The World Environmental Education Congress 2007: a critical appraisal

Abstract

The breadth and depth of the environmental crisis and the consequently wide and inclusive interpretations of ‘sustainable development’ has promoted a disparate range of academic responses encouraging a loose interpretation of environmental education and Education for Sustainable Development. This in turn reduces the capacity for the development of a clearly defined discourse and for a sufficiently robust debate conducive of effective change. This paper attempts to assess the current situation within environmental education in this respect, by means of an analysis of papers presented at the recent World Environmental Education Congress in Durban, South Africa (July 2007). By quantifying the use of specific terms and words used in presentations, the authors reveal evidence to suggest that there is not the degree of self critical analysis and academic rigour that the urgency of the environmental crisis might reasonably demand. On this basis a recommendation is made which should lead to greater precision in the identification of relevant themes and research.

Keywords:

• critical education
• eco‐criticism
• education for sustainable development
• evaluation
• sustainability