Using social network analysis to explore and expand our understanding of a robust environmental learning landscape

Abstract

Environmental learning occurs through an interconnected web of opportunities. Some arise via organizations with sustainability- or environmental learning-focused missions, while others are facilitated by organizations focused on impacts and outcomes in a range of areas, such as health, social justice, or the arts. To better understand the richness of the community environmental learning landscape, we pursued a social network analysis in one place, the greater San Francisco Bay Area, California, USA. We collected quantitative and qualitative data from 256 organizations, resulting in a network of 950 organizations connected to environmental learning opportunities within the region. Our findings demonstrate that, although self-identified environmental learning providers may comprise the network’s core, the network also includes less-expected providers, primarily around the edges. Those providers often connect with related fields, such as youth development, public safety, or the arts, among others, forming a complex environmental learning landscape. We suggest opportunities to daylight and enhance the efficacy of collaborations among organizations to advance diverse and reinforcing interests. Moreover, we suggest that a network analysis approach is useful for understanding how organizations relate to each other through their connections and collaborations, providing community members with a robust ecosystem of lifelong learning supports.