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A new EE model for Houston
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[1]
21ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION
February 2012Prepared byJaime Gonzalez, M.Ed., Katy Prairie Conservancy
HOW DO WE EDUCATE OUR REGION ABOUT THE ENVIRONMENT?The Houston - Gulf Coast Region is set for explosive population growth, dramatic changes in historic land use, and an increasingly complex environmental policy-making climate. HOW WILL WE RESPOND?
The first half of the 21st Century will bring big changes to the Houston - Gulf Coast Region. By 2035 our population density will double, putting increased pressure on protected nature preserves, transportation infrastructures and dwindling water resources and threatening to undo successes in improving air quality. The climate itself is likely to be in flux; native species and ecosystems will be assailed by invasive species, and our cultural touchstones are likely to shift with an increasingly rich cultural mix of peoples from across the globe. The future is also alive with bright green opportunities for rewilding urban areas, making smarter transportation and energy choices, growing
healthy food in new spaces and using technology to connect us in new ways to the outdoors instead of separating us from it.
So, as a community of environmental educators in southeast Texas how will we respond? We could try what we’ve tried in the past, or we could recognize the enormity and importance of our work and strike out on a new path - one of collaboration and interconnected excellence. This document details one idea for getting us to bigger and better outcomes together. It is by no means comprehensive or exclusive, but I hope it will be of help and interest as we move forward.
The Houston - Gulf Coast is one
of the fastest growing regions
in the nation.
035opulatioy 1-milerid
2pbg
that can st i l l be made abouc public pol i-
cies, parr icr,r lary abour transportat ion in-
fiastrucrure policy. As Merrostudy Presi-
dent Mike Inselnrann has said "The ciry
grorvs rvhere developers buy lanrl and they
buy lancl where nerv rransl-nrration corri-
dors ger dcveloped."
An example of rhis dynamic is evidenc in
rhe maps: rhey
Prolecr
ilew householdsneeded:
significant new developmenr happening
along the proposed Grand Parkway, rvhich
is shown on H-GA(,'s maps as a new rrans-
lxrmation corridor - althou.qh most of it
doesn'r exist.
Anothc-r observarion is tlrat only one-
third of nerv developmenr will rake place
in the rcsioni incorporared towns ancl
cit ies, wit lr the bulk of i t occurring in rhe
counties ourside thesc areas. Public pol icy
is harcl to bring to bear in these
areas with so ferv rools
granred by rhe/
Starc
Chartllousbn TomdrorvOah: H-@C
planning ancl regulat ing rhe bui l t environ-
ment irncl its impacr <ln quality of life.
Note: 'I'he co/or.s and ntruher range.t tt.red
bere dit'ide lattd rr.res into frtnr cdtegorit.t:
trban, sabttrbat. rtrral. and frontier, or
re/atircly ratnral drkt.r. Tbe cutagorirs rtrt
based r,u ltoprrlation lrer.rqilar( nile. Green
denote: Ji'onticr anl rnral densities, 1'el/ou's
are.tuhrrrban. arl reds are urban. u' i t / t
dark rtd the uost t/utse. 7'hi: st'tten brrt-
vide.s an edJ): u'd) to see bou, uclt
area is cxfected /o change. Be-
cat.sa regional grccn.rpacc i.r
closell' ticd to air, u'ater, anc/
footl. ir i: a luding indica-
tor of clualitl oJ' /ife and
place. IJ 'uc ta) 'u'e u,d,tt
to cr1p5s77,g anl inprot,e
greertspacc, u'c neec/ to
rrnderstand u'ltere u'e
tt i l l bat 'e
-t 0 rile.
.INADRE'SI U]{II{CORPORATED AREAS
1,400,000plus job sibs, storcs,schools, fre and police
facilities, roads, parking, andeverything else we need or want
Touts & ctTtEsns. GournEsAbout 2/3 of growth
would occur outsi.de
incorporated areas.
