To Know The World

"I wrote To Know the World: A New Vision for Environmental Learning because I believe that we are entering an unprecedented era of global environmental change, requiring new approaches to both teaching and learning as well as emergent concepts and issues. First and foremost is the convergent tides of change--the inextricable relationships between the health of the biosphere and questions of social justice, racial equity, and civic engagement. Second, we must better understand both ecological and social networks, from mycelium to social media, and how to navigate them constructively, creatively, and deliberately. Third, how do we develop adaptive and improvisational approaches to understanding and coping with global environmental change? Fourth, how do we develop compassion, empathy, and humility in considering the plight of the species and landscapes that share our habitats? Fifth, I am convinced that ecological and cultural migration is the overriding challenge of the 21st century. How do we accommodate, plan for, and learn about the extraordinary displacements of people and species? Migration is where climate change, public health, epidemiology, and social justice converge." What follows is an excerpt from Mitchell Thomashow's book, "To Know the World."

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