Centering Antiracism in Environmental and Place-Based Education: Toward Abolitionist Teaching

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session 12
  In Roundtable Session: Designing Socially Just Opportunities for Equitable and Diverse Environmental and Climate Change Education

Abstract

According to Love (2019a), abolitionist teaching “seeks to resist, agitate, and tear down the educational survival complex through teachers who work in solidarity with their school’s community” (p. 89). In this paper, we share preliminary findings from interviews with seven justice-oriented environmental and place-based educators about their philosophies and practices related to anti-racism. So far we have developed the following themes: intentionality, reclaiming space, community first, mattering, curricular exploration, Black joy and genius, and restorative agency. Environmental and place-based education is not inherently anti-racist; in fact, it has largely been dominated by the concerns of white people. By centering antiracism, however, there is potential for environmental and place-based education to dismantle white supremacy and the educational survival complex.

Authors

• Dani Toma-Harrold, Elon University

• Scott Morrison, Elon University