Bringing School to Life


Book Description

Place-based education is on the rise. Tired of “teaching to the test,” educators are looking for authentic ways to connect their curriculum to real life. The place-based approach brings students into their communities to learn necessary content and skills by working to meet the needs of local agencies and organizations. Students are more engaged because they know they are doing real work, teachers are reinvigorated by creating exciting learning opportunities, and the school takes on a more active role in the community. At the heart of this process is the place itself: the land, the history, and the culture. Bringing School to Life: Place-Based Education across the Curriculum by Sarah Anderson offers insights into how to build a program across the K-8 grades. Anderson addresses key elements such as mapping, local history, citizen science, integrated curricula, and more. Additionally, Anderson suggests strategies for building community partnerships and implementation for primary grades. This book goes beyond theory to give concrete examples and advice in how to make place-based education a real educational option in any school.







University-Community Partnerships for Promoting Social Responsibility in Higher Education


Book Description

This book provides empirical evidence on how universities have considered social responsibilities as their prime focus, and engaged with civil society to enhance their values. Case studies from Indonesia to the United Kingdom enrich the book through experience, interventions and narratives.




Resources in Education


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University-community Partnerships


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New Tools for Environmental Protection


Book Description

Many people believe that environmental regulation has passed a point of diminishing returns: the quick fixes have been achieved and the main sources of pollution are shifting from large "point sources" to more diffuse sources that are more difficult and expensive to regulate. The political climate has also changed in the United States since the 1970s in ways that provide impetus to seek alternatives to regulation. This book examines the potential of some of these "new tools" that emphasize education, information, and voluntary measures. Contributors summarize what we know about the effectiveness of these tools, both individually and in combination with regulatory and economic policy instruments. They also extract practical lessons from this knowledge and consider what is needed to make these tools more effective. The book will be of interest to environmental policy practitioners and to researchers and students concerned with applying social and behavioral sciences knowledge to improve environmental quality.




Handbook on Family and Community Engagement


Book Description

Thirty-six of the best thinkers on family and community engagement were assembled to produce this Handbook, and they come to the task with varied backgrounds and lines of endeavor. Each could write volumes on the topics they address in the Handbook, and quite a few have. The authors tell us what they know in plain language, succinctly presented in short chapters with practical suggestions for states, districts, and schools. The vignettes in the Handbook give us vivid pictures of the real life of parents, teachers, and kids. In all, their portrayal is one of optimism and celebration of the goodness that encompasses the diversity of families, schools, and communities across our nation.




Sustainable Water Management


Book Description

While the world’s population continues to grow, the availability of water remains constant. Facing the looming water crisis, society needs to tackle strategic management issues as an integrated part of the solution toward water sustainability. The first volume in the two-volume set Sustainable Water Management and Technologies offers readers a practical and comprehensive look at such key water management topics as water resource planning and governance, water infrastructure planning and adaption, proper regulations, and water scarcity and inequality. It discusses best management practices for water resource allocation, ground water protection, and water quality assurance, especially for rural, arid, and underdeveloped regions of the world. Timely topics such as drought, ecosystem sustainability, climate change, and water management for shale oil and gas development are presented. Discusses best practices for water resource allocation, ground water protection, and water quality assurance. Offers chapters on urban, rural, arid, and underdeveloped regions of the world. Describes timely topics such as drought, ecosystem sustainability, climate change, and water management for shale oil and gas development. Covers water resource planning and governance, water infrastructure planning and adaptation, proper regulations, and water scarcity and inequality Discusses water resource monitoring, efficiency, and quality management.




Building Community


Book Description

An easy-to-use guide for local leaders working to engage their community in growing a more equitable, healthy, and sustainable future Building Community is the easy-to-use guide that distills the success of healthy thriving communities from around the world into twelve universally applicable principles that transcend cultures and locations. Exploring how community building can be approached by local citizens and their local leaders, Building Community features: A chapter on each of the 12 Guiding Principles, based on research in 27 countries Over 30 knowledgeable contributing author-practitioners Critical practical leadership tools Notes from the field – with practical dos and don'ts A wealth of 25 case studies of communities that have learned to thrive, including towns and villages, inner-city neighborhoods, Indigenous groups, nonprofits, women's empowerment groups, and a school, business, and faith community. Building Community is essential reading for community leaders, activists, planners, policy makers, and students looking to help their communities thrive. Strong local communities are the foundation of a healthy, participatory, and resilient society. Rather than looking to national governments, corporations, or new technologies to solve environmental and social problems, we can learn and apply the successes of thriving communities to protect the environment, enhance local livelihood, and grow social vitality.




Catalog of Training


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