Content area
Abstract
Environmental educators across the United States are delving into climate change education. The topic of climate change poses new challenges for educators intent on not only informing audiences but informing in such a way that creates lasting impact. The purpose of this qualitative study was to investigate the extent to which extent climate change communication and environmental psychology research can influence environmental education practice. Interviews with educators from five climate change related professional development programs and networks revealed a high level of awareness of climate change communication and related research. Educators accessed research through a variety of means and reported both practice change and a sense of validation as a result of the research. They also reported some tension between practice knowledge and research-based knowledge. This work begins to fill a gap both in our understanding of how informal educators communicate about climate change and in how they use research in their practice.
