Level Of Environmental Knowledge Research Articles

Unraveling Tourists’ Responsible Behaviour Intention Towards the Environment

Research Highlights
 Despite the awareness on global climate change and reminder on environmental protection, it remains a challenge to promote sustainable tourism. The existing literatures on tourists’ sustainable behaviours pinpointed the emergence of environmentally-conscious tourists, yet the antecedents of their behaviours have not been fully established. Responsible environmental behavioral intentions are expected to be relevant predecessors for sustainable tourism. Thus, this study applies Responsible Environmental Behaviour model (REB) by Hines et.al (1986), which is tested alongside with Consumption Values Theory (Sheth et al., 1991) and destination image. This research proposed four hypotheses along with environmental consumption values and environmental attitude. In comparison, tourists that have higher levels of environmental knowledge and positive image of the destination will have higher intention to behave in an environmentally responsible manner.

Connectedness to Nature and Environmental Identity Scales Reveal Environmental Awareness in Greek Teachers

Core Ideas The present study measures Greek teachers' environmental identity, feeling of connectedness to nature, and environmental knowledge. Primary and secondary teachers are environmentally conscious, but they lack knowledge of fundamental concepts of environmental literacy. Effective environmental education in schools requires environmental literacy in teachers. Teachers are responsible to provide their students with knowledge, values, attitudes, and skills needed to preserve the environment in order to produce environmentally literate citizens. The latter is possible if teachers themselves have high levels of environmental knowledge, strong environmental awareness, and manifest environmental behavior. In response, this study aimed to assess Greek in‐service teachers' environmental knowledge, eco‐friendly behavior, and their connectedness to nature and environmental identity as aspects of their environmental consciousness. A self‐administered questionnaire was used to assess teachers' demographic profile, environmental knowledge, and self‐reported environmental behavior. Two well‐established measures of general environmental attitudes—connectedness to nature and environmental identity scales—were also used. The method lies on principal component analysis and evaluation of Cronbach's alpha to confirm the reliability and validity of the scales. The results showed that teachers' scores on both scales were high, revealing their positive attitudes in terms of the environment. Responders possess a moderate level of environmental knowledge and they possess pro‐environmental behavior. Results from this study can be useful to policy makers in order to design and promote the implementation of teachers' training programs in Greece and other countries of the European Union that focus on the enhancement of their environmental literacy.

Use of community perceptions to evaluate and adapt coastal resource management practices in the Philippines

Coastal resource management (CRM) programs have been implemented in the Philippines since the 1980s with the specific intent to protect and rehabilitate coastal habitats and enhance the sustainability of coastal communities. However, the implementation of these programs alone does not guarantee the success of program objectives. Monitoring and evaluation of program outcomes is essential for determining if programs are effective in reaching management goals. The purpose of this research was to evaluate long-term CRM programs using community perceptions of coastal resource condition, management practices, and program outcomes. Coastal residents in Baybay City, Leyte were surveyed and asked to rank a series of questions related to resource condition and 20 previously described management performance indicators. Respondents reported a decline in coastal resource condition over the past decade, even though they perceive positive outcomes of management programs aimed at enhancing resource condition. The sustainability and efficiency of management outcomes were perceived positively, with mixed views on equity outcomes. Results suggest that lack of full inclusion, low management oversight, and threat to coastal resources are concerns of the coastal community. Socioeconomic data collected from respondents yielded a pattern indicating that gender, self-reported level of environmental knowledge, and management cluster were significant contextual variables associated with perceptions of respondents. Overall, CRM programs are perceived to have a positive impact and there is a high level of interest for participating in future management activities. This study exemplifies how perceptions and associated contextual information of the community provides invaluable insights into the effectiveness of coastal resource management and be incorporated into the adaptive management cycle.

Individual environmental behavior: A key role in building low-carbon communities in China

People’s social behavior, especially environmental behavior, has a great impact on energy consumption and carbon emission. This paper explores both categories of individual factors (e.g., values, habits, education, motivation, etc.) and social factors (e.g., institution, infrastructure, encouragement, etc.), to clarify the correlation between them and their sub-factors. Low-carbon campus is a representative type of low-carbon community which is less difficult to build than other communities because university students are well-educated and, to some extent, are more environmental aware and more willing to change their behaviors. The energy-saving and environment-friendly policies implemented on campus are collected and overviewed in this paper. Additionally, the leaders and employees from the related administration departments are interviewed, and the data of electricity amount and water usage are analyzed and a well-designed questionnaire is handed out in a survey. The survey investigates the environmental knowledge, energy use habits, attitude toward low-carbon transformation, comments on the current institution and so on. The results show that different groups of students have varied levels of environmental knowledge, energy use habits, and attitude toward low-carbon campus management. To improve energy conservation and cut carbon emission radically, advices on building low-carbon community are also proposed including professional curriculums of environmental protection, economic initiatives, effect management, good communications, and sound infrastructures and facilities.

