Dr Jim Taylor, WESSA Director of Educationemail This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
DOWNLOAD- the Environmental Education in WESSA Annual Report for the 2007/8 Financial Year [MS Word - 115kb]
There are various sections of Environmental Education within WESSA. These aim at national support and capacity building and include:
- Eco-Schools (school-based environmental education),
- SADC Regional Environmental Education Programme (our regional programme),
- Share-Net (learning support materials), and SustainEd (accredited training).
Associated Programmes include:
- Energy and Sustainability (E&S) (Energy saving and alternatives) and
- Out-of-the-Box (Science Materials for Schools).
The knowledge that, without wise management of the environment and its natural resources, humans themselves will soon become an endangered species, is something that cannot be taught in a classroom. Environmental Education (EE) is a vital response to the ever-growing environmental crisis.
WESSA offers services to schools, teacher's groups and other environmental educators. We engage increasingly in community development work and run a number of EE Centres.
Major successes in this field are the establishment of the SADC (Southern African Development Community) Regional Environmental Education Centre which supports education activities in fourteen SADC countries, the initiation of a national Environmental Clubs scheme and the establishment of a resource development network known as Share-Net. The latter is an open, collaborative structure which is set up through a partnership of WESSA, KwaZulu-Natal Nature Conservation Service and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF - SA) with the endorsement of the Environmental Education Association of Southern Africa (EEASA).
WESSA is also involved in adult education and training through many of its projects.