LECL Program Overview

NOTICE: LECL New Student Admissions have been placed on moratorium June 15-December 15, 2009 due to budgetary reductions. Applications will not be processed and students will not be admitted for any academic term during this time frame while the LECL program is under revision. More information about the revised curriculum and application process should be available in December. If you are a current student with questions regarding this decision, please speak with your advisor.

Please see August 2009 Letter to LECL students for additional LECL updates.

LECL Mission Statement

Building on the goals of the Graduate School of Education and the ELP Department ideals of social justice and multi-cultural education, the LECL program strives to develop educators who can create locally relevant and culturally appropriate education programs, which are informed by the principles and values inherent in sustainable development, and that use pedagogies that are appropriate for diverse audiences.

LECL Program Description

The LECL academic program grew out of the former Portland International Initiative for Leadership in Ecology, Culture and Learning (PIIECL). The LECL program reflects the depth and breadth of international discourse on sustainability and the United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development.

The LECL program addresses major discourses, issues, and pedagogies pertaining to educating for a more sustainable future. The program balances environmental sustainability with social and economic justice. The LECL program, like sustainability, is interdisciplinary in nature. Each course in the program has an educational and communication component as well as an element of indigenous knowledge systems.

LECL Program Values

Education for a more sustainable future is based upon values, ideals, and principles that underlie sustainability, such as intergenerational equity, gender equity, social justice, poverty alleviation, environmental preservation and restoration, natural resource conservation, and just and peaceable societies.

Discussion around sustainability includes values, personal and societal. Sustainability carries with it a host of values related to human dignity and rights, equity, and care for the environment. Additionally, sustainability takes these values a step farther and extends them intergenerationally. With sustainability comes valuing biodiversity and conservation along with human diversity, inclusivity, and participation.

LECL Learning Outcomes

Curriculum content will offer:

  • Broad-based understanding of ecological, socio-cultural, and philosophical foundations of sustainability education, bio-cultural diversity, political ecology, and social justice issues.
  • Theoretical understanding as well as practical skills needed to offer effective leadership for sustainability. We help students not only build a vision but also to generate necessary social, natural and economic capital to accomplish the task.
  • Local, regional, and global dialogue through internships and summer programs that involve visiting scholars and community partners.
  • Connection between community and academia, town and gown, by facilitating continuous engagement with community partners through community based learning (CBL) opportunities.
  • Bringing insights from grassroots, educational, ecological and cultural initiatives into PSU classrooms through a variety of internships and presentations by our community partners.