A Nationwide Survey Evaluating the Environmental Literacy of Undergraduate Students in Taiwan

The aim of this nationwide survey was to assess undergraduate students’ environmental literacy level in Taiwan. A total of 29,498 valid responses were received from a number of selected colleges and universities in Taiwan, using stratified random sampling method. A total of 70 items were used to assess the environmental literacy and the results revealed that undergraduate students had a relatively low level of environmental knowledge and behavior, while a moderate level of environmental attitudes was attained. The findings also indicated no significant correlations between knowledge and attitudes or between knowledge and behavior. However, a higher level of environmental knowledge correlated significantly with a higher degree of pro-environmental behavior, and a higher level of environmental knowledge correlated with stronger attitudes. The results also suggested that females outperformed the males in all categories. Results from this study could contribute towards further relevant policy discussion and decision-making, curriculum design and development to the improvement of environmental education in the higher education sector.

Environmental knowledge and behavior of Nigerian youth: An assessment

ABSTRACTThis study explored environmental knowledge and behavior of 350 Nigerian youth using data from a randomly administered test. Results indicated respondents had general environmental knowledge (68%), which they accessed mainly from electronic media sources. Significant differences in their environmental knowledge were in relation to subject background, and gender, but not type of school attended. Respondents showed low participation in environmental programs; while their environmental behavior was fair, it did not reflect their level of environmental knowledge. Environmental knowledge and positive behavior can be increased through appropriate media and the introduction of environmental education in schools.

Environmental Literacy: Indigenizing Environmental Education

Inculcating awareness in preserving the environment among citizens is important. Thus Environmental Education (EE) was introduced as a compulsory subject for all Malaysian students including Aboriginal community. However, many researchers have reported that indigenous knowledge (IK) with regards to environment education received less attention by researchers although many researchers have suggested that IK greatly influenced the understanding, as well as the behaviour of the Aboriginal people in preserving and conserving the environment. This study aims to investigate the effect of gender, education level and tribes on environmental literacy among Aboriginal community in Pahang, Malaysia. This study adopted a survey research design where data werecollected using two research instruments which are knowledge test and questionnaire to examine their knowledge and behaviour towards protecting the environment. Findings indicate that the level of environmental knowledge among Malaysian Aboriginal people is at a moderate level while their behaviours towards environmental care are at low moderate level most probably because the formal EE curriculum at school does not relate well with their IK. Therefore, it is suggested that Malaysian EE curriculum should be revised to creatively acknowledge and integrate IK to ensure its relevancy to Aboriginal communities.

Processing of solid waste for the improvement of the urban environment

The article is devoted to the domestic waste recycling challenges in our country and possible ways to address them. Today, these issues are considered to be multifaceted and involve not only the enterprises but also the corresponding authorities and the population itself. The experience of the developed countries proves that the use of progressive innovative technologies in waste managing can solve a number of problems in the field of economy, ecology and public health. To implement such technologies a coherent action of all participants in the waste management process is required. The authorities and enterprises should be clearly coordinated in addressing the challenges of the development and implementation of low-waste technologies. Moreover, it is necessary to raise the level of environmental knowledge among the population.

