Interdisciplinary Education

"The student who can begin early in life to think of things as connected, even if he revises his view with every succeeding year, has begun the life of learning" (Mark Van Doren, 1943). Although written over 50 years ago, these words are as relevant in today's world as they were in the 1940's. A lack of recognition for the connectedness of things has been partially responsible for adverse environmental impacts, economic failures, social programs that do not work, and difficulties in achieving world-wide sustainable societies.

In order to find solutions to complex, multifaceted problems related to living sustainably, today's students of environmental science must be exposed to techniques of teaching that directly involve them in diverse interdisciplinary collaboration, the creative process, advanced technology, cross-cultural communication, economic development, and environmental ethics and values, to name a few. This integrative approach will also produce a new generation of scientists that are both sensitive to the intrinsic value and inherent worth of the natural environment and responsive to the fact that science and technology should be used for nature's sake and not simply as a means to exploit nature for society's continued use.

The Integrative Approach:

Since the late 1960's science programs in major colleges and universities have been preparing students to carry out professions of "basic" research and teaching. Although these programs have been a basis for example, of the present consciousness and understanding for environmental issues among the American populace related to a sustainable future, awareness and knowledge can not be limited to the sciences. Social, economic, cultural, and political components are equally important because of the de-localized nature of many issues.

As more of society becomes focused on sustainability and its philosophical foundation, new dimensions are called for in education. Consider the great shifts over recent years in public attitudes about diet, exercise, fitness, preventive health, and wellness; or about pollution, global warming, and atmospheric ozone depletion. Such agendas have begun to sink in. Tough issues remain, however, that are going to require a new way of preparing the public at large as well as the environmental science professional that has to deal with complex, interconnected issues.

Preparing a New Professional:

The university and the instruction it provides are often highly compartmentalized. But our students live and will work in a world where information from several disciplines must be integrated. Unlike conventional training which assumes specialization in one area and then the automatic coming together of different disciplines (i.e., individuals) to apply common knowledge (which rarely happens in reality), a new approach must prepare a student in multi-discipline thinking and application to guarantee more sound problem-solving based upon an individual's ability to relate multiple and related issues. Obviously, individuals cannot have all the specialized knowledge relevant to a decision in their private, work, or civic life. They must realize, however, that such information is relevant and available.

We need to prepare a "new" professional able to feel comfortable in a multi-disciplinary framework. Such an approach would enable environmental science graduates to apply their learning to the needs of real world problems and real people. Cross-disciplinary education enlarges the students' awareness of issues and methods beyond their own disciplinary enquiry, enabling them to explore the interrelations of these issues and methods, and encouraging students to regard their own studies in a broader social and ecological perspective.

Curricula can be "packaged" to emphasize the connectivity among scientific, social, economic, technological, and cultural experiences, demonstrating the relationship between high quality environments and the other aspects of people's lives. Through this approach, students also become much more aware of and sensitive to the obstacles to a sustainable future for our global society by grounding the "stuff" of science education in real life and real problems. An urgency exists for innovative interdisciplinary education approaches that "mimic" life in the community and the natural environment so that the boundaries between education and community life become less defined and therefore, more integrated.

A Litmus Test for Sustainability Education:

By using sustainability as an integrating force in environmental science education, we can improve and facilitate academic and community relationships. If sustainability and its foundation in science, math, technology, and socio-economic learning is to become a paradigm for analysis, decision-making, planning, and action, it is essential that it be studied in-depth throughout the curriculum and incorporated into the instructional practices of our colleges, which in turn can also strongly influence programs for community education.
An example of personal characteristics a cross-disciplinary awareness and/or training program should promote include:

• the knowledge to comprehend linkages among all living things, and their dependency on each other as well as the physical environment;
• the understanding for basic principles that govern natural systems and the ability to apply this knowledge to the limits to, and major factors associated with, earth's capacity to sustain life;
• the ability to cross the boundaries of very diverse disciplines, including the understanding for cultural, economic, and political forces -- both past and present -- that affect environmental attitudes and decision-making based upon science and technology understanding;
• the skills to better understand connections between science/technology and the natural/cultural environments
  the talent for seeing "the big picture" in employing scientific method and technology as organizing tools to enhance a community's capacity for using local assets to build sustainable communities;
• the competence to think at a level where one can integrate scientific knowledge, economic & political realities, historical & cultural experiences, and moral, philosophical, & aesthetic values;
• the skills to engage in scientifically, socially, and culturally informed dialogue on environmental issues in communities in which the professional works and lives;
• the respect for the "public way of knowing" as well as the "expert way of knowing"; and
• the understanding for how people organize as family, community, etc., and how activities used to meet needs affect societal health, environment, and quality of life for present & future generations.

It has been said that "the earth is not something we inherit from our parents but rather something we have on loan from our children". By providing students with the tools necessary to participate as active members of their communities, having the creative problem-solving skills, social literacy, and commitment to engage in responsible individual and cooperative actions that will lead to ecologically viable, socially just, and economically secure societies for present and future generations, we involve them in caring for the environment as citizens and perhaps one day as science professionals, trained to protect and restore their birthright and their legacy.

Check out the links in the left panel above for further discussion on our approaches to sustainability education and public awareness.