Environmental Education and Conservation in Southern Ecuador: Constructing an Engaged Political Ecology Approach
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ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION AND CONSERVATION IN SOUTHERN ECUADOR: CONSTRUCTING AN ENGAGED POLITICAL ECOLOGY APPROACH By KATHRYN A. LYNCH A DISSERTATION PRESENTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF THE UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA 2001 Copyright 2001 by Kathryn A. Lynch ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS My most heart-felt thanks go to all the people who contributed to this project. In Loja, special thanks go to Fundación Ecológica Arcoiris, and specifically to Bolívar Tello, Fausto Lopez, Arturo Jiménez, Elia Gonzales and Angel Hualpa. Their invitation to collaborate provided me a site and a focus, while their logistical support in 1996 and 1997 made it possible to accomplish all that I did. Likewise, the Fundación Cientifica San Francisco and specifically Lic. Ruth Espinosa deserve special thanks. Her unflagging enthusiasm and dedication to improving environmental education in the region is inspiring, and I am deeply grateful for all her critical input and assistance in the field in 1999. Likewise, I am thankful for the valuable feedback provided by Dra. Ketty Vivanco at the Universidad Nacional de Loja, regarding my survey instruments and research design. Without the support of parents, teachers, and school directors in the region I would not have been able to conduct this research. I am deeply grateful to them for granting me permission to interact with their students, and for the time they took to share their educational experiences as well. Likewise, without the collaboration of the students, I would have no dissertation. Therefore, special boisterous and rambunctious thanks go to all of the children who patiently put up with my questions and provided brilliant illustrations of their communities and the Park. At the Ministry of the Environment, I am thankful for all of the assistance provided by Ing. Santos Calderón, Ing. Luis Medina, Lic. Miguel Angel Rivera, Lic. Itamar Córdova, iii Lic. Liz Jumbo, Luis Tambo, and all the park guards. Their collaboration was crucial for understanding local management issues and their environmental education strategy. In Zamora, special thanks are due to Ing. For. Bernardo M. Trelles and Sr. Ivan Gordillo of Fundación Maquipucuna and all the teachers who welcomed my participation in their Seminario Taller de Educación Ambiental in 1996. It was with their encouragement that I tackled a critical analysis of environmental education. I am also indebted to Egda. Victoria Margarita Nantipa, Zamora Provinical Supervisor of Bilingual Education, for taking me into the field to visit Shuar schools and to Lic. Miguel Chiriapo and Lic. Miguel Chumapi Ayui, President of the Federación Shuar de Zamora-Chinchipe. Thanks also go to Prof. Luis Guillermo Márquez for all his enthusiasm and assistance. In Vilcabamba, I am grateful to Joy and Curtis of Colinas Verdes, and Rogelio León, for their time and assistance. I would also like to acknowledge Prof. José A. Solorzano G. and the women in Loyola who opened their homes and shared their stories with me. In addition, I want to give special thanks to Rodrigo Tapia and Julio Tapia, who in 1997 shared not only their home with me, but their experiences with conservation and logging as well. These discussions enriched my understanding of conservation issues in the area. Likewise, Elena Bastidas and her family—specifically Dr. Milton Bermeo, Alecia and Pamela—deserve special thanks for giving me a home away from home during my fieldwork in 1999. In Quito, I am thankful to Susan Poats for her insights on mapping, and Nicholas for sparking my enthusiasm for working with students. Luis Suarez and Galo Medino of EcoCiencia also deserve special thanks for all their logistical help and critical input into the iv research design. Thanks also go to Carlos Fierro y Elba Fiallo of Fundación Natura and Arch. Jaime Ortiz, all of whom facilitated my understanding of the PNP management plan. I am also indebted to all those who supported me here in the States. I would like to thank my supervisory committee, Drs. Marianne Schmink, Sandra Russo, Susan Paulson, Martha Monroe and Dr. Anthony Oliver-Smith, for all of their support and guidance. In addition, this work benefited from the input of Dr. Tracy Hoover and Dr. Lauren Chapman, who served on my committee during the early stages. In addition, I would like to thank the Managing Ecosystems and Resources with a Gender Emphasis (MERGE) Program, the North-South Center in Miami, and Dr. Sandra Russo for generously providing funding for field research and the Center for Women’s Studies and Gender Research for providing funding for write-up. I am truly grateful to my mom and dad, who have given me tremendous love and support, and to my brother who has generously provided the computer at which I worked. Likewise, I have been truly blessed by an abundance of love and support from my partner, Eric Jones. I am also deeply grateful for the friendship and love of my soul sister Amanda Stronza, which has brought great joy into my life. Likewise, Peter Polshek, Nina Hofer, Lucien and Solomon Polshek get knock-down hugs for all the joyful playtime (including beach-time) that kept me balanced during this process. I am also indebted to Lisette Staal and Elena Bastides for their friendship, support, and insightful comments. Finally, I am deeply grateful to Mickey Singer for showing me how to find joy even in the midst of fear, and for inspiring me to live every moment with my heart open, with reckless abandon. v TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .................................................................................................. iii ACROYNMS ......................................................................................................................x ABSTRACT ........................................................................................................................xi CHAPTERS 1 INTRODUCTION .........................................................................................................1 The Compelling Need for Biodiversity Conservation ........................................................2 Education as a Conservation Strategy ..............................................................................4 Research Overview: Objectives and Site ..........................................................................8 Dissertation Overview ...................................................................................................12 Notes ...........................................................................................................................16 2 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORKS ..............................................................................18 Introduction...................................................................................................................18 The Educational Model of Social Change....................................................................... 21 Knowledge ..............................................................................................................22 Attitudes..................................................................................................................25 Behaviors.................................................................................................................26 Building an "Engaged Political Ecology" Approach. .........................................................29 An Overview of Political Ecology .............................................................................30 Applying Political Ecology Insights to Environmental Education..................................34 An Overview of Engaged Pedagogy .........................................................................36 Paulo Freire.......................................................................................................41 bell hooks..........................................................................................................43 Applying Political Ecology Insights to Environmental Education..................................45 Conclusion.....................................................................................................................46 Notes ............................................................................................................................48 3 RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS ....................................................................51 Introduction...................................................................................................................51 Research Design ............................................................................................................55 vi Phase One: Preliminary Site Review (May-July 1996)...............................................55 Phase Two: First Field Season (May-August 1997) .................................................56 Phase Three: Final Field Season (October-December 1999).....................................61 Strengths and Weaknesses of the Design ..................................................................63 Research Methods.........................................................................................................64 Ethnographic Interviews. ..........................................................................................65 Focusing on non-governmental and governmental organizations ...........................65 Focusing on educators within non-governmental and governmental organizations..66