Living Off Wetlands: A Case Study of Mara Bay and Masirori Wetlands, Tanzania

This study was undertaken to help highlight the negative impacts of economic activities on wetlands in East Africa with a specific focus on Mara Bay and Masirori wetlands, Tanzania, a region where the local communities still harness wetland resources for economic sustenance. Key economic activities and the negative impacts of the income-generating activities on the wetlands are identified, including the main goods harnessed, level of dependency of the locals to the wetlands, and the level of environmental knowledge of the locals on the wetlands’ ecosystem services. Both qualitative and quantitative tools and techniques viz.: questionnaires, semi-structured interviews, market surveys and spreadsheet analysis were used in this study. The proportion of wetland users involved in papyrus harvesting, food crop cultivation and fishing was 30%, 25% and 24%, respectively while charcoal/firewood and grass for livestock accounted for 12% and 7%, respectively. Significant differences in incomes for charcoal (p < 0.05) across the four villages were recorded but farming, fishing, mat making, herding and fish mongering were non-significant. About 6% of those interviewed had some considerable knowledge on wetland ecosystem services, while the rest (94%) lacked information. Issues identified as having detrimental impacts on the wetlands’ ecosystem services included conversion of sections of the wetlands into farmlands, grazing, charcoal burning, unsustainable fishing, overharvesting of papyrus and brick-making. Farming was found to be a major income-generating activity within the two wetlands. Other important economic activities were charcoal burning, fishing, mat making and fish mongering. The findings from the research are useful for devising appropriate strategies for wetland conservation. Such measures may include assigning wetland ecologists to the village governments, valuation of the wetlands, commissioning of a price and resource regulatory board for the wetland goods, creation of wetlands monitoring program, a fining regime system and a roll-out of mass environmental education in the wetlands regions.

ENVIRONMENTAL LITERACY ON GARBAGE MANAGEMENT AND GREENING ‎ACTIVITY OF HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS IN GREEN SCHOOL AND NON-GREEN ‎SCHOOL‎

This survey research was conducted to understand the difference and level of environmental awareness and knowledge on solid waste management dan vegetation re-planting of students from Eco-School (adiwiyata) and Non Eco-School (non-adiwiyata). The number of respondents was 198 students from two high Eco-Schools (SMA N 1 Pengasih and MAN 2 Wates) and two high Non Eco-Schools (SMA N 1 Girimulyo and SMA N 1 Wates). Sample was chosen by random sampling. Students were given a set of questionnaires, which consisted section A tested students awareness and section B tested students knowledge. The data were statistically analysed using Mann-Whitney and descriptive statistics. The results of Mann-Whitney showed that there are significant difference on environmental awareness and knowledge between student taught in Eco-School and student taught in Non Eco-School (Sig.&lt; 0,05). Meanwhile, the level of environmental awareness and knowledge between student taught in Eco-School and student taught in Non Eco-School are in the same level. The level of environmental awareness between student Eco-School and Non Eco-School is in the same low level and the level of environmental knowledge between student Eco-School and Non Eco-School is in the same low level. Keywords: Environmental literacy; Eco School (adiwiyata); solid waste management; vegetation re-planting

Environmental education in university schools: A study in a logistics faculty

ABSTRACTIn this study we examine whether Environmental Education (EE) can increase the discipline-specific environmental knowledge of students in a logistics faculty. We also investigate the degree to which logistics students are willing to attend EE classes. Results show that participation in a short EE course supplied students with higher levels of environmental knowledge and a more holistic understanding of the environment, while it also increased their intent to take EE courses. These findings underscore the positive impacts of EE in higher education and suggest that introduction of EE in educational curricula can facilitate the development of environmental thinking among students.

Gender Differences in Environmental Behaviors Among the Chinese Public: Model of Mediation and Moderation

The environmental concern literature consistently finds that women when compared with men participate more in private environmental behaviors such as recycling and green consumer activities. A common argument posits that this is because women possess stronger proenvironmental values, beliefs, and attitudes relative to men. Research findings in China, however, do not seem to support this argument. We use data from the 2010 Chinese General Social Survey to reexamine this argument by testing a model of the mediation effects of postmaterialism, environmental knowledge, and the New Ecological Paradigm, as well as a model of the moderation effect of postmaterialism. Our results show that lower levels of environmental knowledge of Chinese women relative to men hinder their participation in private environmental behaviors. There is also some evidence for the moderation effect of postmaterialism. We conclude this study by stating theoretical and policy implications of our findings, and offering insights for future research.

Environmental knowledge and attitudes and behaviours towards energy consumption

Numerous investigations have arisen in order to study and characterise environmentally friendly consumer profiles, with some authors applying the relationship between knowledge, attitudes and behaviour to this end. The present research approach, based upon the Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA), seeks to verify the existence of relationships between knowledge and attitudes and between knowledge and environmental behaviour. In this instance, data collection involved a questionnaire aimed at assessing the overall environmental knowledge of respondents as well as their attitudes and behaviours regarding energy issues (savings, consumption, interest, use). The results pointed to the lack of relationship between knowledge and attitudes, and between knowledge and behaviour whilst the relationship between attitudes and behaviour proved to be only weak. The results also found that males, older students and those studying Engineering and the Social and Human Sciences are those reporting higher levels of environmental knowledge. However, when it comes to attitudes and behaviours, females seem to display more awareness around these issues.

