• Hwankyungkyoyuk
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.92-106
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• 2001

The main goal of this paper is to suggest a new path to new ecological paradigm in social environmental education. The old paradigm of environmental education consists of two elements. The first element is emphasis on the seriousness and urgency of environmental problems while the second one is the presentation of concrete action programs as solutions of environmental problems. The missing point of this paradigm is the internal process of meaning construction of actors. Any kind of social action must be based on the meaning which the actors gives to their own action. Becoming an environmentally conscious actor, therefore, actor himself needs to interpret the world from the new perspective. In this paper, we call the change of worldview in the deepest sense 'conversion'. Ecological conversion means shift from anthropocentrism to ecocentrism. In the following sections, main characteristics of ecological world view are specified and some examples of ecological confessions which reveal ecological world view are presented. In this last section, 7 ways of lifestyle change which can facilitate ecological conversion are suggested: 1) trying to be alone for a while everyday; 2) making peaceful state of mind; 3) sharpening the 'green sensitivity'; 4) creating slow way of life; 5) choosing voluntary simplicity; 6)raising spirituality; 7) practicing sharing and caring. Social environmental education in the new ecological paradigm could be considered as a starting point towards a civilizational shift from the dominant materialist civilization to the post-material ecological civilization.