Source: Berkowitz, A.R., M. Archie and D. Simmons. 1997. Defining environmental literacy: a call for action. Bulletin of the Ecological Society of America. 78:170?172.

I. Understanding the processes of ecological understanding

A. the inquiry process - reflection, question and hypothesis formation, investigation, construction, reflection and application

B. modes of investigation - observation, comparison, experimentation, simulation

C. life-long learning

D. limitations to ecological understanding

E. how to find and get what you need from experts and other sources

II. Key ecological understandings

A. BIG ideas -

1. the Flux of Nature - change, disturbance and recovery are the norms for ecological systems.

2. humans are part of the environment, influencing virtually everything and being influenced by it too.

3. spatial and temporal scales - their diversity, lack of correspondence, and "perception" by different organisms

4. complexity, feedback, hierarchy

5. uncertainty

6. ecological systems are shaped by history and by surrounding systems

B. Individuals, Populations, Communities and Limiting Factors

1. habitats, species' ecological traits, environmental constraints, functional roles of species

2. food chains, food webs, mutualisms

3. population dynamics

4. population and community dynamics

5. biodiversity

C. Ecosystem and Landscapes

1. boundaries, systems, inputs-outputs-storage

2. energy and nutrients

3. landscape ecology

III. Ecological understanding of human existence

A. human needs

B. human resources

C. human impacts

IV. Practical application of the processes and products of ecological understanding

A. understanding your local environment and your role in it

B. understanding your role in the larger environment

C. decision making, problem solving

D. building a sustainable future - i.e., more than just problems, but how to meet