Holistic Education Tasmania: July 97 News
Responsibility for the Planet
Over 10 years ago 70 Nobel Laureates wrote a letter to humanity. They emphasised the critical state the world is in ... greenhouse gasses, toxic wastes, loss of species etc. They strongly recommended that if we wished for a world where our grandchildren could live then we, the people of the world, needed to take serious action.
Have we? Why haven't we seen the urgency, the importance of this issue? How have we addressed these issues through our education system?
David Orr posed the questions:
- What is the world we want and what is the curriculum we need to achieve this world?
- How would we deliver this curriculum to acknowledge 'heart'?
- What would schools physically look like if they were to reflect an ecological and sustainable outlook?
In order to assist us in thinking about these questions David told us about his ecological architecture course at Oberlin College. The course was to help students understand the principles of ecological design:
- sustainability
- no waste
- accounting for systems
- price includes all costs
- reverence for life and protecting diversity
- making things fit in a spiritual/ecological world of inter-relationships
He asked his 50 students to design a building to house an ecological/ architecture course as an intellectual exercise. A building that would reflect ecological design principles, would engage the hearts and minds of those that entered, and through its landscaping teach competence in ecological systems at a deep level. Above all, such a building should cause no ugliness in some other place or time - since ugliness is the first indicator of lack of sustainability.
The students brought in experts from all around America in order to explore a range of specific criteria that they brainstormed for the building, including being a net exporter of energy (through solar power) and using no toxic materials. They wanted to ensure that any materials used would either be recyclable in nature or through industrial recycling. This criteria led to them finding out that the materials used in solar cells are actually toxic. They then searched around for alternatives and have subsequently inspired NASA scientists in the development of non-toxic solar cells using the industrial waste product, sulphur. As a result of NASA's research they also were able to increase the efficiency of solar cells by 20%.
The lesson from this course is that the world needs creative scientists and innovators who not only understand physics and chemistry but have a deep understanding of ecological principles and cycles.
By the way, the building is now being built ... the foyer, a rainforest, is part of the sewerage composting cycle!
What could our schools look like to reflect a rich educational philosophy?
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