Empirical Research On Environmental Education In Europe

The book presents recent empirical studies in the field of environmental education conducted in various European countries and Israel. The research projects were concerned with the general question of the basic competences required for fostering Sustainable Development.

In the age of global communication where it is possible to become abreast with environmental or socio-political trends from different countries across the world, Sweden and Germany are known as global leaders in different fields. Especially their role in the educational systems is discussed a lot. EU-countries pay much attention to the Swedish way commonly known as “Swedish Model”1 and the German way is in general known with high quality standards in education. The Stockholm Conference in 1972 and in particular the Rio Conference in 1992 was the start that Sweden has environmentally led the world. Sweden is one of the pioneering countries in education for all including immigrants. Germany is known for good qualification in the education. EE plays in both educational system – in Sweden and Germany – an important role which is discussed in the present paper.

Green European addresses the quest for a better understanding of European type(s) of environmentalism. This monograph focuses on public attitudes and behaviours and the culturally rooted as well as country specific differences. The book addresses the wider issue that many European countries are rendered ‘green’ or as having an advanced environmental awareness, but the question - ‘how green are Green Europeans really’, is yet to be answered. The book covers a variety of unique data-driven comparative studies and is divided into three parts: the first addresses perceptions of environmental and technological threats and risks, the second part deals with environmental activism in Europe, the third discusses environmental attitudes, environmental concerns and their imminent link to personal pro-environmental behaviour. The empirical comparative nature of the contributions is enabled by data from the International Social Survey Programme (ISSP).

Environmental education and education for sustainable development have become features of many countries’ formal education systems. To date, however, there have been few attempts to explore what such learning looks and feels like from the perspective of the learners. Based on in-depth empirical studies in school and university classrooms, this book presents rich insights into the complexities and dynamics of students’ environmental learning. The authors show how careful analysis of students’ environmental learning experiences can provide powerful pointers for future practice, policy and research. Environmental Learning will be a key resource for educators, teacher educators, decision-makers and researchers involved in education and sustainable development.