Ecological Identity
by Sue Wiedermann
I first heard of the term ecological identity in reference to children’s learning from a presenter, Jan White at a Nurture in Nature Australia conference. Professor Jan White is a co-director of Early Childhood Outdoors in the United Kingdom. She describes ecological identity as, ‘the psychological and bodily intervention with the planet, how we belong to and see ourselves as part of the planet and what is required of us’. She believes that nurturing this in children is as important as nurturing cultural identity.
As an early childhood teacher I am aware of the value in supporting, nourishing and developing children’s personal and cultural identities. It is actually a requirement of all educators as stated in The Early Years Learning Framework for Australia. Having a strong sense of who they are helps to support children’s confidence, interactions, wellbeing and willingness to engage in play and learning. So could building strong ecological identities have similar benefits? If children feel safe in, are delighted by and are curious of the natural world might they see themselves as an equal, integral part of nature just as indigenous cultures do?. Changing this human narrative of the modern world, that we are superior to so can do as we like to the environment, is perhaps a way to turn the fate of our planet around. Alongside the idea that we should leave a better planet for our children, could we also consider leaving more caring children for our planet?
To develop this ecological identity the most practical and influential way is to immerse children from a young age in natural environments. Most young children are desperate to be outside but over time our behaviour and attitudes can contribute to this declining. How many times do adults say it’s too cold/hot/windy/wet to go outside? How often are children told not to get their clothes dirty, not to splash in the puddles or stay out of the dirt/mud? Or told not to climb on the rocks and in trees as they might get hurt, or not to play in particular places in case there are spiders and bugs. We can make the outside world sound dangerous, unsafe, dirty, a place to avoid and definitely a place that is inferior to the comfort of inside our homes or educational settings. The learning that can occur in the outside world is also often considered inferior to and not as valuable as the learning that takes place inside. Is sitting at a table inside drawing more valuable than making patterns in the sand or dirt with a stick? Is creating a building from plastic blocks inside more engaging than building a cubbyhouse from logs, sticks and loose parts found outside? Is cutting a piece of paper more beneficial then cutting herbs from the garden to use in a recipe? Is reading or telling a story while sitting on a couch more educational then sitting outside on the grass? Children’s overall development can be nurtured in the outside world, their language and ideas can be extended and most importantly those responsive and reciprocal relationships with others can be nourished just as well outside as inside. We teach children to value material possessions from a young age; to not throw objects as they might break, to pack our toys away so we don’t stand on them for example. If toys or objects are important to children they learn to look after them, so surely if we place just as much importance on the natural world could they be inspired to look after it just as well?