Perceptions of teachers and directors about the factors that promote or constrain environmental education in schools of Metropolitan Area of Buenos Aires, Argentina

El trabajo aborda las percepciones de docentes y directores de escuelas acerca delos factores que promueven u obstaculizan una educación ambiental compleja, generadora de conocimientos, con dispositivos participativos y orientados a la equidad en instituciones educativas del Área Metropolitana de Buenos Aires (Argentina). Como resultado se observaron experiencias heterogéneas y voluntad de instalar nuevas prácticas, pero con factores que limitan el cambio: pautas culturales arraigadas; deficiencias en la capacitación docente, en cuanto a las políticas públicas; poca claridad en las definiciones sobre los objetivos de la educación ambiental, su abordaje curricular y los dispositivos pedagógicos. Prevalecen enfoques fragmentados, naturalistas y la ausencia de una visión crítica. A nivel institucional, se discute lapertinencia de implementar prácticas sustentables en el aula. Las propias percepciones también operan como obstáculos. Todo esto dificulta la adopción de nuevas acciones de educación ambiental con el ímpetu necesario para sostenerlas en el tiempo.The paper examines the perceptions of teachers and directors regarding the factors that promote or constrain complex environmental education, which generates knowledge, with participatory devices and oriented to equity in educational institutions in Metropolitan Area of Buenos Aires (Argentina). As result, we detected heterogeneous experiences and willingness to set new practices up. But there are factors limiting the change: deep-rooted cultural customs; shortcomings in terms of teacher training; in public policies a lack of clarity about environmental education objectives, curricular approach and pedagogical devices. Fragmented and naturalists approaches, and lack of a critical perspective prevail. At the institutional level, the relevance of implementing sustainable practices in classroom is discussed. Perceptions also operate as obstacles. All this hinders the adoption of new environmental education actions and the momentum needed to sustain them over time.Fil: Saidon, Mariana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Claverie, Julieta Andrea. Universidad Nacional de Tres de Febrero. Nucleo Interd de Formación y Est P/e/des D/l/educ; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentin

Impact of COVID-19 on cardiovascular testing in the United States versus the rest of the world

Objectives: This study sought to quantify and compare the decline in volumes of cardiovascular procedures between the United States and non-US institutions during the early phase of the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the care of many non-COVID-19 illnesses. Reductions in diagnostic cardiovascular testing around the world have led to concerns over the implications of reduced testing for cardiovascular disease (CVD) morbidity and mortality. Methods: Data were submitted to the INCAPS-COVID (International Atomic Energy Agency Non-Invasive Cardiology Protocols Study of COVID-19), a multinational registry comprising 909 institutions in 108 countries (including 155 facilities in 40 U.S. states), assessing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on volumes of diagnostic cardiovascular procedures. Data were obtained for April 2020 and compared with volumes of baseline procedures from March 2019. We compared laboratory characteristics, practices, and procedure volumes between U.S. and non-U.S. facilities and between U.S. geographic regions and identified factors associated with volume reduction in the United States. Results: Reductions in the volumes of procedures in the United States were similar to those in non-U.S. facilities (68% vs. 63%, respectively; p = 0.237), although U.S. facilities reported greater reductions in invasive coronary angiography (69% vs. 53%, respectively; p < 0.001). Significantly more U.S. facilities reported increased use of telehealth and patient screening measures than non-U.S. facilities, such as temperature checks, symptom screenings, and COVID-19 testing. Reductions in volumes of procedures differed between U.S. regions, with larger declines observed in the Northeast (76%) and Midwest (74%) than in the South (62%) and West (44%). Prevalence of COVID-19, staff redeployments, outpatient centers, and urban centers were associated with greater reductions in volume in U.S. facilities in a multivariable analysis. Conclusions: We observed marked reductions in U.S. cardiovascular testing in the early phase of the pandemic and significant variability between U.S. regions. The association between reductions of volumes and COVID-19 prevalence in the United States highlighted the need for proactive efforts to maintain access to cardiovascular testing in areas most affected by outbreaks of COVID-19 infection

Hacia unas bases teóricas de la educación ambiental

This essay intends to provide theoretical tools to analyze and formulate environmental education projects. The article works on theory concept, contrasting different intelectual traditions: positivism, interpretative and critical, in order to illustrate its function in the explanation of reality. It calls to develop an own environmental education theory in Latin America and the Caribbean, and suggests some analytical guidelines for projects

Hacia unas bases teóricas de la educación ambiental

This essay intends to provide theoretical tools to analyze and formulate environmental education projects. The article works on theory concept, contrasting different intelectual traditions: positivism, interpretative and critical, in order to illustrate its function in the explanation of reality. It calls to develop an own environmental education theory in Latin America and the Caribbean, and suggests some analytical guidelines for projects

