Fostering ecoliteracy helps me overcome my inner challenges while working in the sustainability field. Nature always amazed me. 

Although I am an empathetic person and my compassion does not know many boundaries, I sometimes cannot help myself feeling overwhelmed, depressed and in deep anger. Does it sound familiar to you? Environmental destruction simply does not make any sense. 

Dealing with manifold environmental crises can become pretty depressive. Sometimes, I catch myself thinking that – we humans – deserve to be wiped out by our own hands. It is the dark side that creeps in and puts the cruellest scenarios for humanity’s future into my brain. This train of thought does not make an awful person. Instead, it emphasises the despair felt in light of all the environmental catastrophes.

Fortunately, many wonderful people get involved in protecting and regenerating the natural environment. It can be tricky for people living in cities to get their dose of nature and understand her significance in sustaining life.

Your mindset matters. Therefore, to foster ecoliteracy in your life, I will introduce you to the seven key components of ecoliteracy. Ecoliteracy is integral to exploring, developing and living a sustainability mindset.

Sometimes all you need is a shift in perspective to understand your role in protecting and regenerating the environment. Let’s go!

7 key components to foster ecoliteracy for developing a sustainability mindset

In my article Ecoliteracy: The Foundation Of A Forgotten Love Language, you find answers to questions such as: What is ecoliteracy? Why is ecoliteracy important? What are the benefits for you to understand and apply ecoliteracy?

According to the NAAEE’s Guidelines for Learning, there are seven components of ecoliteracy. For the sake of simplicity, I summarised each one to make it compatible with developing a sustainability mindset in ecoliteracy.

#1 Awareness

Our natural environments consist of highly interconnected systems. Since the industrial revolution, environmental destruction has picked up speed. Now, we experience the impact of environmental degradation, pollution and destruction in the form of increasing extreme weather events.

Fostering ecoliteracy is based on an appreciation and responsibility towards the natural environment – to keep her safe from pollution and economic interventions in the form of destruction. It should not be the norm for each person to consume 8 tonnes of natural resources per year (22 kg per day).

Additionally, our natural environment urgently needs to be regenerated to regain – and not lose completely – the ability to sustain life as we know it on our planet. We are at a point where appreciation is not enough. Actions need to take place to protect and regenerate the natural environment. Your awareness matters, so let’s turn it into action.

#2 Ecological Knowledge

The phrase ‘What I do not know will not hurt me’ is far from true. Understanding, communicating and being able to apply ecological concepts is crucial for everyone. Consequently, understanding how the natural world works and why we depend on her should be a priority. Some important concepts to know are interdependence, adaptation, resilience and ecosystems.

Our modern social systems are shaped by the unreasonable urge for economic gains – not natural laws. Instead, we need to understand how our social systems can reconnect and reshape according to the tune of natural systems. The more you learn and reconnect with the natural world, the more you will be able to facilitate sustainable development.

Fostering ecoliteracy supports you with the knowledge to make environmentally smart decisions.

#3 Socio-Political Knowledge

Behind every economic, social or political stakeholder sits a human-being making decision for the better or worse. Our societal systems entail different beliefs, political structures and environmental values. If you continue to see societal and environmental systems as two separate entities, the more difficult it will be to reverse the damage caused by human activities – to a point of no return.

Diversity is the nourishment the natural environment depends on. Geographic differences can be understood as local, regional or global. What works on one side of the world, does not necessarily work somewhere else.

Fostering ecoliteracy in important decision-making roles might change the trajectory of the world – for the better. 

Related:

Can The Tragedy Of The Commons Be Solved With Economic Degrowth?

#4 Knowledge of environmental issues

Environmentally-related problems derive from poor decisions made in political, educational, economic and governmental contexts. Remember, people make decisions behind the masks called government, corporate, etc.

It is heartbreaking that fresh air, clean water and healthy soils do not have the same status as economic growth. The ridiculous influence of human greed on the natural environment is devastating. Good air quality, fresh and clean water, soil fertility and health, wildlife diversity and human population and health are dependent on well-functioning natural systems. It is not rocket science. 

Groundbreaking technologies are not the salvation. Instead, nature needs her autonomy back to continue her brilliant work of sustaining our livelihoods.

#5 Cognitive skills

This component is all about how you use your brain. Everything human-made has one source: the brain. To avoid business-as-usual thinking and foster ecoliteracy, you do not only need to be able to identify environmental challenges. You need to transform this information into an appropriate strategy to resolve the issue at hand.

Useful competencies are systems thinking and understanding the interconnectedness of our world. There is one issue that is usually neglected: To reconnect with nature and become part of her prosperous world again. 

The norm is that nature is seen as something subservient to humans. In fact, we depend on the natural world – not the other way around. 

#6 Environmental responsible behaviour

Your decisions matter. Your lifestyle has an impact on the trajectory of the world. But, it is overestimated how much consumers influence the world. In fact, blaming culture will not bring us any further and only distract from the real problem. 

Let me give you an example: Carbon. The craziest technologies are developed to tackle the carbon challenge, but in most cases, it only addresses the symptom of the problem. Removing carbon from the atmosphere might make sense to some, but a more effective solution is to not emit carbon in the first place. It would mean that all heavy-emitting industries (so all of them) would need to take responsibility and not pump carbon into the atmosphere. Unfortunately, it is easier to blame consumers for their behaviour.

Fostering ecoliterate behaviour involves conserving resources, implementing circular systems, and enforcing environmental regulations and legislations that protect the natural world.

7# Believe in yourself

It is easy to believe that your actions cannot make an impact in our complex, greedy and unnatural world.

Instead of becoming a carbon warrior, I want to propose something else to you. How about we create a future worth looking forward to? Imagine that we reach our target and stay below 1.5 degrees warming. Will our lives be better or will we continue living in a rat race? By only focusing on removing carbon, we neglect all the other challenges like extreme pollution, poverty, mental health decline, racism, biodiversity loss etc. 

It does not look like a rosy future, does it? Here are 12 short and inspirational sustainability affirmations which will make the future look a bit brighter.

We cannot solve our global challenges with the same mindset that created them. Therefore, I developed a coaching program to explore, develop and live a sustainability mindset. 

Work with me to create a future worth looking forward to by fostering ecoliteracy

We cannot afford the business-as-usual mindset any longer! My program aims at removing mind blocks and exploring, developing and living a sustainability mindset that enables you to make naturally sustainable decisions – in every part of your life.

Of course, fostering ecoliteracy is part of the curriculum where we will work together to identify your place in our world. Important parts of the program are to nurture sparks of hope, imagination and a new way of being in the world. You will discover unexpected opportunities to enhance a new paradigm.

I will help you grow roots in the new way of thinking, acting and being on our planet. Invent new possibilities to shape a better and sustainable life. Sustainable development starts with you.

For further information, refer to my service page by following this link. If you have any questions, send them towards coaching@reimaginesustainability.com

I am looking forward to changing the world with you!