Toward De-Mystifying "EE Capacity Building"
by Abby Ruskey, National Environmental Education Advancement Project (NEEAP)

I find it ironic that at the same time that this country has proud legacy of environmental awareness and protection, it also has an education system full of barriers for those who wish to teach quality environmental education throughout the curriculum. Those who provide professional development in EE, or publish curriculum and other EE resources know that this is not because there is a lack of interest among educators; in fact many school teachers and nonformal educators are simply "nuts" about environmental education.

I first came into contact with this reality while serving as National K-12 Coordinator for Earth Day 1990. Within six months of being open, the Earth Day office had over 5,000 unsolicited requests from teachers for curriculum materials and activities for their classrooms. My desk was piled high with letters and phone messages from educators requesting EE materials for use in their schools and centers. To say that the tone of many of these messages was "desperate" is no over exaggeration. One teacher from south-central Texas summed it up for everyone else, "We want to teach in and about the environment, but we have resistance from administrators, no funds for field trips, no room in our schedules, no EE curriculum to teach from, and no teacher training opportunities to improve by. Anything you can provide will make a big difference." This comment has stuck with me through the years and has been a barometer against which I compare our progress in building capacity for EE.

What is this term "EE capacity building" and what is it doing to further environmental literacy? For some, EE capacity building represents the second most significant trend in the history of the field of EE. The first was the development of an internationally agreed upon set of goals for EE and the impressive body of objectives, guidelines, materials, programs and research that followed. As I worked to develop Earth Day K-12 curriculum for teachers, others met to find avenues of support for environmental education in both formal and nonformal educational arenas. One important meeting took place here in the Rocky Mountain states. The first Snowmass Summit on Education, Wildlife and the Environment was held in 1990 in Colorado and was a national gathering of the chiefs of state natural resource and education agencies and environmental education leaders. A keynote speaker at this summit, Jay Hair, then President of the National Wildlife Federation stated, "We have ten to fifteen years to make some fundamental changes in the way we go about the process of living on this earth in order to have any expectation of saving the global life support systems two or three centuries from now. The only way that goal is ever going to be reached is through a new, inspired level of environmental education."

This statement was not only timely but representative of the sense of urgency and the need for networking and organization felt by many of those working in the EE field. Many people committed to teaching EE –including K-12 teachers, naturalists, college and university professors, EE specialists in state and federal agencies, education personnel in conservation organizations and sustainable businesses, along with others–knew they were making a positive impact on individual students and teachers, but questioned whether or not this was enough. How was this "new, inspired level of EE" Jay Hair referred to going to be achieved? How were students and citizens not exposed to EE programs going to be reached? How could high quality EE be incorporated throughout the curriculum and educational programs? In this sea of questions there was one certainty; by working in isolation, those committed to EE were not going to achieve our common goal of an environmentally literate citizenry.

In order to become more organized as a field several efforts got underway in the early 1990’s. The National Wildlife Federation funded a nation-wide study of effective state and local EE programs and this led to the creation of the National EE Advancement Project (NEEAP). State EE associations that were affiliates of the North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE) began meeting together and mobilizing around issues of mutual concern. The State Education and Environment Roundtable (SEER) formed and provided a forum for EE specialists in education agencies. All of these efforts and others were built upon and supported through existing networks such as Project Learning Tree (PLT), Project WILD, and NAAEE. In 1995 a consortium of 12 national EE organizations called the EE and Training Partnership (EETAP) was formed and funded by the US Environmental Protection Agency.

As might be imagined, all efforts listed above have intersected and produced impressive results including more synergy, access to resources, quality control, and organizational capacity for EE. Across the U.S., state, local and national organizations have become much more networked and have produced far reaching capacity building resources such as the NAAEE Guidelines for Excellence, SEER’s Environment as an Integrating Context workshops, and the NEEAP/NAAEE Leadership Clinics. Recent research by NEEAP shows that since 1995, state EE programs have grown. In 1995 there were 263 state-level EE initiatives (such as EE grants programs, EE trust funds, EE centers, preservice EE teacher training, etc.) in place and by 1998 there were 327. Indeed, the underpinnings of a coordinated and effective EE field are coming together, but we’re not out of the woods yet.

According to Jay Hair’s timeline we have approximately six more years to achieve a "new, inspired level of EE". By joining up with efforts like those listed below you can channel your enthusiasm for environmental education into the growing network of EE capacity building organizations and individuals. Through our combined efforts we will achieve environmental literacy and preserve our global life support systems. Here’s how you can help:

1. Join your state EE association. If you haven’t joined yet, now is the time to make that commitment. Your state EE associations needs your support if only in membership (if you can be an active member, all the better). Take your passion for EE and focus it on the one organization in your state that is there to serve EE professionals and lead the way toward stronger EE programs. Help your organization grow and develop, get others to join too. Contact NAAEE below if you don’t know who to contact in your state.

