Planning education to care for the earth - IUCN Knowledge Network

Ecuador: raising environmental awarenessThe leadership and public opinion, the newspapers and other massmedia have been positively influenced. Surveys in 1984 and 1990show that a great number of people have radically changed theirperceptions and ideas on environmental problems as well as theirattitudes towards nature as a result of EE. National ecology groupshave been created.Successive governments have declared their interest in environmentalproblems and have adopted decisions associated with environmentalprotection. The National Congress has created a Commission on theEnvironment and a general environmental law is in preparation.The 1990s have been officially declared a Decade for Ecodevelopmentin Ecuador, and Ministers have been urged to developappropriate actions. Groups of peasants and ethnic minorities havedemanded State protection for their natural environments, and haveasked for authority to deal with the problems in their own way. Thereis a tendency for neighbourhood groups to organize their owndefences against acts which threaten the environment, local scenery,or their health or financial situation.There is, however, a persistent gap between the perception ofenvironmental problems and behavioural change, between awarenessand motivation. One conclusion is that a better bridge is neededbetween the informal awareness-raising education component ofEDUNAT and formal environmental education as a way to developcoherence between thought and action.Experience with EDUNAT indicates that EE which has an integral,multi-system approach, flexibility in the methodologies applied, andwhich is open to creativity in the forms of communication used, is afundamental prerequisite for all activities aimed at progress towards abetter environment.EE incites interest and clears the ground for environmental protectionactivities in all sectors, even in difficult productive, social andpolitical situations. It also creates a climate of positive opinion andawareness, which makes it possible to set up and maintain theadministrative management of the environment and natural resources.The main conclusion drawn from the results of EDUNAT is thatsustained action to interrelate opinions, attitudes and behaviourstowards nature is necessary and that this will only be possible in thelong term if an organic and well-planned combination of formal andinformal education methods is employed. In addition, EE should beused both as a pre-condition to make all people aware of andinterested in environmental issues, and as an instrument of changewherever social factors have an important impact on environmentalproblems.163