Centering Indigenous knowledge and decolonization in environmental education is important, especially through "land education" that recognizes Indigenous relationships with land and challenges settler colonial assumptions

The editorial introduction to this influential special issue – "Land education: Indigenous, post-colonial, and decolonizing perspectives on place and environmental education research" – discusses the importance of centering Indigenous knowledge, critiques of settler colonialism, and decolonization in environmental education. The authors argue that much of the current practice and research in environmental education, particularly place-based education, fails to meaningfully engage with the ongoing realities of colonization and Indigenous land rights.

Land education, as presented in this special issue, emphasizes educational practices that recognize Indigenous peoples' long-standing relationships with land, the historical and current contexts of settler colonialism, and the necessity of decolonization. The articles in the issue, written by both Indigenous and non-Indigenous scholars, provide examples and theoretical perspectives on land education from a variety of contexts, including K-12 schools, post-secondary institutions, and community-based education.

An example is Megan Bang and colleagues, who describe their work on developing "urban Indigenous land-based pedagogies" in collaboration with Chicago American Indian community members in Chicago. Through a community-based design research process, they created educational programs that emphasized Indigenous relationships to land and challenged settler colonial assumptions about urban spaces as being devoid of Indigenous presence and knowledge.

The introduction highlights several key themes that emerge across the articles. First, land education must address settler colonialism as an ongoing structure that continues to shape educational practices and understandings of land. Second, Indigenous cosmologies and languages offer important ways of understanding land that go beyond Western conceptions of place. Third, land education should support Indigenous agency and resistance in the face of colonial oppression, including struggles for land rights and sovereignty.

The authors also discuss the significance of naming and language in land education, arguing that the words we use can either reinforce or challenge colonial assumptions – a point that is of importance for educational practitioners to note. For example, it is important to use Indigenous place names or terms where possible. They emphasize the need for educational researchers to expand their methodologies and modes of representation to better account for Indigenous ways of knowing and being. 

Ultimately, the authors argue that land education offers a necessary intervention in environmental education by challenging settler colonialism and centering Indigenous futures. They suggest that place-based education has often perpetuated settler colonial desires for "reinhabitation" of Indigenous lands, rather than supporting decolonization and Indigenous sovereignty. In contrast, through seeking to unsettle colonial assumptions about land, place, and the purposes of education, land education is accountable to the vision of a future in which Indigenous people have sovereignty and no longer face oppression. 

The editorial introduction provides a thought-provoking and accessible entry point into the complex issues addressed in the special issue. It challenges environmental educators to critically examine their own practices and assumptions, and to consider how they might engage with land education as a way of working towards more just and sustainable futures for all.