The State of the Environmental Awareness of Students from Poland, Slovakia and Ukraine – Selected Results

In the article was presented results of international researches about environmental consciousness. The project was realized in 2015. The main purpose of this article is to describe the level of environmental knowledge, values and attitudes among university students from Central Eastern Europe. In introduction of article was defined concept of environmental awareness. The research problem is question: What are differences in the state of environmental awareness between respondents living in the Poland, Slovakia and Ukraine? In the first part text was presented methodology of the conducted research. The second part of the article concerns the analysis of the collected data. On the basis of the conducted research it can maintain that the students of Central and Eastern Europe generally declared interest the state of the environment. The overall outcome of the research leads to the conclusion that the highest proportion of the respondents who declared interest in the environmental protection came from Slovakia. The fact that in their opinion it should care about the environment more than the students from Poland and Ukraine may result from the higher level of the environmental awareness.

Environmental risk perception and public trust—from planning to operation for China's high-speed railway

ABSTRACTChina has the world's largest high-speed railway (HSR) network, but while HSR is meeting high transportation demand, the Decide-Announce-Defend approach to infrastructure policy and projects still prevails in China and is often criticized for not addressing public concerns of environmental and social risks. In recent years, researchers have investigated the economic and environmental impacts of HSR, yet few studies have evaluated the public's views on HSR risks or their views on the trustworthiness of key information sources, which are believed to be critical in predicting public behavior and reaction to infrastructure projects. Using random survey data from communities along the Beijing-Shenyang and Beijing-Shanghai high-speed railway lines, our study shows that perceived risks of HSR are higher in the operating stage rather than during construction. We also find that in the construction stage, risk-related information is often obtained through informal channels, while the government becomes a more trusted information provider only after HSR goes into operation. Furthermore, we confirm that the public's perception of the level of knowledge, transparency, and attention to risk of the information sources1 These are broad terms used in the survey to refer to information sources' general level of environmental knowledge, level of transparency with the decision-making process and information disclosure, and level of concern for environmental risks perceived by the public. are key determinants of their perceived trustworthiness. Lastly, this study reveals that socioeconomic characteristics are more important than project phase in explaining the regional differences in risk perception and trustworthiness of key information sources. This key finding calls for a strategy of stakeholder engagement that is carefully tailored to the demographics of the affected population in the decision-making and implementation process of HSR, as well as other infrastructure projects.

Knowledge and Morality of School-Age Children and Adolescents Regarding Environmental Issues and Moral Dilemmas

A research gap exists with regard to the analysis of school children and adolescents’ awareness on environmental issues. Current investigation analyzes data of 240 children and adolescents, aged between 8 and 14 years, within different school contexts in the mid-southern region of Brazil, on their knowledge level and moral judgment on solid wastes, river water and tree life. Whereas the exploratory research with different groups of different ages verifies the manner behavior emerges and changes, the transversal design gives an evolution aspect of data through the examination of a great number of agents. Results showed that children and adolescents have similar knowledge on the environment within different school contexts, except differences at environmental knowledge level. The latter revealed a mild broadening trend in proportion to the 8 - 14 years age bracket. Environmental moral judgment varied a lot, regardless of the agents’ age, and failed to be related to the knowledge that children and adolescents had on the environmental themes. Schools featuring well-defined pedagogical proposals were positively salient among the others. Environmental knowledge and moral judgment on environmental issues are not determining but implied chiefly as from the age of eleven, since both are the result of the agents’ social interactivity within the environment and basically require affectivity and cooperation.

Analisis Pengetahuan Lingkungan Berbasis Kearifan Lokal pada Pola Pemupukan, Pergiliran Tanaman dan Kebersihan Ladang Masyarakat di Kabupaten Karo dan Kabupaten Deli Serdang

