Contributions to conservation biology research are traditionally approached from an ecology and evolutionary biology perspective, but education research can be equally valuable. Population genetics research can inform management decision-making while education research can improve how we teach conservation. My dissertation tackles conservation…

The magnitude and scale of current threats to ecosystems requires interdisciplinary approaches to both science and training. For example, urbanization has resulted in increased runoff from communities into coastal habitats, necessitating work across the marine-terrestrial interface. This runoff holds myriad pollutants which can impact vulnerable…

The choice to create or renovate museum buildings to green building standards is a growing trend for science museums. With access to green facilities comes the potential to extend informal science learning into the three-dimensional architectural environment. To examine how and if museums with green buildings interpret their buildings for the…

With the United States higher education sector representing over five billion square feet and expending over six billion dollars annually on energy costs, the higher education institution has an opportunity to flourish as a thought leader in integrating exemplary approaches to sustainable development throughout the campus. This manuscript puts…

As predictions about the effects of climate change have become more urgent, Stuart Grauer has wondered how much to bring this information into the curriculum at his school. Would learning about the possibly disastrous effects of climate change cultivate a sense of despair in students and ruin their childhoods? When working with students in the…

In 2014, urban wildlife refuge managers throughout Southern California responded to a challenge issued by United States Fish and Wildlife Service's (USFWS) leadership to connect the urban dwelling population in the region with wildlife and urban refuges. Five years later, the SoCal Urban Wildlife Refuge Project's reach and impact are significant.…

When schools swiftly transitioned to virtual learning, program partners across this established out-of-doors environmental education project were challenged to rethink and retool the learning experiences from place-based programs to virtual learning, as most Project-supported programs were delivered outside of the traditional classroom. Meeting…

The SoCal Urban Wildlife Refuge Project team responded to a national challenge and regional needs by developing integrated programs and services chiefly through partnerships with organizations throughout Southern California. The San Diego National Wildlife Refuge Complex has put a $1 million annual funding award to work by supporting a suite of…

This article profiles the use of the iPad in classroom literacy activities in three instructional environments: Toronto, Canada; San Diego, United States; and Sydney, Australia. The two-year, qualitative study included observational fieldwork filming students' interactions with tablets in the midst of literacy events. Students in each context used…

A ghetto land pedagogy begins with two axioms that align it with land education more broadly, and that distinguish it from the general umbrella of environmental education. First, ghetto colonialism is a specialization of settler colonialism. Second, land justice requires decolonization, not just environmental justice. A ghetto land pedagogy thus…

This article describes future trends in environmental education (EE) research based on a mixed-methods study where data were collected through a content analysis of peer-reviewed articles published in EE journals between 2005 and 2010; interviews with experts engaged in EE research and sustainability-related fields; surveys with current EE…

A growing body of literature on community gardening, watershed restoration, and similar "civic ecology" practices suggests avenues for integrating social and ecological outcomes in urban natural resources management. In this paper, we argue that an environmental education programme in which learning is situated in civic ecology practices…

With deeply rooted assumptions established as authoritative in both negative and positive views of California's first nations, it is unsurprising that what students are taught about them today focuses on how the peoples of different regions made use of the naturally-occurring resources available to them. The "History-Social Science Content…

Contrary to what we often hear and teach, there is good news to be found on the environmental front. Environmental success stories show us not only that sustainability is possible, but also how people have made it happen. We can make these stories and their lessons accessible to students with help from the EcoTipping Points Project, which has…

Seemingly small things can lead to big changes in a school, when the moment is right and the community is willing. But changes that ultimately cut across all disciplines and grades are truly remarkable, especially when they take place in an institution founded when Grover Cleveland was president. In this article, the author discusses how…