Civic Ecology
What is Civic Ecology?
Civic Ecology seeks to help people organize, learn, and act in ways that increase their capacity to withstand, and where appropriate to grow from, change and uncertainty, through nurturing cultural and ecological diversity, through creating opportunities for civic participation, and through fostering learning from different types of knowledge.
In a more practical sense, Civic Ecology is a set of asset-based tools that can be used in international and community development, natural resources management, and education. Urban community greening, community-based biodiversity monitoring, and participatory watershed restoration provide examples of Civic Ecology tools.
Civic Ecology Tools
Urban community greening refers to the leadership and active participation of city residents who take it upon themselves to build healthier, sustainable communities through planning and caring for green spaces and the associated flora, fauna, and structures. Urban community greening encompasses community gardens where city dwellers share a gardening space; memorial gardens created spontaneously following disaster and conflict; trough gardens where individuals plant in troughs located throughout a city; gardening and tree planting along green areas created by transportation corridors such as railroads and highways; as well as sacred groves of trees and other forms of community forestry.
Community-based biodiversity monitoring refers to efforts among lay people working in partnership with scientists to collect data on local plant, animal, and ecosystem diversity. The purposes of such efforts vary, generally encompassing some combination of species and ecosystem conservation, education, scientific research, and economic development (e.g., environmental tourism).
Participatory watershed restoration occurs when community members organize to restore rivers to a more natural (e.g., unchannelized) state, with the goal of creating plant, wildlife, and fisheries habitat, recreational opportunities, and cleaner water.
Civic Ecology and International and Community Development
Civic Ecology situates initiative and ownership within local communities, and thus fosters local leadership. This, along with its integration of diverse peoples and perspectives, participatory approaches, and commitment to learning, makes Civic Ecology an important element in sustainable approaches to international development and to developing resilience prior to and following disaster. See Tidball and Krasny, From Risk to Resilience: Urban Community Greening and Civic Ecology. "Shaping an environment" or community through leveraging existing skills, leadership, and other assets to create an enabling envivronment for growth and sustainability is also an important element of civic ecology. See Weinstein and Tidball, Environment-shaping.
Civic Ecology Education
Civic Ecology Education integrates learning from scientists and community members, and community action. The goal of Civic Ecology Education is to build resilient communities, through enabling youth and adults to develop and apply an understanding of science and of diverse cultures, and to become active, contributing, and informed members of their community. Civic Ecology Education builds on and reinforces existing community assets. See Krasny and Tidball, Civic Ecology Education: A Systems Approach to Resilience and Learning in Cities. Garden Mosaics provides one example of a Civic Ecology education program. See also Krasny Civic Ecology Education Powerpoint Presentation at the National Science Foundation.
Civic Ecology and Natural Resources Management
Community-based biodiversity monitoring and other Civic Ecology tools are important to natural resources management. Currently, we are exploring issues related to urban land use management and community greening in NYC and New Orleans. See Urban Community Greening: Exploring a Comprehensive Strategy for Building Sustainable Cities. See also Civic Ecology slide show
Initiative for Civic Ecology
The Initiative for Civic Ecology seeks to explore Civic Ecology approaches to international and community development, education, and natural resources management, through a network of research, teaching, and outreach activities. Started in fall 2006, the Initiative for Civic Ecology encompasses research projects in New York City, New Orleans, and southern Africa, an undergraduate course on urban environments, web-mediated exchanges among youth in Russia and the US, and outreach programs in collaboration with the American Community Gardening Association.
Contact Us
Marianne Krasny, Faculty Leader, Initiative for Civic Ecology mek2@cornell.edu
Keith Tidball, Associate Director, Initiative for Civic Ecology kgt2@cornell.edu