This type of research is ex post facto, the sampling technique used was stratified random sampling. This study aims to determine the level of environmental knowledge based on local wisdom on the pattern of fertilization, crop rotation and cleanliness of public fields in Karo and Deli Serdang. Data was collected using a questionnaire to calculate percentages, looking for differences in normal distribution of data using the formula Kolmogorov-Smirnov (K-S) and also for the homogeneity of the data used by the formula of environmental knowledge Levene. Based on the results of ANOVA test a significant difference to the level of public knowledge (F = 4.41; P = 0.035). The level of knowledge of the agricultural environment in the communities in Karo, 24.91 ± 5.74 (SB) was significantly higher than the level of environmental knowledge of farming communities in Deli Serdang 23.74 ± 6.56. Based on the Anova test results on the data level of knowledge of the agricultural environment in the communities in Karo and Deli Serdang found that the location of agricultural land significant effect on the level of knowledge society. Based on Tukey test results showed that the level of environmental knowledge of peasant farming, 28.42 ± 4.01 was significantly higher than the level of environmental knowledge of primary school students, 18.40 ± 4.46, and the level of environmental knowledge of junior high school students, 22.27 ± 4, 51 but did not differ significantly with the level of environmental knowledge of high school students, 28.47 ± 4.54. Based on the results of Anova test of the influence of a significant interaction between the location of the farm to the knowledge society in Deli Serdang (F = 68.829; P = 0.000), for Karo (F = 28.558; P = 0.000). Based on Tukey test results can be seen that there are differences in the environmental knowledge owned by farmers, high school students, junior high school students, elementary students in Karo and Deli Serdang is significantly different overall. Knowledge society in terms of fertilization, farming communities have chosen manure and compost as a fertilizer major to restore soil fertility, but can not be separated from chemical fertilizers. Chemical fertilizer given to plants to see its development. The community also has been farming in rotation and in the hygiene field, to eradicate the weeds are still using herbicides.

The Environmental Knowledge Level of Classroom Teaching Students and their Views Toward the Environment

Environmental problems that increase day by day can only prevented with an effective environmental education. In order to carry out an effective environmental education a great deal of responsibility lies on teachers and pre-service teachers. Thus, the current study aims to determine the level of environmental knowledge of Classroom Education students and their views toward the environment. The current study adopted a mixed methods design using both qualitative and quantitative analyses. The study was conducted during the 2014-2015 academic year, spring semester. While Pamukkale University, Faculty of Education, Elementary Education Department, Department of Classroom Teaching 50 First-Year students comprised the quantitative study group 7 students comprised the qualitative study group. Firstly the multiple-choice questioned Environmental Knowledge Test was conducted and then consequently interviews were conducted with 7 students. With the scores obtained from the students independent samples t-test and One-way ANOVA analyses were done. When the findings were compared according to gender a statistically significant difference was found in favor of the female students. However, when the data was analyzed according to high school type graduated from and longest time spent living in a site were analyzed no meaningful differences were found. In the qualitative dimension of the research students had difficulties in questions involving human and environment, the ozone layer, greenhouse gas, environmental pollution reasons, the consequences of environmental pollution. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2016.v7n6p159

Analisis Pengetahuan Lingkungan dan Sikap Peduli Lingkungan terhadap Ekosistem Sungai Berbasis Kearifan Lokal Lubuk Larangan di Desa Tambangan Jae Kecamatan Tambangan Kabupaten Madina

This research aims to: Find out the level of students and communities environmental knowledge towards river ecosystem based local wisdom (in)* lubuk larangan (part of the river which the fishes cannot be taken until the certain time)* basedon the level of education; Determine the level of environmental knowledge of students and communities towards river ecosystem based local wisdom lubuk larangan. The research used a quantitative descriptive research. The research sample as many as 158 students and 50 communities who live in Tambangan village Tambangan District, Madina Regency. The instrument used in this research was a questionnaire. Data analysis technique used Friedman-test. The final conclusion of the research: The level of education and location of the school influenced the level of knowledge about the environment of students based on local wisdom lubuk larangan basedon the level of education. The average of adult’s knowledge was higher than High School, Junior High and Elementary School students.

Knowledge, Attitudes and Practice of Bahir Dar University Undergraduate Students towards Environmental Issues

Nowadays environmental problems have become issues of great concern to many parties. However, many people in Ethiopia seem to have low level of environmental knowledge. This study examined environmental awareness and attitudes of Bahir Dar University students. Data were collected from 523 respondents using 67 self-report questions, which evaluate respondents’ knowledge, attitudes and practice relating to global and local environmental problems. Descriptive statistics was used to assess students’ knowledge and attitudes. The results indicated that respondents have low levels of environmental knowledge, but environmental-friendly attitudes and willingness to commit to environment-friendly practices. No statistically significant difference was found between females and males towards environmental attitudes. To raise environmental knowledge of students, investigating the issue at further depth and revising environmental education curriculum and the methods of delivery are necessary.