Climate Crisis

The compelling case for adopting transformative learning in helping to address climate change

The most surprising characteristic of the current crisis is the banality of our response

A dedicated area for books about climate in Slackwood Elementary in Lawrence Township, New Jersey. Climate change is taught at all grade levels in New Jersey and rather than focus on doom and gloom, students are encouraged to problem solve. Photograph: Desiree Rios/The New York Times

Leo Casey
Thu Sep 14 2023 - 06:00

Climate change is undoubtedly the greatest challenge of today. The scientific evidence is clear, if we continue to act as we do, we face the consequence of catastrophic and irreversible damage to the environment.

Already we are experiencing the drastic impact of this process; this is the summer of forest fires, storms, heatwaves and changes to ocean temperatures. And yet, the most surprising characteristic of our current situation is the banality of our response.

It’s as if our house is on fire, and we sit, drink tea and talk about what we should do. In this regard, an understanding of learning theory may provide useful insights on why we continue to fail in our collective response to the biggest threat to our existence.

We like to regard of ourselves as logical and rational thinkers and, to some extent, this is true. However, there are flaws and limits to our rationality. Much of the difficulty arises from our inability to act cohesively as a society when faced with a common challenge. We are well capable of responding as individuals to specific dangers, such as if we see fire, we act to extinguish it. However, we require a different form of rationality when faced with broader, more complex population-wide threats.

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A helpful way to understand this is to consider the distinction between instrumental and communicative rationality. Instrumental reasoning is familiar to most of us as scientific and logical thinking. When we say “all the evidence points to global warming as a result of climate change”, this is an example of instrumental reasoning. When we try to respond in a manner that is just and fair to all concerned, this involves a different form of reasoning. Jürgen Habermas, the German social theorist, describes this as “communicative rationality”.

Communicative reasoning is the means by which we develop our collective understanding of concepts such as morality, justice and human rights. As the name suggests, communicative rationality is not an individual process. It involves discourse and appreciation of other people’s views.

Throughout history, we see the development of human values through this process. There was a time when slavery was considered acceptable, now it’s widely condemned. Corporal punishment was common practice in Irish schools for decades; now it is regarded as barbaric. These are examples of how we “move on” as a society, shaping the values of today by reflecting on the shared experience of our past. This is both an individual and collective learning process.

Building on the work of Habermas, transformative learning was first described by Jack Mezirow in the 1970s. He identified a learning process whereby adults significantly change the way they look at the world and transform their core values. We probably know many people who have changed in this way; the guard who became a psychotherapist, the school principal who became a yoga teacher. Transformative learning does not always lead to a change in profession, but it does lead to fundamental change in what we value and thereby the way we think and act.

Mezirow describes a “disorienting dilemma” as initiator of transformative learning. This happens when previously taken-for-granted assumptions are undermined. This can be a sudden event such as bereavement, break up of a relationship, or failure of a business, or a more gradual process of growing disillusionment with one’s current role. Transformative learning is our adult learning response to these situations. It is the process whereby we alter our worldview, often seeing ourselves differently and acting in different ways.

A big advantage of transformative learning is that it changes our fundamental perspectives, and therefore will always lead to changes in the way we act

The climate catastrophes of this summer may be experienced as disorienting dilemmas by some people. Previously taken-for-granted assumptions may have been undermined. Global warming, previously considered as a faraway future possibility, is now on our doorstep. We may have assumed that science would provide a solution in time to prevent its occurrence; this assumption now looks questionable.

An article by Mandy Singer‐Brodowski published in the January 2023 issue of the journal Environment, Development and Sustainability argues for the application of transformative learning theory to create learning environments for sustainable action. The power of the theory is that it describes how properly structured, non-coercive dialogue can help people see other perspectives. In this way, it can be harnessed to promote collaboration and support a cohesive response to the climate challenge.

Imagine a future where environmental sustainability was a deeply embedded shared value. Where people acted responsibly because they cared. There would still be a need for policies and laws to act as incentives and deterrents, but the key driver of behaviour would be an underpinning consensus and conscious awareness of the fragility of our planet.

This is an achievable and realistic goal. We are constantly transforming our values. Consider how socially unacceptable it is today for someone to brag about getting away with drunk driving. This was not always the case; we learned to value responsible driving through the harrowing experience of what can go wrong. Similarly, we are on a learning journey for sustainability.

Transformative learning can involve several phases; the disorienting dilemma may lead to feelings of fear, anger or shame, leading in turn to critical reflection and exploration of alternative roles and abilities. It is the quintessential adult learning process, informed and energised by the school of life. Importantly, transformative learning is a development of communicative reasoning and therefore involves dialogue and engagement with other people.

A big advantage of transformative learning is that it changes our fundamental perspectives, and therefore will always lead to changes in the way we act. Other forms of learning such as accumulation of knowledge or development of skills are only valuable when they are applied and acted upon.

For example, I may know how to play chess, however, I choose not to. Likewise, many people can use instrumental reasoning to accept the science of climate change, but they simply don’t know what to do about it. Faced with a global challenge, instrumental reasoning alone is insufficient to fundamentally change our planet-wide patterns of behaviour. Inevitably, as we struggle to reshape our way of life (and that of others), we resort to deflection, division and delay in finding a response.

Insights from studies of transformative learning can help identify conditions for consensus building and collaborative action. An important idea is the notion of “discourse” as a process for working with others to build common understanding and appreciation of different perspectives. Discourse can lead to much deeper levels of buy-in, as people’s core values are transformed in the process.

Much of the current messaging on climate change hinges on valid scientific argument (the “science says”), perhaps it is time to accept the situation and engage in meaningful discourse to address the problem. Discourse is not debate; it is non-adversarial and must be free of coercion and self-interests. It is a collaborative learning process underpinned by honest engagement and critical questioning.

We have a lot to learn if we are to succeed in dealing with climate change. Incentives such as government grants and sanctions such as carbon tax provide powerful mechanisms to modify our behaviour in relation to energy consumption and reduction of harmful emissions. These actions drive changes in behaviour through the most basic form of learning – reward and punishment. They are effective and must certainly be part of the solution.

However, changing behaviour is not the same as changing values. Ultimately, we require consensus on how to transform our world in a just and equitable manner.

There is growing recognition that the full spectrum of human learning will be required if we are to succeed. Deeper understanding of the conditions to bring about transformative learning, and wider appreciation of the power and possibilities of communicative reasoning, have much to offer as we grapple with the significant challenges of our uncertain future.

Prof Leo Casey is director of the Centre for Education and Lifelong Learning at National College of Ireland

Climate change