Sustainability

This paper argues that a combination of increasing inequality, hypocrisy, population growth and adverse global environmental change imperils our civilisation. Selected examples of existing inequality and the immoral treatment of human beings are provided from countries of the Asia Pacific. There is also limited discussion of the global eco-social crisis, stressing the links between environmental scarcity and the human responses of resentment, conflict, terrorism and ill-governance. The essay contends that just as the lives of unborn humans similar to us are of interest and value to bio-ethicists, so too should be the lives and descendants of people who are unlike us, even if such people are perceived to be substantially different to ourselves in terms of status, culture and spending power. It is argued that it is in the interests of ourselves, society, and global civilisation that the lives of such people are considered and where possible improved in order to foster the “sustainability transition” needed to secure our collective future. The essay concludes with a discussion of an important element for securing our future: the development and implementation of alternative economic systems which will provide more accurate indicators of global progress.     

Environmental Optima for Seven Strains of Pseudochattonella (Dictyochophyceae,Heterokonta)

The ichthyotoxic flagellate Pseudochattonella has formed recurrent blooms in the North Sea, Skagerrak and Kattegat since 1998. Five strains of Pseudochattonella farcimen and two strains of P. verruculosa were examined in an assay comparing the light response of specific growth rates over a range of temperatures and salinities to get further knowledge on the autecology of members of this genus. Temperature optima were lower in P. farcimen (9°C–15°C) than in P. verruculosa (12°C–20°C). P. farcimen also showed a somewhat lower salinity optimum (18–26) than P. verruculosa (20–32). All strains showed light‐dependent growth responses reaching saturation between 18 and 52 μmol · photons · m^?2 · s^?1 at optimal temperature and salinity conditions. Compensation point estimates ranged from 4.2 to 15 μmol · photons · m^?2 · s^?1. Loss rates increased with temperature and were lowest at salinities close to optimal growth conditions. Blooms of P. farcimen have been recorded in nature under conditions more similar to those minimizing loss rates rather than those maximizing growth rates in our culture study.