227
14.3.4 A Museum Lesson on Biodiversity Loss ‘Endangered
Animals and Plants, Disappearing Ecosystems’,
The Netherlands
At the Museon, a science museum in The Hague, The Netherlands, one of the major
exhibitions is called ‘One Planet’. In this exhibition, visitors learn more about the
global societal challenges of our time, such as combatting poverty and hunger and
fostering a sustainable world. These challenges are based on the 17 UN Sustainable
Development Goals. Education material that accompanies the visit of secondary
school students is aimed at teaching them the importance of preserving the earth’s
biodiversity. They learn how biodiversity originated and how it contributes to food
production and health. More specifically, after the visit, students can provide argumentation why biodiversity is important.
One of three perspectives taken in the activities is that of ‘politics of nature’.
Politics of nature is about a fair distribution of natural resources, understanding
what the international political arena looks like and how people deal with the
resources. “Key ideas to be included are: sustainable development, north-south relations, respect for pluralism, exploitation, responsibility and democratic decisionmaking” (Van Weelie and Wals 2002, p. 1149).
In the lesson, biodiversity loss is regarded as a complex or ‘wicked’ problem.
Therefore, biodiversity is approached in a systemic way: describing its complexity,
as well as its preservation. Moreover, there are multiple ways of studying the impact
of biodiversity loss. In one of the games, groups of students pretend they are fishermen, catching fish from a sea in which the number of fish is limited. The person who
catches most fish wins. However, when all fish are caught all students have lost
(Aartsen, personal communication, 2018).
14.3.5 The Program for the Recovery and Educational Use
of Abandoned Villages. CENEAM. Centro Nacional de
Educación Ambiental, Spain
The Program for the Recovery and Educational Use of Abandoned villages is an
educational project complementary to teaching in the classrooms that has been
developed in three towns: Umbralejo (Guadalajara), Granadilla (Cáceres) and Búbal
(Huesca). The programme is promoted by the Spanish Ministry of Agriculture and
Fisheries, Food and Environment, the Ministry of Development, and the Ministry of
Education, Culture and Sport.
As most young people live in the urban world, the programme aims to have them
reconcile with rural life and have the chance to understand the need for a change of
attitudes to ensure the future balance of man with his environment. It includes work
in different areas: environmental, health, animation and coexistence, and cultural
14 Educating for Environmental Citizenship in Non-formal Frameworks…
14.3.4 A Museum Lesson on Biodiversity Loss ‘Endangered
Animals and Plants, Disappearing Ecosystems’,
The Netherlands
At the Museon, a science museum in The Hague, The Netherlands, one of the major
exhibitions is called ‘One Planet’. In this exhibition, visitors learn more about the
global societal challenges of our time, such as combatting poverty and hunger and
fostering a sustainable world. These challenges are based on the 17 UN Sustainable
Development Goals. Education material that accompanies the visit of secondary
school students is aimed at teaching them the importance of preserving the earth’s
biodiversity. They learn how biodiversity originated and how it contributes to food
production and health. More specifically, after the visit, students can provide argumentation why biodiversity is important.
One of three perspectives taken in the activities is that of ‘politics of nature’.
Politics of nature is about a fair distribution of natural resources, understanding
what the international political arena looks like and how people deal with the
resources. “Key ideas to be included are: sustainable development, north-south relations, respect for pluralism, exploitation, responsibility and democratic decisionmaking” (Van Weelie and Wals 2002, p. 1149).
In the lesson, biodiversity loss is regarded as a complex or ‘wicked’ problem.
Therefore, biodiversity is approached in a systemic way: describing its complexity,
as well as its preservation. Moreover, there are multiple ways of studying the impact
of biodiversity loss. In one of the games, groups of students pretend they are fishermen, catching fish from a sea in which the number of fish is limited. The person who
catches most fish wins. However, when all fish are caught all students have lost
(Aartsen, personal communication, 2018).
14.3.5 The Program for the Recovery and Educational Use
of Abandoned Villages. CENEAM. Centro Nacional de
Educación Ambiental, Spain
The Program for the Recovery and Educational Use of Abandoned villages is an
educational project complementary to teaching in the classrooms that has been
developed in three towns: Umbralejo (Guadalajara), Granadilla (Cáceres) and Búbal
(Huesca). The programme is promoted by the Spanish Ministry of Agriculture and
Fisheries, Food and Environment, the Ministry of Development, and the Ministry of
Education, Culture and Sport.
As most young people live in the urban world, the programme aims to have them
reconcile with rural life and have the chance to understand the need for a change of
attitudes to ensure the future balance of man with his environment. It includes work
in different areas: environmental, health, animation and coexistence, and cultural
14 Educating for Environmental Citizenship in Non-formal Frameworks…