How eco-clubs foster pro-environmental behavior in a school context: a case from Finland
Promoting pro-environmental behavior with environmental education (EE) has been proven to be challenging due to various school and student-related barriers. Eco-clubs are a widely used pathway in EE, which may help to overcome these barriers. Despite the popularity of eco-clubs, few studies have be...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Geographical Society of Finland
2025-02-01
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| Series: | Fennia: International Journal of Geography |
| Online Access: | https://fennia.journal.fi/article/view/146717 |
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| author | Anssi Huoponen |
| author_facet | Anssi Huoponen |
| author_sort | Anssi Huoponen |
| collection | DOAJ |
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Promoting pro-environmental behavior with environmental education (EE) has been proven to be challenging due to various school and student-related barriers. Eco-clubs are a widely used pathway in EE, which may help to overcome these barriers. Despite the popularity of eco-clubs, few studies have been conducted on the topic. This study approaches this problem with a case study to examine students’ perceptions of an eco-club in a Finnish general upper secondary school. In the study, 14 of the schools’ eco-club students participated in group interviews, which focused on their perceptions of the eco-club and its activities. Additionally, 100 non-eco-club students participated in a qualitative survey about their perceptions of the eco-club. This study found that eco-club students consider the club important in supporting their environmental actions in the school. They also find the club’s atmosphere and community to be a crucial part of supporting these actions. The members also find that the participation of peers and practical things enable the eco-club activities, while external influences, lack of time, and the reluctance of peers act as a barrier. The results indicate that there is a contradiction between the members’ and non-members’ perceptions of the eco-clubs’ effect on students and the school. While members find the eco-club important in supporting the environmental actions of the students and the school and spreading their influence outside of the school, the lack of knowledge dominates non-members’ perceptions, and some of them find the eco-club unimportant. Based on this research, eco-clubs seem to be a promising pathway in promoting members’ pro-environmental behavior while the club’s influence outside of the club remains small.
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| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-91eb924fd58b4d58b7823d91ce3a6366 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 1798-5617 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-02-01 |
| publisher | Geographical Society of Finland |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Fennia: International Journal of Geography |
| spelling | doaj-art-91eb924fd58b4d58b7823d91ce3a63662025-08-20T02:11:12ZengGeographical Society of FinlandFennia: International Journal of Geography1798-56172025-02-0110.11143/fennia.146717How eco-clubs foster pro-environmental behavior in a school context: a case from Finland Anssi Huoponen Promoting pro-environmental behavior with environmental education (EE) has been proven to be challenging due to various school and student-related barriers. Eco-clubs are a widely used pathway in EE, which may help to overcome these barriers. Despite the popularity of eco-clubs, few studies have been conducted on the topic. This study approaches this problem with a case study to examine students’ perceptions of an eco-club in a Finnish general upper secondary school. In the study, 14 of the schools’ eco-club students participated in group interviews, which focused on their perceptions of the eco-club and its activities. Additionally, 100 non-eco-club students participated in a qualitative survey about their perceptions of the eco-club. This study found that eco-club students consider the club important in supporting their environmental actions in the school. They also find the club’s atmosphere and community to be a crucial part of supporting these actions. The members also find that the participation of peers and practical things enable the eco-club activities, while external influences, lack of time, and the reluctance of peers act as a barrier. The results indicate that there is a contradiction between the members’ and non-members’ perceptions of the eco-clubs’ effect on students and the school. While members find the eco-club important in supporting the environmental actions of the students and the school and spreading their influence outside of the school, the lack of knowledge dominates non-members’ perceptions, and some of them find the eco-club unimportant. Based on this research, eco-clubs seem to be a promising pathway in promoting members’ pro-environmental behavior while the club’s influence outside of the club remains small. https://fennia.journal.fi/article/view/146717 |
| spellingShingle | Anssi Huoponen How eco-clubs foster pro-environmental behavior in a school context: a case from Finland Fennia: International Journal of Geography |
| title | How eco-clubs foster pro-environmental behavior in a school context: a case from Finland |
| title_full | How eco-clubs foster pro-environmental behavior in a school context: a case from Finland |
| title_fullStr | How eco-clubs foster pro-environmental behavior in a school context: a case from Finland |
| title_full_unstemmed | How eco-clubs foster pro-environmental behavior in a school context: a case from Finland |
| title_short | How eco-clubs foster pro-environmental behavior in a school context: a case from Finland |
| title_sort | how eco clubs foster pro environmental behavior in a school context a case from finland |
| url | https://fennia.journal.fi/article/view/146717 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT anssihuoponen howecoclubsfosterproenvironmentalbehaviorinaschoolcontextacasefromfinland |