FOR THE HOUSTON-GULF COAST REGION
ST
5th Annual Environmental Education Summit
Saturday, January 28, 2012
University of Houston-Downtown - 8am-4pm
REGISTER AT Fee: $25 - lunch included
EnvironmentalEducator’s
sketch of Buffalo Bayou Master Plan
Houston Tomorrow 2035 projections
5th Annual Environmental Education Summit
Saturday, January 28, 2012
University of Houston-Downtown - 8am-4pm
REGISTER AT Fee: $25 - lunch included
EnvironmentalEducator’s
wildlife
MonkParakeet
M E E T I N G CENTURY CHALLENGES IN
[2]
A SAMPLING OF 21ST CENTURY ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES AND SOLUTIONS
EDUCATION + RECREATION
LAND, AIR, AND WATER ISSUES
TRANSPORTATION ISSUES
CLIMATE CHANGEECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
FAMILIES + INDIVIDUALS
EDUCATORS + STUDENTS
DECISION -
MAKERS
TRADITIONAL LAND CONSERVATION
INSTITUTIONAL LEADERSHIP
BUSINESSES
AIR QUALITY POLICY
WATER QUALITY POLICY
LOCAL AGRICULTURAL ISSUES
GREEN JOBS
GREEN ENERGY
GREEN ENERGY
LAND USE CHANGES
QUALITY OF LIFE
WATER AVAILABILITY
MASS TRANSIT
NEW ROADWAYS
AIR QUALITY ISSUES
EQUITABLE USEURBAN SPRAWL BIOLOGICAL DISRUPTION
BIOCITY INSTITUTE
BIOCITY WEBSITE
GET OUTDOORS HOUSTON WEBSITE
DECISION - MAKERS ACTION TEAM
TCIN HOUSTON
DECISION - MAKERS ACTION TEAM
TCIN HOUSTON
ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION
DECISION - MAKERS ACTION TEAM
BIOCITY INSTITUTE
LEGAL ISSUES DONATIVE ISSUES
REGULATORY ISSUESREGULATORY ISSUES
FIDUCIARY RESPONSIBILITIES
LegendNEW INITIATIVE COVERED IN THIS PROPOSAL
COLLABORATIVE LAND CONSERVATION
COLLABORATIVE RESTORATION EFFORTS
OUTDOOR RECREATION
GET OUTDOORS HOUSTON WEBSITE
GROWING OUTDOOR REC GROUPS
BAYOU GREENWAYS INITIATIVE
SAM HOUSTON TRAIL
NEW INITIATIVE NOT COVERED IN THIS PROPOSAL
ECONOMIC SELF -SUFFICIENCY FOR
NONPROFITS
TESTING REQUIREMENTS
TEACHER PREPARATION
FISCAL CONSTRAINTS
FIDUCIARY RESPONSIBILITIES
ACCESS TO THE OUTDOORS
BUDGETARY CONSTRAINTS
POLITICAL CONSTRAINTS
BUDGETARY CONSTRAINTS
ECONOMIC SELF -SUFFICIENCY FOR
NONPROFITS
ENVIRONMENTAL COMPONENTS OF SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES
NATIONAL SEASHORE INITIATIVE
HOUSTON WILDERNESS WEBSITE
OTHER FACTORS NOT COVERED IN THIS PROPOSAL
ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES
[3]
There are many reasons why the environmental community should work more closely together to educate our region (1) Staffing shortages at resource agencies have increased due to the current economic climate. (2) School teachers and home school educators represent a vast untapped reservoir of potential natural resource volunteers.(3) Professional educators are seeking meaningful, interconnected and relevant training which both meets their requirement for continuing education and provides useful, standards-correlated materials for their students. (4) Many educators would love to teach locally but either don’t know how and/or can’t find resources to do so.
(5) Natural resource agencies are actively looking to have a greater impact in their communities. (6) Collaboration is a process by
which we can strengthen each other and better serve our individual and collective missions. (7) Funders, including many private foundations, are also pressing the natural
resources community to reduce redundant programs and to work more closely together.
If we are going to spread the conservation ethic in our communities beyond the audience that we already reach, we simply need many, many more formal and informal educators involved than we currently have in our ranks. These new individuals would ideally interact on a regular basis with large numbers of families and students.
Our VisionWe envision an increasingly environmentally-literate Houston-Gulf Coast region by the year 2020. This vision will be accomplished by creating and nurturing new programs while strengthening traditional environmental education programs.Our Goals1. To better educate both formal and informal educators, executive directors, and volunteers in place-based,
interdisciplinary environmental education {the environment is much more than science}.2. To more closely connect our schools, our families and individuals to our environment.3. To make environmental educators more relevant and useful to decision-makers within current environmental and
conservation groups and the community at large.4. To erase perceived barriers that separate environmental educators.
BY 2020
WHY WE NEED A MORE ROBUST REGIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION PROGRAM?
New BioCity Institute + WebsiteA new model for teaching and learning about place and environment. Detailed information later in this document
Texas Children in Nature HoustonA new organization dedicated to getting more youth and families outdoors. Started in 2012.
New Decision-Maker Education TeamReal change will require us to systematically and consistently educate local decision-makers about environmental issues. A team of decision-maker educators can be trained and given high-quality tools to teach politicians, donors, etc. about the needs of our community.
A New Model for Collaborative Environmental Education for the Houston - Gulf Coast Region
Southern LeopardFrog
Traditional Environmental Education Programs: At Nature Centers, Schools, Zoos, etc.
New Community + Family InitiativesNeeds further discussion within the community.