Biodiversity: History and context of a concept

Biodiversity is a fundamental, complex and general concept that embraces the whole spectrum of biological organization, from genes to communities and its structural, functional and compositional components as well as space and time scales. However, the multiple elements that it comprises and their varied meanings usually generate confusion limiting its utility. In this article, the importance of biodiversity is emphasized and a brief review is presented about the origin of the concept and the modifications it underwent upon incorporating new perspectives and advances in the study of the biological diversity. The analysis of the significant plurality of biodiversity through the comparison of definitions and meanings allows to infer the meanings arising from the different contexts in which it originated, and also allows to clarify a useful and appropriate reference frame to the objectives of conservation of biological diversity

Investigação em Educação Ambiental na América Latina: mapeando tendências Research in Environmental Education in Latin America: mapping trends

O presente artigo analisa a situação da pesquisa em Educação Ambiental na América Latina. Com destaque ao México e ao Brasil, também se mencionam descrições gerais da Colômbia, de Cuba, do Equador e da Venezuela. Apresentam-se os limitados avanços da pesquisa nessa área, marcada por um processo lento, com gradual posicionamento institucional acerca da Educação Ambiental regional. O surgimento da educação para o desenvolvimento sustentável, à exceção da Colômbia, não chegou a alterar esse processo, nem tampouco a criar novas e mais favoráveis condições de impulso à pesquisa numa perspectiva sociopolítica. Apesar disso, o artigo reporta avanços positivos em direção à pesquisa na Educação Ambiental, embora não se possam esperar resultados espetaculares a curto e médio prazos, a menos que se apresente uma mudança radical da atual situação, o que não se vislumbra neste momento.<br>This article aims at analyzing the current state of research in Environmental Education in Latin America. With emphasis on Mexico and Brazil, it also provides general descriptions of Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador and Venezuela. We present the limited research advances in this area, characterized by a slow process, with gradual institutional positioning on regional Environmental Education. The emergence of education for sustainable development, except the Colombian case, did not change this process, nor created new and more favorable conditions to boost researches into a socio-political perspective. Nevertheless, this article reports positive progress towards researches in Environmental Education. Yet, spectacular results for a short to medium term are not to be expected, unless a radical change can be brought about in the current situation, which is not currently expected

A Educação Ambiental frente aos desafios apresentados pelos discursos contemporâneos sobre a natureza Environmental Education and the challenges presented by the contemporary discourses about nature

A noção de natureza tem tido papel importante na filosofia e também na Educação Ambiental. Filósofos contemporâneos como Gianni Vattimo e Newton Aquiles von Zuben afirmam que uma noção única de natureza contribuiu para a difusão da metafísica dogmática, que por sua vez, solidificou totalitarismos políticos e religiosos. A Educação Ambiental latino-americana tem constituído um campo teórico e espaço público privilegiado para a difusão de noções de natureza, não dogmáticas, nem totalitárias, em estreitas relações com a diversidade cultural e social. Num primeiro momento da Educação Ambiental a noção de natureza estava relacionada aos recursos naturais. Desde que temas específicos relacionados com os discursos contemporâneos sobre a natureza, como a biodiversidade e os transgênicos ganharam o espaço público, argumentamos que a Educação Ambiental se viu diante de novos desafios teóricos, políticos, ecológicos, sociais, culturais e pedagógicos. Neste artigo procuramos identificar e analisar alguns desses desafios tendo como apoio teórico o pensamento do filósofo italiano Gianni Vattimo e do filósofo brasileiro Newton Aquiles von Zuben, nos aspectos relacionados à bioética e ao papel político da educação, na formação de cidadãos e cidadãs. Concluímos que a abordagem dos discursos contemporâneos sobre a natureza possibilita que o diálogo entre a Educação Ambiental e a bioética tende a se ampliar e a se concretizar em práticas sociais e pedagógicas cotidianas, apresentando-se, assim, como alternativa concreta para que cidadãos e cidadãs possam enfrentar os desafios trazidos com a biodiversidade e com os transgênicos, com argumentos científicos, éticos e políticos.<br>The notion of nature has played an important role in philosophy and also in Environmental Education. Contemporary philosophers such as Gianni Vattimo and Newton Aquiles von Zuben declare that the notion of a single nature has contributed to the growth of a dogmatic metaphysics that has crystallized political and religious totalitarianisms. Environmental Education in Latin America has constituted a theoretical field and a privileged public space for the diffusion of non-dogmatic, non-totalitarian, notions of nature in close relationship to cultural and social diversity. At a first moment of Environmental Education the notion of nature was linked to natural resources. However, after specific themes related to the contemporary discourses about nature, such as transgenetics and biodiversity, have gained the public sphere we argue that Environmental Education has been facing new theoretical, political, ecological, social, cultural and pedagogical challenges. In the present article we try to identify and analyze some of these challenges, having as our theoretical foundation the ideas of Italian thinker Gianni Vattimo, and of Brazilian philosopher Newton Aquiles von Zuben, on the aspects related to bioethics and to the political role of education in the formation of citizens. We conclude that the approach to nature present in contemporary discourses helps to open out the dialogue between Environmental Education and bioethics, and to materialize it in daily social and pedagogical practices, thus representing a concrete alternative to allow citizens to face up to the challenges brought about by biodiversity and the transgenics with scientific, ethical and political arguments