Sense of place in environmental education

Abstract

Although environmental education research has embraced the idea of sense of place, it has rarely taken into account environmental psychology-based sense of place literature whose theory and empirical studies can enhance related studies in the education context. This article contributes to research on sense of place in environmental education from an environmental psychology perspective. We review the components of sense of place, including place attachment and place meanings. Then we explore the logic and evidence suggesting a relationship between place attachment, place meanings, pro-environmental behavior, and factors influencing sense of place. Finally, based on this literature we propose that in general environmental education can influence sense of place through a combination of direct place experiences and instruction.

Keywords:

• environmental education
• sense of place
• place attachment
• place meaning
• pro-environmental behavior

Acknowledgments

The Community Forestry and Environmental Research Partnership at University of California, Berkeley, provided funding for this study. We sincerely thank the anonymous reviewers for their constructive comments.