Environmental education in Brazil: political-pedagogical disputes and socio-environmental crisis

Abstract

This paper investigates the political-pedagogical disputes in the field of Brazilian Environmental Education through the analysis of the conservationist, pragmatic, and critical macro-tendencies, as proposed by Layrargues and Lima (2014). Grounded in Pierre Bourdieu’s Field Theory (2004), as well as contributions from the sociology of knowledge, political ecology, Freirean pedagogy, and the philosophy of liberation, the article argues that only a critical and emancipatory education can effectively confront the structural determinants of the contemporary socio-environmental crisis. This is a theoretical study that demonstrates how hegemonic strands tend to naturalize environmental degradation and depoliticize the debate, while the critical approach articulates environmental justice, dialogue between different knowledge systems, and practices rooted in social movements and vulnerable territories. The article highlights experiences such as that of the Florestan Fernandes National School and identifies challenges related to teacher education, university outreach, and the development of a counter-hegemonic network communication (Layrargues & Puggian, 2018), concluding with the need to strengthen a situated environmental education committed to social transformation and the defense of life.