New Houston-Gulf Coast Outdoors website will aid in this effort (online Fall 2012)
TO REACH THIS GOAL WE WILL NEED
[4]
What is Texas Children in Nature? Texas Children in
Nature is a movement and not
something we can easily organize, schedule and measure. It’s
more organic than that. It’s about igniting the love of the outdoors in a variety of ways for a variety of people. It’s about realigning people’s ways of life to slow down and connect—to the outdoors and to each other. We have to teach this generation how to do something that to other generations was just a part of life. Exploring nature must be integrated into education in all subjects.
What Are We Going to Do? It’s tempting to go to the largest pool of children and start making in-roads there with the hope that there will be change on a large scale. That’s what an institute can do for the children in our formal education system. However, a grassroots movement with a scope this large has to look at its various audiences. The audiences include every way that humans group themselves—in families, churches, schools, organizations, peer groups, blog-followers, etc. And all of these individuals and groups fall on a continuum of affinity and understanding of nature. It harkens back to Aristotle's rhetorical triangle where in any persuasive delivery, the SPEAKER—MESSAGE—AUDIENCE are all completely
interdependent.
For each audience outlined above, there will be different messages, different credible speakers and different delivery methods that will be the most effective. For example, if we want to reach those in the health community, we might sell our product Nature as a collection of walking paths and an interactive web map to find them. If we want to connect Nature to families, we might convince the parks board that we need more nature-based play areas in pocket parks. Or we might begin some Family Nature Clubs based on the Children & Nature Network model. Or if we want to reach the Hispanic community, we might find people within those communities to deliver the Nature message in churches. Or we might promote more family picnics in state parks.
Finding a single project is not going to work on the scale that we need it to. We need a varied system of pathways to where the children are, where the families are, and where the community comes together. This system of pathways does not mean that we should divide and conquer and
travel along separate paths. In a way, that’s what we’ve been doing. Together we can definitely do things that we cannot do individually.
How Are We Going to Do It? Collectively, we can focus our energy and expertise. Here are a few first steps: ★ Identify certain target audiences where
we feel that impact could be significantly meaningful.
★ Form collaborations with people within that audience to chart the path for the next steps.
★ Determine what the message or product is that will be the most effective for each audience and determine a means of delivering it.
The hope here is that we could create a toolkit full of different products or delivery methods that will be able to be modified for different audiences, like nature promo films, activity ideas, local ecology readers, speaker series, natural play area designs, etc. Then we will find the right messenger(s) to deliver the message (or do the work) and continue to fuel more and more people within these groups to keep that momentum going.
SPEAKER
MESSAGE AUDIENCE
Texas Children In Nature Houston
EasternPhoebe
[5]
Texas Children in Nature Houston A Client-Driven Model
The Natural Resource: Its Values The Natural Resource: Its Values The Natural Resource: Its Values The Natural Resource: Its Values The Natural Resource: Its Values
Ecological Economic Aesthetic Health + Quality of life
Historic + Future
The Human Audience The Human Audience The Human Audience
Those who seek out the resource and have understanding of the need for conservation
Those who have some knowledge of the resource and want more access and understanding
Those who have little to no knowledge or understanding of the value of the resource
WANT TO DISCUSS THIS PROPOSAL?Jaime GonzálezCommunity Education DirectorKaty Prairie Conservancy281.660.6683 [email protected]
Scissor-Grinder Cicada
[6]
What is the BioCity Institute?BioCity Institute is a new collaborative venture between environmental/conservation groups in the greater Houston - Gulf Coast Region to develop a new corps of natural resource educators and interpreters both in private, public, and home schools and in private, state, and federal nature preserves both inside and beyond the city. To achieve this goal, the BioCity Institute would provide place-based, state standards-aligned trainings to inspire educators (both formal and informal) to tell compelling stories about our fascinating local environment. Trainings would involve teacher workshops, field trips, volunteer opportunities and in-school mentoring. Our environment is linked intricately to our culture, economic life, and history. So why not teach about the environment holistically?Good teaching and interpretation is not rooted in merely relaying facts or chunks of information {or teaching to tests!} - instead it should give learners tools and experiences that allow them to construct a meaningful, interconnected story about a subject in the context of the place in which the student lives. BioCity Institute candidates will receive the type of training and information that will allow them to tell compelling stories to their students that link our area’s environment, culture, history and economic life through the lens of focused study tracks such as wildlife, ecosystems, or environmental issues {see sample on next page}.
So, what do we mean by ‘stories’?Although narrative stories are a wonderful way of teaching about the local environment, we use story in a much broader context. Good stories could include any combination of scientific, historical or cultural demonstrations, biofacts, simulations, lectures or even digital applications. Good environmental storytelling can take many directions, yet telling the best stories requires that educators (1) build an interconnected viewpoint about a given environmental topic or issue and that (2) the story is true to the landscape, wildlife, people and/or environmental topic being taught.
