Environmental education as a philosophy of life: from knowledge to action

Introduction: Over the last few decades, it has been recognized that environmental degradation is not only a concern for experts, but for society as a whole. Despite access to information and institutional efforts, a gap between environmental knowledge and everyday behavior persisted, highlighting an urgent need to strengthen environmental education as a tool for ethical and practical transformation. Development: Environmental education was approached as a continuous process that, by incorporating cognitive, affective, and conative dimensions, made it possible to change attitudes toward conservation. It was analyzed how consumption patterns and lifestyles could change if ethical principles were incorporated. Through various approaches, such as conservationist, naturalist, problem-solving, and sustainable, responsible actions such as recycling, reducing consumption, and respect for biodiversity were promoted. Research showed that educational programs, from basic to university levels, positively influenced the formation of conservationist attitudes, especially when experiential and reflective methodologies were applied. Thus, the importance of cross-cutting and transformative environmental education, beyond isolated content, was valued. Conclusion: It was concluded that environmental education should be a philosophy of life that promotes lasting individual and collective change. Transforming attitudes towards the environment required an ethical, practical, and emotional approach. Global change depended on personal change, and this could only be achieved through education committed to sustainability, capable of forming active, critical, and responsible citizens with regard to the environment and future generations.