Popular environmental education for natural resources sustainable management at a rural community in the Mexican Subtropics

ABSTRACT

The main objective of this study was to design, implement and evaluate a popular environmental education program for natural sustainable resource management, directed to improve relations between community and their natural environment, through participatory action, at a rural community located in ecotone zone, southwest of the State of Mexico. This work was searching to promote a critical vision, on knowledge of natural and social environmental problems as a whole. The following methodological steps were established: 1) Research, in which will be indentified the learning needs of the community, and issues of interest to the community, 2) Education, in which a curriculum proposal for environmental education was conducted, through two programs offered means by workshops, 3) Action, popular environmental education experiences were developed through twelve workshops with three groups: children, women and men, 4) Action-Reflection-Action, in which the results of environmental education experiences were evaluated. As a result, it was observed that the participants were able to define, model and propose alternatives for natural sustainable resource management at their community.

Popular Environmental Education; Sustainable Management; Natural Resources; Rural Community; Mexican Subtropics