This theoretical paper addresses concerns relating to mainstream education for sustainable development which, in some ways, “de-natures” nature. The primary concern is conceiving of nature as a resource or commodity and as having only instrumental or utilitarian value. This way of thinking reflects a typical western view of humans as being separate from and dominant over nature.
The author proposes an alternate approach to education for sustainable development, which he refers to as “vernacular learning.” This type of learning is place-based, multi-sensory, and engages students in close intimacy and connection with the natural world. The vernacular approach is based on the understanding that nurturing a sense of wonder and joy in learners as they experience nature is vital to developing an ethic of concern for the planet.
A curriculum based on vernacular learning offers successive, repeated, locally grounded experiences that foster a sense of belonging. Such a curriculum includes elements of place-based education, bioregional education, and outdoor education. Place-based education focuses on the geographical, geological, ecological, cultural and sociological features of a particular place. It fosters an understanding of humans as a part of the natural world and an appreciation of culture as being informed by place. The focus of bioregional education is on the distinctive geological and natural features of a geographical region that have shaped the way humans live in and know that place. Outdoor education fosters enquiry and observation of the built and natural environment often near the students' home or school. A common element to all three of these approaches is an emphasis on an emotional bonding with place.
According to the author, biology education has a crucial role to play in cultivating students' affinity with and love of nature. By fusing the scientific and the aesthetic, biology education can potentially reunite a passion for nature which, in turn, promotes an ethic of care. The article includes specific ideas on activities that can be used to help students develop a strong emotional connection with nature.
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