ASJAOSALISTE OOTUSED KESKKONNAHARIDUSE KORRALDUSELE EESTIS

This report by the Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI Tallinn) analyzes the history, current state, and future needs of nature and environmental education in Estonia. Based on a January 2012 survey of teachers and specialists, it highlights a lack of a national development plan and a fragmented, project-based system. The document advocates for a coordinated national approach, potentially through a joint agency managed by the Ministry of the Environment and the Ministry of Education and Research, to ensure equitable access and sustainability.

• There is a strong consensus among both environmental education specialists and teachers that a separate national development plan for environmental education is necessary to unify concepts, provide directions for development, and ensure sufficient funding.
• Respondents believe that nature education—the knowledge of species and habitats—serves as the essential foundation for both environmental education and education for sustainable development.
• Environmental education is not equally accessible across Estonia; significant gaps exist in Central Estonia and Ida-Virumaa, and access often depends on the activity of individual teachers and school leadership.
• Teachers frequently develop their own nature and environmental education programs because existing external offerings often fail to align precisely with the requirements of the national curriculum.
• The Environmental Board (Keskkonnaamet) and the State Forest Management Centre (RMK) are the most popular providers of educational programs, but there is a perceived need for better coordination between them to avoid duplication and expand target groups to include adults and vocational school students.
• There is a strong preference for environmental education funding to be integrated into the state budget rather than relying on project-based funding from the Environmental Investment Centre (KIK), which is seen as unstable and sometimes creates unfair competition between state agencies and NGOs.
• Stakeholders advocate for a coordinated national system, suggesting the creation of a (foundation) agency jointly managed by the Ministry of the Environment and the Ministry of Education and Research to bridge the gap between the national curriculum and extracurricular activities.
• Historically, Estonia moved from a centrally managed system (such as the Republic's Youth Naturalists' Station established in 1952) to a fragmented, project-based 'mosaic' following the liquidation of the central Loodusmaja in June 2001.

APA

Peterson, K. (2012). ASJAOSALISTE OOTUSED KESKKONNAHARIDUSE KORRALDUSELE EESTIS. Stockholm Environment Institute. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/4417.pdf

Chicago

Peterson, Kaja. ASJAOSALISTE OOTUSED KESKKONNAHARIDUSE KORRALDUSELE EESTIS. Stockholm Environment Institute, 2012. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/4417.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Peterson |first1=Kaja |title=ASJAOSALISTE OOTUSED KESKKONNAHARIDUSE KORRALDUSELE EESTIS |publisher=Stockholm Environment Institute |date=July 2012 |url=https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/4417.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{peterson2012asjaosaliste, author = {Peterson, Kaja}, title = {{ASJAOSALISTE OOTUSED KESKKONNAHARIDUSE KORRALDUSELE EESTIS}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2012}, month = jul, url = {https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/4417.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }