I have worked in education my entire career. I served ten years as a classroom teacher, and, more recently, 14 years as a devoted environmental educator. I have seen the appetite for environmental literacy shift from a “bonus” to a “must-have”. It now needs to be a critical part of our education system for many reasons. Our youth need to be prepared for the problems they will be facing; it is a necessity. Our youth are suffering from the anxiety associated with inheriting and solving these problems. And, these issues are becoming more severe.
Virginia is behind – way behind – when it comes to the investment we are making in environmental literacy. Other mid-Atlantic states invest millions of dollars yearly, specifically earmarked for environmental education in their K-12 schools. Maryland, for example, invests over $2M every year on this initiative. Put this next to Virginia’s one environmental education grant program that is currently funded at $250,000, and you can see we are falling short. The administrators of Virginia’s fund reported receiving over $1M in funding requests last year. With only $250,00 available to allocate, they were unable to support 75% of the requests.
What is environmental literacy? The Virginia Department of Education defines it this way: “Environmental Literacy is having the knowledge, skills, and dispositions to solve problems and resolve issues individually and collectively that sustain ecological, economic, and social stability.” In short, our students need to have the information to solve environmental problems and make good decisions. There are many environmental literacy concepts embedded in the Virginia Standards of Learning. However, best practices for teaching these concepts require getting students outside. It requires tools for collecting and analyzing data. It requires support and training for our teachers.
How does this impact Virginia? Our students will be the ones making big decisions and plans in the near future. They will face increasing demands on our natural resources and tough decisions on how to manage them. They need to be prepared! Understanding how our natural systems work and how different stressors impact them will be crucial to making sound decisions to protect our resources in the future.
In addition, our youth are suffering from great anxiety over the environmental problems they will inherit (Leger-Goodes). One way to combat this anxiety is to empower them with the knowledge to be able to solve the problems. By making environmental literacy a priority, we are giving our youth the tools they need. We are supporting their problem-solving skills; we are supporting their mental health; we are investing in our future in many ways.
Over 25 years ago I chose to study both environmental studies and education because I knew that educating the next generation is key to a sustainable future. We can do better, Virginia. We can invest in our youth to make sure they are prepared. Please reach out to your local elected officials to let them know an investment in environmental literacy is an investment in our youth and their future.
-Daria Christian, Executive Director of Friends of the Rappahannock (Nov. 2024)
Léger-Goodes, Terra et al. “Eco-anxiety in children: A scoping review of the mental health impacts of the awareness of climate change.” Frontiers in psychology vol. 13 872544. 25 Jul. 2022, doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2022.872544
See Shortened version published in Richmond Times-Dispatch
