Collaborative learning, self-reflection and praxis are also student-driven. The IEL WhatsApp group, created for each cohort, is a free space where students are invited to share views, news and insights voluntarily. In practice, what students post has proved to be an important mechanism for gaining insights about how students find relevance between the module and their lived experiences and behaviours, which provides an additional opportunity for co-creating the curriculum each year. Excited posts about the discovery of a clothing recycling initiative at a leading chain store, for example, can lead to deeper discussions about the impact of fast fashion and personal contributions to that impact. In addition, opportunities for deeper emersion in environmental law and engaging with the environmental law network are offered during the seminar sessions, whether it be in the form of exposure to speakers from different sectors, invitations to attend seminars, providing alerts of upcoming events or ways in which interests can be pursued by accessing websites and organisations. However, the WhatsApp group has illustrated the value of students having agency as they complement and extend traditional conceptions to defining what networking and the community constitute, a recent illustrative example being a student posting details of an art exhibition which explores ecology and relationships of humans living in it through an immersive experience. By its nature, structuring the international environmental law module through an ecopedagogical lens requires ongoing reflection and adjustment. The goal of, and approach to, facilitating the development of the more nuanced skills required to navigate the planetary crisis where the future trajectory of what is being taught is uncertain has received positive feedback in student evaluations. However, because of the limitations inherent in a semester module, for optimal impact, students should ideally feel inspired to pursue a path of solutions-based critical thinking that continues long after the exam has been written. Student feedback such as that in the quote below suggests that it has the potential to do just that: References Buckler, C., & Creech, H. (2014). Shaping the future we want: UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development; final report. Unesco. Coplan, K. S. (2016). Teaching Substantive Environmental Law and Practice Skills Through Interest Group RolePlaying. Vermont Journal of Environmental Law, 18(2), 194-221. Crutzen, P. J., Stoermer, E. F., Robin, L., Sorlin, S., & Warde, P. (2013). The future of nature: Documents of global change. The “Anthropocene”; Springer International Publishing: Cham, Switzerland, 479-490. Fowler, R., Warnock, C., Kennedy, A., du Plessis, A., & Hamman, E. (2021). From marginality to mainstream: the evolution of teaching and learning in environmental law. In Teaching and Learning in Environmental Law (pp. 1-20). Edward Elgar Publishing. Head, J. W. (2023). Reflections on Stockholm, Decolonization, Restoration, and Global Ecological Governance. Law Env’t & Dev. J., 19, 285. Hjorth Warlenius, R. (2022). Learning for life: ESD, ecopedagogy and the new spirit of capitalism. The journal of environmental education, 53(3), 141-153. Hossain, I. (2024). An Overview of the Existing Scholarship on the Critical Aspects of Ecopedagogy. International Journal of Educational Reform, 10567879241228251. Kahn, R. V. (2010). Critical pedagogy, ecoliteracy, & planetary crisis: The ecopedagogy movement (Vol. 359). Peter Lang. Kotzé, L. J. (2014). Rethinking global environmental law and governance in the Anthropocene. Journal of Energy & Natural Resources Law, 32(2), 121-156. Kotzé, L. J., & Adelman, S. (2023). Environmental law and the unsustainability of sustainable development: a tale of disenchantment and of hope. Law and critique, 34(2), 227-248. Mehling, M., van Asselt, H., Kulovesi, K., & Morgera, E. (2020). Teaching Climate Law: trends, methods and outlook. Journal of Environmental Law, 32(3), 417440. Misiaszek, G. W. (2020). Ecopedagogy: Critical environmental teaching for planetary justice and global sustainable development. Bloomsbury Publishing. Norat, M. D. L. A. V., Herreria, A. F., & Rodriguez, F. M. M. (2016). Ecopedagogy: a movement between critical dialogue and complexity: proposal for a categories system. Journal of Education for Sustainable Development, 10(1), 178-195. Rockström, J., Steffen, W., Noone, K., Persson, Å., Chapin, F. S., Lambin, E. F., ... & Foley, J. A. (2009). A safe operating space for humanity. nature, 461(7263), 472-475. Stephens, T. (2019). What is the point of international environmental law scholarship in the Anthropocene? What is the Point of International Environmental Law Scholarship in the Anthropocene, 121-139. Before, I viewed the environment as just a phenomena, something that just is. … my eyes were opened … I feel like someone who just binge watched a show. It all but ended too quick and now I am left with a void and desperately scouring Netflix for a new one. Teaching Innovation for the 21st Century | Showcasing UJ Teaching Innovation Projects 2024 35
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