Adult Climate Change Education Advances Learning, Self-Efficacy, and Agency for Community-Scale Stewardship

Sarah-Mae Nelson, Greg Ira and Adina M. Merenlender
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Sarah-Mae Nelson: UC California Naturalist Program, University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources Division, Davis, CA 95618, USA
Greg Ira: UC California Naturalist Program, University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources Division, Davis, CA 95618, USA
Adina M. Merenlender: Environmental Science, Policy, and Management, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, issue 3, 1-18

Abstract: Education per se does not necessarily foster positive environmental behaviors; rather, a complex assemblage of influences including social integration, discovering shared values, strengthening environmental identity, self-efficacy, and agency is needed to foster environmental stewardship. We examine the participant outcomes from a new adult climate education and service course, which is delivered by local organizations. The UC Climate Stewards certification course includes relationship building, social-emotional learning, climate science, climate communication, monitoring resilience, and how to take community-scale action. Based on results from ~154 participants, we observed significant improvement in self-efficacy, with confidence to help protect communities increasing from x ¯ = 3.59 (3 is neutral) to x ¯ 4.32 (4 is agree) ( p < 0.00). The importance of doing something or taking action about climate change appears to be a value that was strongly held prior to taking the course and aligns with motivations for becoming a certified Climate Steward; hence, it only slightly increased from ( x ¯ = 4.25) to ( x ¯ = 4.57) ( p < 0.00). Climate Stewards’ feeling of competency in talking about the subject increased (from x ¯ 3.05 before to x ¯ = 4.24 after, p < 0.00, N = 111). Finally, we examine the community-scale stewardship taken by the Climate Steward volunteers, from information provided through self-reporting, and explore additional approaches to researching pathways from education to agency.

Keywords: environmental agency; climate action; climate communication; social-emotional resilience (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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