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CONSERVATION EDUCATION
At the 2000 annual meeting, Education Committee members reported considerable interest in education from the general membership. Committee chair Steve Trombulak characterized the magnitude of this interest as "HUGE." Rick Paradis reported that the roundtable discussion on education attracted about 20 people of diverse occupations, including museum docents, graduate students, environmental educators, and academics. The discussion covered a wide variety of topics under the umbrella of how SCB could facilitate and promote education at all school levels and for the general public, and attempted to define conservation literacy. The question of whether focusing on the formal education system would be more effective than reaching out to the general public was discussed. Rather than focusing on education philosophy, the sense of the meeting was that most interest is in "direct attention to concrete actions and programs." In addition, we received many new requests to join the committee following publication of the May newsletter. These responses may reflect growing concern that the messages of conservation biologists are not adequately reaching the public. Conservation biology is a special discipline. Not only does it entail doing excellent research, but also by necessity there is an educational component. Ever since Aldo Leopold, Rachel Carson, Paul and Anne Ehrlich, E.O. Wilson, and many others took it upon themselves to share with the public the implications of their studies, the role of a publicly minded biologist has been important. Now there exists a professional society, with a membership of thousands, many of whom apparently have an interest in educating students at all levels. I work in a K-16 wetlands monitoring program in Maine. When my Ph.D. advisor, other university collaborators, or I come into the field or a classroom to work with K-12 students, the response is the same and overwhelming: the students truly appreciate the knowledge and training that we bring. NSF grants have funded undergraduate and graduate science students to enter classrooms as science advisors. Now, SCB has tremendous potential to involve its membership in education. At a conference last summer, nature writer Barry Lopez urged the attendees to work in schools for free. This is a tall order for educators who depend on schools for their living, but university conservation biologists could include work with schools in their work plans, especially if the university's administrators recognize such important public service when evaluating performance. There are grant opportunities for graduate and undergraduate students to get involved with K-16 partnerships. There may also be an empowering aspect to getting involved with the younger students. Student aspirations are a big concern amongst many educators. By connecting with successful conservation biologists, the students may work harder in science, and envision themselves as conservation biologists in the future. Entering classrooms is only one way of getting involved with public education: writing for local newspapers and popular magazines, sending out press releases on research projects, providing information for websites, and working with public interest groups are among the many others. If the interest in education expressed at the annual meeting is an indication of interest within the membership as a whole, then conservation biologists may be on their way to making a large impact on the public's perception of conservation. Rob Baldwin (rbaldwin@hypernet.com)
Survey results: Undergraduate education in conservation biologyRepresentatives from 44 institutions--ranging from small liberal arts colleges to large research universities--responded to the survey on undergraduate education in the February issue of the newsletter. A few of the more interesting results are highlighted here. Over 80% of the institutions offer at least one course in conservation biology, but less than 10% have a degree track or major. (Of course, it is likely that this sample of SCB members overestimates the presence of conservation biology in academia.) Asked whether topics in conservation are prominent in other courses, respondents listed ecology (16%), vertebrate zoology (16%), and environmental studies (14%). Dozens of other courses were listed by fewer than 10% of the schools. There was some consistency in the content of conservation biology courses. Seven concepts were included in courses at more than 70% of the responding schools: island biogeography theory, design of nature reserves, global threats to biodiversity, historical background of conservation, population genetics, integration of course concepts with local issues, and values and ethics. Political process and policy, restoration ecology, and ecosystem management all were included at half the schools. The skill most frequently developed in these courses was written communication (84%). Oral communication, quantitative analysis, and real world experience in policy or government were all represented at about half the institutions. The skill being developed least frequently (of the five we asked about) in conservation biology courses was field natural history (32%). When asked if their institution had effective policies that actively implemented the values of conservation biology, 34% mentioned recycling programs or management of campus-owned land, 36% said there were no such policies, and 30% remained mute. The two main ways respondents felt that conservation biology education could be enhanced at their institutions were incorporating a field component in the curricula (30%) and adding more staff (18%). Suggested ways that SCB could assist in undergraduate education included developing a web page for student and faculty use and collating examples of what should be included in a course. This information will be most helpful as the Education Committee and Board of Governors continues trying to assist educators in promoting conservation biology education. Our great appreciation to all those who took the time to respond! Thomas L. Fleischner
A message from the education committee chairMembership on the Education Committee is open to all who wish to work on projects related to the promotion of conservation education by SCB. Projects of interest involve education at all levels (K-12, undergraduate, graduate, and continuing). This committee conducts most of its business by email, but also holds strategic meetings at the annual SCB meeting. However, the committee is not an internet discussion group about education. Rather, it is an active work group that depends upon all its members working on one or more specific committee projects. The committee is reconstituted with new members each year following the annual meeting. If you are interested in actively participating in the work of the committee during 2000-2001, send an email message expressing your interest to the committee chair, Steve Trombulak (trombulak@middlebury.edu), by 15 September.
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