Revisiting the democratic paradox of environmental and sustainability education: sustainability issues as matters of concern

Abstract

In this article, we address the democratic paradox in environmental and sustainability education (ESE) by drawing on Bruno Latour’s conceptual distinction between ‘matters of fact’ and ‘matters of concern’ and the notion of attachments that goes with it. We present an analysis of three cases (nature excursions, workshops that promote ecological behavioural change and making documentary films) focusing on how diverse educational practices deal with sustainability issues as matters of fact, matters of value and/or matters of concern. We examine how these Latourian concepts incite an analysis of educational practices that enriches the discussion about the democratic paradox in ESE. This finally brings us to point out how a concern-oriented ESE might take shape.

Keywords:

• environmental and sustainability education
• democracy
• pluralism
• Latour

Notes

1. In this respect, Graham Harman’s object-oriented ontology may be regarded as one of the most consequent attempts to elaborate such a stubborn realist attitude in that it departs from entities and their relations, thereby being indifferent as to whether they are human, non-human, natural or artificial (Harman 2002).

2. The analysis we present is part of a broader doctoral research project in which seven ESE practices were studied. Besides the cases presented here, we also analysed the project ‘Environmental Performance at School’, the ‘Transition Towns Network’ in Flanders, a ‘transition arena’ aiming to make a city climate neutral and a CSA farm (Community Supported Agriculture). The seven cases were selected through heterogeneity sampling (Patton 2002). For this article, we selected the three most information-rich cases with regard to the issue we address here, that is, those that pre-eminently allowed us to grasp how the democratic paradox affects ESE practices. The research design and methodological considerations are described in full detail in the PhD dissertation (Van Poeck 2013).

3. ‘t Uilekot runs a café and develops activities in four domains: ecology, international solidarity, culture and youth work – thereby striving to address environmental issues in the context of international solidarity and social justice. The analysis presented here only focusses on the making of documentary films. For an overall analysis of this case, see Van Poeck and Vandenabeele 2014a.

4. In view of Latour’s indifference to human vs. non-human, it seems reasonable to extend the use of Marres’ concept of attachments beyond the domain of human – non-human’ relations.

5. The ecological footprint is a standardised measure of human demand on nature representing the amount of biologically productive land and sea area necessary to supply the resources a human population and to assimilate associated waste (Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, s.v. Ecological Footprint). With respect to the argument of this paper, it is interesting to observe that the ecological footprint concept, while it has been scientifically developed as an objective measure for sustainability, is mostly used for campaigning and educational purposes. Here, and as illustrated in this paper, the ecological footprint is typically used in an instrumental way serving as a matter of factual, non-negotiable basis for normative guidelines.

6. As already touched upon, Latour (2008) argues at length that the image of scientific practice that was passed down through the ages and that consists of a distanced observer depicting reality-as-it-really-is is actually a mythical reconstruction, neglecting the constitutive role of actual scientific practice in all its social and technical complexity. For an extensive discussion of the mythical character of this image of science and how it is still active in current thought, see Goeminne (2011).

7. In another case study (Van Poeck and Vandenabeele 2014b), we analysed an interesting educational dynamic brought about by an educator who raised matters of concern starting from his attachment to a CSA farm (Community Supported Agriculture).