Fernanda da Rocha Brando

Experiences in Sustainability of Two Public Universities in Different Contexts: The University of Copenhagen and the University of São Paulo

Universities, especially the public ones, play an important role in the formulation and implementation of public policies of Sustainability, and in teaching people who can act in the construction of sustainable societies. The purpose of this study was to establish relationships between the realities of two public universities in different contexts, the University of Copenhagen (UCPH) and the University of Sao Paulo (USP). Then, internships were taken at both universities, UCPH and USP, from 2015 to 2016. We made observations and dialogues, and analyzed reports, books, as well university environmental policies, strategies and practices on sustainability. Based on these two experiences, it was possible to identify convergences and divergences between policies, strategies, and practices related to sustainability. Here, some categories were discussed: the context of each University influencing its actions, sustainability offices, as well their goals, plans, and strategies for biodiversity protection, environmental education, waste management and cooperation related to sustainability. It has been noticed challenges for universities to integrate sustainability into education, research, outreach activities, direct campus operations, and community involvement. However, UCPH and USP are trying to overcome and improve them.

Environmental Education in University Management: Contributions to Sustainability Construction at The University of São Paulo, Brazil

The University of Sao Paulo/Brazil created in 2012 the Superintendence of Environmental Management (SGA-USP) aimed at linking existing actions and the construction of sustainability at the University. Faced with this challenge, the SGA invested efforts in the Project “environmental education of USP’s technical and administrative staff”, developed in order to provide insights that could allow the university’s employees to expand their vision, perception and analysis of their current status and entertain possibilities of socio-environmental intervention on their work and interaction spaces and thereby internalize sustainability in university management. The methodological framework of participatory-action-research in environmental education(EE) was adopted in the development of this initiative, with what’s called the capillarity architecture system, through educating collectives called “PAP”, level 1 to 4. The first project cycle was developed from March 2013 to October 2015 and involved about 2500 employees of all campuses of USP. The aim of this work is to present general results of this project as well as to discuss its challenges and potential in the training of civil servants focused on social-environmental sustainability. Those involved in the process include: 22 PAP1, who formed the project’s managing group; 92 PAP2 who offered 31 courses to PAPs3; 533 PAP3 that promoted 127 interventions for 1853 PAP4 in different levels of content and workload (8–130 h of classroom training and monitored practice). This process brings contributions to the University environmental management, especially in community outreach; providing differentiated learning because of the requirement of practical interventions by all participants. It is expected that participation in this first cycle of environmental education leads to the effective participation of those employees in the university’s environmental policies, which are under construction under SGA’s leadership.

Evolução biológica: ECO-EVO-DEVO na formação inicial de professores e pesquisadores

Epistemology is an area that allows reflections about nature and construction of knowledge. In what is referred to Biological Sciences, the concept of evolution is understood as unifier axis of this science and therefore should represent the integration of various Biology’s areas. An epistemological study of evolution allows us to identify a recent approach of research called ECO-ECO-DEVO, which shows the integration among development, organism and environment in evolutionary process and constitution of phenotypic diversity. We understand that is the ostensible importance that this approach is discussed in the Teacher Training on biological sciences and therefore, intend to investigate means of representation of integrated and pluralistic perspective of biological evolution as a way of “didatizar” this approach and facilitate insertion in the classroom. To accomplis this research, we organized a group of Biology’s Epistemology research (GPEB) which were proposed discussions on the biological evolution from that approach. Thus, this article is systematized through three main points: 1) the characteristics of the integrated biological knowledge; 2) epistemology as a fundamental part of the teaching biology; 3) GPEB as a formative space by which one can obtain empirical data about “didatizacao” possibilities of biological knowledge and 4) the proposition of diagrams to represent the conceptual path of the integrated evolution approach. Thus, a depth study of contemporary compilations about the ECO-EVO-DEVO and the plurality of processes involving biological evolution, GPEB’s discussions and the elaboration of diagrams arising from the conceptual organization engendered by group participants form methodological strategies that allowed exemplify characterizations on the integration of biological levels in the evolutionary process. From these methodological artifacts, you can trace the path of conceptual development process by the group in relation to the evolution of an integrated perspective.

Una propuesta didáctica para la asignatura de Educación Ambiental en la Educación Superior, a partir de ideas preconcebidas sobre “el medio ambiente”

En las leyes y documentos oficiales brasilenos, se verifica que en terminos normativos, los asuntos relacionados con el medio ambiente y la educacion ambiental han sido bien establecidos. A partir de una discusion sobre las concepciones o ideas previas de estudiantes de un curso de Ciencias Biologicas de una universidad publica brasilena sobre el termino “Medio Ambiente”, se describe una propuesta didactica para la asignatura de Educacion Ambiental en la formacion inicial de biologos. El objetivo de esta propuesta fue el de abarcar los contenidos necesarios para la construccion de un “saber” y un “hacer” mas reflexivo sobre las tematicas ambientales y que promuevan la sensibilizacion y la toma de decisiones por parte de los estudiantes en situaciones en que estos profesionales puedan llegar a ser requeridos