Keep It Green and Pretty? An Explorative Study of Potential Relationships Between the Perceived Visual Rhetoric of Nature and Climate Change

• In Event: AERA Graduate Student Research in Progress Roundtable Session Two
  In Roundtable Session: Examining Forest School, Nature-Based Learning, Environmental Education, and Schooling in Rural Contexts (Table 5)

Abstract

"The advocacy for outdoor and nature-based learning has increased as more attention has been given to current environmental and climate challenges. The underlying assumption is that as more learners are connected with nature, the more they care about it and be motivated to act on it. However, there is little to no previous research exploring how people perceive the basic elements of nature, such as what elements are perceived intuitively as nature. In other words, how are we weighing the impact of what we are doing? Do our perception of nature influence our perception of climate risk, hence affecting our preferred approach towards climate change adaptation and mitigation?
This pilot study aims to break down different elements of nature and explore if there are certain elements that are more or less intuitively perceived as nature. Exploring how imagery reflects and shapes the perceptions and discourse around climate change, this mixed methods study explores the potential relationships between participants' perceptions of nature and the perceived impacts of climate change on different species and forms of nature.
While more analyses need to be conducted, the preliminary findings seemed to indicate that the more a participant perceived an element to be best representative of nature, the more likely they thought that element is at risk of climate change.
This study hopes to initiate a conversation in education on how educators talk and teach about nature regardless of subjects and provide another entry point to reflect and evaluate how we have been approaching this topic across subject areas, and proceed with quality environmental and climate change education."

Author

• Shue-kei Joanna Mok, University of Maryland
  Presenting Author