Program on the Environment

With the increasing severity and urgency needed in fighting climate change, it is critical to evaluate factors that are preventing sustainable change from occurring. One factor is the lack of sufficient education in the realm of the environment. This is evident in the fact that a third of Americans do not believe climate change is human caused (Leiserowitz, 2021). New methods of education must be evaluated to understand how to educate about the environment most effectively. I explore this idea in my research question: what are opportunities and challenges of using podcasts as a medium for education and outreach about sustainability and the environment? This project consisted of me undergoing an internship with UW Bothell’s Sustainability Office where I created an environmentally themed podcast. I also conducted a literature review on the topic and interviewed environmental podcast creators. My main findings are that podcasts have practical applications as educational tools in environmental education both inside and outside of classroom settings. I also found that the creation of podcasts itself is an emergent educative tool, confirmed by my literature review and my experience in creating an environmental podcast. Finally, I found that the use of podcasts only has slight challenges in environmental education, such as the fact that environmental education can be situationally reliant on visual aids. This information is important in understanding the most effective methods of environmental education, the foundation of nurturing a more sustainable society.