Several Thoughts on Promoting University Education …
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have evoked intense mass events. In face of these realities, researchers in universities should not bury themselves in the ivory tower doing only what they are interested in, but should serve the public and educate them to understand relevant issues.
They should guide public opinions on controversial hot topics with an objective and
scientific attitude rather than play to the gallery.
4. Setting up cross-disciplinary platform for ecological civilization education
and research
The development of ecological civilization is a systematic program that calls for the
common efforts of multiple parties, including governments, universities, media and
the society. We are faced with extremely complicated environmental problems today.
Environmental risks and events such as air, water and soil pollution and ecosystem
degradation are caused by a complex mixture of factors. Developing the economy,
exploiting resources and continuously improving the living standards of urban and
rural residents – these tasks have to be performed in parallel. Therefore, there are
conflicts among government decisions, company production and public life, which
have to be balanced in general, but there is also development consensus among them
that has to be considered in a holistic manner. What is of fundamental and paramount
importance to the development of ecological civilization is to arouse and sharpen the
social awareness of ecological civilization, including conservation, environment and
ecology. We must advocate a healthy, rational, low-carbon and environment-friendly
lifestyle and consumption mode, and put in place systems and mechanisms conducive
to developing green technologies and fostering green spirit, so that every citizen,
every family, every organization and every enterprise would consciously pioneer,
practice and promote ecological civilization. This is why ecological civilization is a
complex and cross-regional issue never seen before, and the education of it requires
the common efforts of multiple disciplines and the formation of a multi-disciplinary
education research team.
But the reality is that while scholars in different subjects discuss environmental
problems and teach the subject, their work varies greatly in the object of study, definition of issues, theoretical tools and academic context. Their teaching and research
of ecological civilization is generally self-sustained, overlapped or repeated. Therefore, it is urgent for universities to break academic boundaries and set up crossdisciplinary exchange platforms to forge consensus, communicate ideas, integrate
teams and concentrate resources, in order to refine and systematize theories and
knowledge related to ecological civilization. In November 2015, Nankai University formed the Institute of Ecological Civilization, which brought together over
ten teams specialized in environmental science, chemistry, history, economics, etc.
The new institute aims to assist in government decision making, theoretical innovation, history recording, and communication and education regarding environmental
protection and ecological civilization in China. In April 2016, more than ten schools
of Tsinghua University, including the School of Environment, School of Humanities
and Laboratory of Law Carbon Energy, co-initiated the Center for Ecological Civilization. Exerting its cross-disciplinary advantages, the new research center gathers
scholars specialized in engineering, science and humanities to work closely together,
565
have evoked intense mass events. In face of these realities, researchers in universities should not bury themselves in the ivory tower doing only what they are interested in, but should serve the public and educate them to understand relevant issues.
They should guide public opinions on controversial hot topics with an objective and
scientific attitude rather than play to the gallery.
4. Setting up cross-disciplinary platform for ecological civilization education
and research
The development of ecological civilization is a systematic program that calls for the
common efforts of multiple parties, including governments, universities, media and
the society. We are faced with extremely complicated environmental problems today.
Environmental risks and events such as air, water and soil pollution and ecosystem
degradation are caused by a complex mixture of factors. Developing the economy,
exploiting resources and continuously improving the living standards of urban and
rural residents – these tasks have to be performed in parallel. Therefore, there are
conflicts among government decisions, company production and public life, which
have to be balanced in general, but there is also development consensus among them
that has to be considered in a holistic manner. What is of fundamental and paramount
importance to the development of ecological civilization is to arouse and sharpen the
social awareness of ecological civilization, including conservation, environment and
ecology. We must advocate a healthy, rational, low-carbon and environment-friendly
lifestyle and consumption mode, and put in place systems and mechanisms conducive
to developing green technologies and fostering green spirit, so that every citizen,
every family, every organization and every enterprise would consciously pioneer,
practice and promote ecological civilization. This is why ecological civilization is a
complex and cross-regional issue never seen before, and the education of it requires
the common efforts of multiple disciplines and the formation of a multi-disciplinary
education research team.
But the reality is that while scholars in different subjects discuss environmental
problems and teach the subject, their work varies greatly in the object of study, definition of issues, theoretical tools and academic context. Their teaching and research
of ecological civilization is generally self-sustained, overlapped or repeated. Therefore, it is urgent for universities to break academic boundaries and set up crossdisciplinary exchange platforms to forge consensus, communicate ideas, integrate
teams and concentrate resources, in order to refine and systematize theories and
knowledge related to ecological civilization. In November 2015, Nankai University formed the Institute of Ecological Civilization, which brought together over
ten teams specialized in environmental science, chemistry, history, economics, etc.
The new institute aims to assist in government decision making, theoretical innovation, history recording, and communication and education regarding environmental
protection and ecological civilization in China. In April 2016, more than ten schools
of Tsinghua University, including the School of Environment, School of Humanities
and Laboratory of Law Carbon Energy, co-initiated the Center for Ecological Civilization. Exerting its cross-disciplinary advantages, the new research center gathers
scholars specialized in engineering, science and humanities to work closely together,