2. Join your national EE organization, the North American Association for Environmental Education. Like your state EE association, NAAEE needs your membership and your input. The Affiliates partnership is working on a way to have reciprocal membership between NAAEE and the state EE associations. Until then, please support both if possible. You’ll be informed about and connected to capacity building efforts if you join-up. http://www.naaee.org

3. Stay involved with efforts like the Rocky Mountain States initiative. The RMS effort takes EE capacity building to a new level by providing leadership clinics, newsletters, mentor state support and other services to more EE practitioners working at the state and local level in EE. Become part of the growing EE capacity building network.

4. Contact organizations like NEEAP (715-346-4748 or email: neeap@uwsp.edu) and NAAEE (202-884-8821 or email: cclevela@smtp.aed.org) if you need organizational and leadership development support services. Our organizations exist to provide these services specifically to the EE field. We have developed many helpful resources in partnership with EE practitioners at the local, state and national levels.

5. Visit EE-Link and EdGateway to find out about resources and opportunities in the field of EE. EdGateway has started pages that are interactive and give you a chance to voice your thoughts on important initiatives in the field of EE. Through these sites, you can get contact information for any of the organizations mentioned above and much more!

EE Capacity-Building -- A Family of Activities and Strategies
by Mike Way, CAEE

The first twenty years of environmental education (EE) have been focused largely on curriculum and activity development, but a new trend is emerging -- capacity-building. EE capacity-building is a family of activities, communication networks, infrastructure, support services, and strategies designed to enhance the continued development and delivery of high quality environmental education throughout the national, state, and local levels.

Capacity-building is based upon the simple logic of leveraging scarce resources, maximizing efficiency, enhancing quality, and managing communications. For an EE community faced with an enormous challenge but armed with limited resources, capacity-building is about doing things smarter and better.

Much of the capacity-building phenomenon so far has been occupied with the development of effective organizations and individual leaders in order to achieve, implement, and maintain comprehensive EE programs at the state and local level. EE capacity-building programs leverage national, state, and local resources in support of specific EE initiatives. They also enhance networking and communication among existing EE providers, and focus resources on the needs of state and local EE leaders.

Thus, capacity building entails a two-way flow of resources and communication between local, state, and national EE leaders at various levels of program implementation. The ultimate goal of capacity building is to develop widespread environmental literacy. This is accomplished by developing a supportive infrastructure and delivery system for environmental education providers: teachers, school administrators, university professors, nonformal center educators (museums, nature centers, zoos, etc.), EE personnel in state and local agencies, and other environmental educators.

There are many options and as many successful variations of state-level "comprehensive EE programs." There are also several proven strategic options from which various statewide organizations have customized their approach to achieving comprehensive EE programming. Following are the most prominent activities and strategies of capacity-building grouped by three components which define the "infrastucture"of EE -- program, structure, and funding:

PROGRAM COMPONENTS

Strategic planning

Professional development activities

EE Curriculum Initiatives (e.g. correlations projects, state requirements for K-12 instruction)

EE Quality Assurance (e.g. EE guidelines for excellence, EE awards and recognition)

Model EE schools

State Supported EE Grants program

STRUCTURE COMPONENTS

Representative state EE board and/or Advisory Council

Statewide EE Offices or Centers or Associations

Statewide EE staff (EE specialists in state departments of education and/or natural resources)

Information Clearinghouse (e.g. databases, newsletters, electronic communications, etc.)

Interagency state EE committee

State EE Association

Local EE networks

FUNDING COMPONENTS

Public and private grants or donations

State government support (appropriations; lotteries; license plate fees, polluter fines, etc.)

EE trust fund

Federal agency grant programs or contractual services

Service contracts and revenue

Membership dues, events, fees

The benefits of capacity-building strategies have several implications at the state and local levels, as well as for individual EE professionals and for the EE field as a whole. For state and local levels, capacity-building efforts: provide a systematic approach to strengthening EE; bring together a broad base of stakeholders to determine a common vision and plan for EE; enhance the credibility and academic integrity of EE; provide advice and sharing of ideas; and provide funding and leverage resources.

For professionals in the EE field, capacity-building: provides advanced professional development; trains EE professionals in skills such as fundraising, board development, marketing, etc.; and provides opportunities to develop peer relationships.

In addition to fostering leadership in environmental education, capacity-building strategies also greatly advance priorities in the field of EE. Among the most important effects: increasing teacher training; integrating EE into education reform; targeting new audiences; improving access to materials and programs; identifying gaps in EE materials and programs; encouraging environmental careers; leveraging public and private resources and strengthening long-term cross-sector partnerships.