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Environmental literacy is an ambitious educational objective that requires students to integrate and internalize a broad range of values, principles, theories, facts and skills. While formal curriculum and research are fundamental to achieving such an outcome, campus environmental management and university partnerships exercise powerful educational influences. When combined with the formal academic side, they form the basis of a given university's institutional culture, or what ULSF refers to as the "Shadow Curriculum." It is essential that all ULSF members recognize the impact of this curriculum on students. For example, members need to determine if their predominant institutional norms are encouraging and reinforcing behavior that is consistent with notions of responsibility, justice, tolerance and collaboration. Is the predominant institutional culture rewarding the development of interdisciplinary curriculum, research and learning? And similarly, what expectations do faculty members have of their students with respect to public service? ULSF advocates concrete steps to link campus operations, community partnerships, research and curriculum--institutional functions traditionally treated as separate and unrelated. In most cases institutional norms reinforce narrowly bounded responsibility, limited to individual academic success and advancement. ULSF's programs and services reflect the position that environmental literacy must encompass ethical norms of responsibility and an understanding of the social, ecological, and economic consequences of individual and collective behavior. By calling attention to the pedagogical influence of institutional structures and operations, ULSF members link their core educational mission to the daily life of their institutions. In turn, students integrate values, knowledge, skills and behavior leading to environmentally responsible citizenship. |
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