Abstract
Terrestrial ecosystems have been mostly converted into crops and pasture lands by modern agriculture in fulfillment of food needs for a growing human population. The purpose of this work consisted in engaging a population of undergraduate students (N = 830) in prairie restoration and management projects on a university campus in southeastern Minnesota, between 2006 and 2014, with the objective of evaluating the effects of these experiences on the health and overall well-being of students who were enrolled in 2 different science courses: freshmen biology and junior ecology. Quantitative data derived from 8 critical questions that had been purposefully designed for this study and were part of the course evaluation survey. Qualitative data were collected from focus groups with every class after each outdoor experience and through an analysis of the literature that was relevant to the topic under study. Connecting with the land while restoring prairie habitats was meaningful for most students as indicated by the correlation coefficient (Pearson’s) from the mean frequency scores that derived from the answers to the 8 critical questions of the survey (r = 0.94). Also, this relationship among scores from students in the 2 science courses was statistically significant (p = 0.0137). Qualitative data substantiated the findings from the survey data. Expanding this pedagogy is recommended to shift present anthropocentric worldviews into eco-centric awareness necessary for humanity to legitimize living within planetary boundaries and health.
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Acknowledgements
The authors are grateful to Winona State University Foundation for the financial support that was given to these restoration projects, through the years. We dedicate this work to our friend and colleague, Dr. Charles M. Allen for introducing us to the study of remnant, coastal prairies.
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Borsari, B., Vidrine, M.F. (2022). Planetary Health Begins on Campus: Enhancing Students’ Well-Being and Health Through Prairie Habitat Restoration. In: Leal Filho, W. (eds) Handbook of Human and Planetary Health. Climate Change Management. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-09879-6_14
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