Pedagogy for Restoration · Addressing Social and Ecological Degradation through Education

"Pedagogy for Restoration" seeks to understand the conditions leading to the destruction of Earth in order to discover pedagogy for restoration. As we degrade the planet we degrade ourselves and as we degrade ourselves we degrade the planet. Moral development and socialization significantly influence our participation in, construction of, or resistance to the systems of oppression that degrade us. The process of restorative education recognizes that humans are fundamentally good and moral and seeks to promote healthy moral development. We must help students meet their basic needs, center their own identities and experience, and simultaneously emphasize community and relationships to help them find a sense of purpose. These efforts facilitate social and ecological restoration by allowing students to reach a physical and emotional place that is conducive to learning and self-efficacy so that they may engage with whatever issues they find important in their own way and on their own terms.

«Central to David Krzesni’s Pedagogy for Restoration is the central question to a nation’s school system: education for what? He rightly critiques the ways in which dominant pedagogical approaches have normed historical amnesia and moral obtuseness to our detriment. Simultaneously, Krzesni assures us that it does not have to be this way any longer. Pedagogy for Restoration emboldens readers to remember the teachings of our ancestors, insisting that the purpose of education is not to escape suffering, but to end it.»

(Jeff Duncan-Andrade, Associate Professor, Raza Studies Education, San Francisco State University)

«David Krzesni’s Pedagogy for Restoration is a deeply personal work that raises important questions about the relationship between social and ecological degradation. The book is incredibly timely as such questions and examinations are proving to be among the most trenchant of our time. Krzesni’s focus on the politics of hope, empathy, and moral education not only provides a unique frame through which to consider the structures of oppression and liberation but also offers students of education and social change what they have long asked for - a pedagogy of restoration.»

(Sandy Grande, Associate Professor, Co-Chair, Education Department, Director, Center for the Comparative Study of Race and Ethnicity, Connecticut College)

«At a time where much looks bleak for people and their relationships with themselves, others, and with the earth, we need narratives of renewal, purpose, and possibility. We need guides to remind ourselves of our own potential to heal broken relationships. In Pedagogy for Restoration, David Krzesni is such a guide. This book will challenge your identity as an educator and provide you with pathways for your own revitalization in connection with others.»

(David A. Greenwood, Canada Research Chair in Environmental Education, Director, Centre for Place and Sustainability Studies, Faculty of Education, Lakehead University)

«David Krzesni’s Pedagogy for Restoration is a well-researched piece of literature.… He suggests that education can be a powerful tool for effecting structural change, remaining deeply sensitive to mechanisms of oppression and discrimination, the power of language, and the need for a hope-based, informed approach to social change.… Krzesni cites research on human qualities such as empathy and altruism to highlight people’s innate propensity for caring and responsibility. He believes in the human capacity for change, and believes that, through structured guidance and governance, positive qualities can be emphasized and people can be encouraged to act on these characteristics. While acknowledging the limitation to human love, empathy, and prosocial behavior, Krzesni argues that, with the right social conditions and with practices of nurturing and empowerment (especially in formative years), people’s capacity to carry out a ‘pedagogy for restoration’ is possible.»

(Samuel P. Oliner, Co-author (with Pearl Oliner) of The Altruistic Personality and Toward a Caring Society; Author of Altruism, Intergroup Apology, Forgiveness, and Reconciliation and The Nature of Good and Evil)

«In this book by David Krzesni, a powerful new moral voice addresses the intersection of environmental education, social justice, and human rights. Boldly affirming both critical social theory and human moral potentials to overcome every exclusion, this bracing and exacting fugue freshly points out melodies of deepest humanity, hearing voices that unite ecology and people in powerful harmonies. It should be required/inspired reading (listening, singing) for the next generation of critical socio-environmental change agents.»

(Gene Myers, Professor, Environmental Studies, Huxley College, Western Washington University)