Responding to growing interest in the sustainable development goals (SDGs) and global concern over climate change, this volume provides an analysis of how our understanding of the relationship between environment and education has evolved during the past fifty years.

Spanning from the 1972 United Nations Conference on the Human Environment through to the present day, chapters examine whether our approach to education about environmental sustainability is enacting effective change. Examining the evolution of educational approaches to environmental learning, contexts and themes, the book moves through the decades, from the 1970s until the 2020s, tracking the impact of historical events and shifting sustainability discourses within education. Through historical, research-based analyses, the book recognises patterns, trends and countertrends that help critically (re)assess the potential of education in creating a world that is more sustainable than current scientific predictions estimate.

Proposing a set of key considerations for the future of environmental education, this accessible book will be of value to scholars, researchers, policy makers and practitioners working within sustainability education, environmental research and policy, and teacher education more broadly.