OUR CHILDREN: TOMORROW'S ENVIRONMENTALISTS
How do we inspire the next generation of environmentalists? By encouraging, broadening, and supporting the personal relationship that most children already have with the natural world. As children come to know their environment in an intimate way, they develop a natural tendency to protect that which they consider a beloved friend. In this way environmentalism is taught proactively through inspiration, rather than fear.
Inspiration is crucial, since actions based upon it have a longevity that behaviors based in fear and obligation do not. We have all experienced trying to be ecologically conscious, only to observe ourselves slipping back into old habits. Oftentimes, we can't sustain our new behaviors because they are forced expressions of moral obligation, rather than demonstrations of our intimate connection to that which we cherish and want to naturally preserve.
The Young Folks First (EcoPal) method of promoting environmentalism through story is age appropriate for the child audience. Children are developmentally ripe for a deep and personal relationship with the earth. Since they are naturally open to expressing and exploring imagination, story becomes an effective approach to building this relationship.