Who would be the audience for BioCity?One of the principal aims of BioCity is to broaden the pool of environmental educators. Therefore, BioCity would be open to formal instructors, home school educators, informal natural resources educators, current Texas Master Naturalists, parents, high school student leaders, executive directors of environmental nonprofits or anyone interested in learning and teaching about our local environment in a place-based context.
Who would coordinate the BioCity Institute?There are multiple options for program coordination. The first option would be to identify a suitable non-profit umbrella organization to help administer the program. Some potential candidates could be Environmental Educators’ Exchange, Houston Wilderness, Houston Tomorrow, etc.
How would current environmental/conservation nonprofits participate in the BioCity Institute ?Nonprofit environmental agencies would partner with others in their community to coordinate training schedules, mentoring opportunities, etc. This will require a very important shift in thinking: we will have to start seeing all environmental educators, regardless of their employer, training or location, as one team charged with educating all of the citizens in our region.
How would current environmental/conservation nonprofits benefit from the BioCity Institute ?Our institutions have small education staffs (1/2 - 10 educators) and should welcome opportunities to partner with others in the conservation community to create educational programs with greater community impact without adding too much to their intense workload. Additionally, institutions could focus their educator trainings in areas in which they truly excel. Proceeds from teacher trainings would also stay with the institution or individual delivering the training; this would not impose a financial burden on participating institutions. Lastly, volunteers going through BioCity programming will be trained to teach deeply about the environment for participating institutions.
How would BioCity trainings differ from other environmental trainings?Organizations and individuals providing training through the BioCity Institute would
Bio City InstituteTRAIN. EMPOWER. MENTOR. BROADEN.
Green Anole
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be asked to infuse their trainings with examples of local ecosystems, wildlife, history, cultural connections, etc. to root the content in southeast Texas. This would suggest the creation of some new material, but many current educator preparation courses could be augmented to include such material.
Who Who would teach BioCity trainings?Anyone with sufficient knowledge of the local environment and with educator training skills. Many green group educators would fit the bill, as would some formal educators and private individuals. In short, some process would have to assess whether someone’s program met the BioCity Institute goals.
What is the cost of training sessions?Participants would likely pay a fee to defray the cost of program administration but would not pay one flat rate for the entire program. Students would pay whichever institution hosted a teacher workshop, field trip, or other training session directly. This would allow participating institutions to cover their costs in line with the cost of materials, their staffing salary rates, etc.
*Introductory Class (3 hrs)★ Introduction to Place-based Education★ Environment of Greater Houston (including ecosystems)
Gardening for birds& wildlife
Capstone Volunteer Hours (20 - 30 hrs)★ Teach students about local ecosystem & environment★ Volunteer teaching at a local nature preserve or park
Using habitats for citizen-science
Gardening for nutrition & education
Prairie Training
Wetlands Training
Population Training
BioCity Certificate Awarded
Galveston Bay Training
Field Trips Field Trips Field Trips
Creating & Maintaining Habitats
Forest Training
Urban Sprawl Issues Training
Air Quality Training
Water Quality Training
* Trainings do not have to be taken in tracks; they can be taken singly, but students may choose to work up to a certificate in an environmental area.B
io
Cit
y:
On
e M
od
el
Using habitats to meet state field studies requirements
[8]
A Tale of Two WebsitesThere is an effort underway to create a variety of online venues to connect people to the outdoors through education or recreation. BioCity could be the education portal for anyone teaching and learning about the outdoors while the new Houston -Gulf Coast Outdoors website would meet the needs of those wishing to recreate outdoors in our area.
About Houston Gulf-Coast Outdoors WebsiteThis new 13-county website is set to launch later this year. The site (mock up at right) will
be a virtual trailhead for anyone looking to go outdoors in the Greater Houston area. Some potential features include:★ A rebranding effort for our area★ Maps of all hike, bike, paddle and equestrian trails★ Maps of all public parks, golf courses, greenways, etc.★ Suggested itineraries for families and individuals★ Contacts for guides and outfitters★ Listings of upcoming outdoor events
Bio City Website
What is the BioCity Website?The BioCity Website is a one-stop shop for learning and teaching about the environment of the Houston-Gulf Coast region.
What will be on the website?★ A searchable database {by grade,
subject, etc.} of standards-correlated lessons
★ Multimedia content {video + photos}★ Maps to outdoor educational areas
★ List of subject experts and mentors★ Recorded lessons★ Primers to local ecosystems and
environmental issues which interweave science, history, culture and economics
NEW WEBSITE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES
MAPS OF OUTDOOR AREAS
RECREATIONAL EVENTS
COVERS ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES
TOURISM INFORMATION
Houston Gulf-Coast Outdoors
NO YES YES No YES
BioCity YES YES MAYBE YES NO