Understanding the Connections Between Double Bind Thinking and the Ecological Crises: Implications for Educational Reform

Abstract

The 2007 and 2009 conferences of the American Educational Research Association (AERA) was especially notable, but for the wrong reasons. They were attended by over 12000 educators from around the world, and it took place well after scientific journals, the public media, and Al Gore’s film “An Inconvenient Truth” had contributed to a profound shift in the public’s awareness that the world is facing an ecological tipping point that will alter life on this planet. In America, which lags behind the level of ecological awareness of many European countries, public opinion has recently shifted, with surveys indicating that 70 percent of people now think that the ecological crises is a major concern that needs to be addressed. Reports on global warming, as well as on changes in the chemistry of the world’s oceans, and the spread of extreme weather patterns, were headline news in the newspapers, on television, and on talk radio. Even evangelical Christian groups were announcing that the ecological crises were a sign that they were failing as stewards of God’s creation.