Hostname: page-component-5c6d5d7d68-qks25 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-08-15T01:28:15.117Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

RESEARCH ARTICLE: Preparing the Next Generation of Environmental Health Professionals: A Comparison between Costa Rican and United States Academic Programs

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 November 2007

Gary S. Silverman ,
Jorge Cháves Arce  and
Carlos Mata
Gary S. Silverman
Affiliation:
Environmental Health Program, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, Ohio
Jorge Cháves Arce
Affiliation:
School of Worker Health and Hygiene, Technological Institute of Costa Rica
Carlos Mata
Affiliation:
School of Worker Health and Hygiene, Technological Institute of Costa Rica
Get access

Abstract

Specialized academic programs have developed over the last several decades to provide technical and managerial expertise to students anticipating careers as environmental health professionals. A challenge facing many of the graduates from these programs will be working with colleagues prepared in a variety of countries and cultures. A challenge facing environmental health educators is ensuring that their graduates have the necessary abilities to meet complex professional challenges, including the possession of leadership skills for addressing global-scale environmental problems. Through application of a survey, we sought to gain understanding of the preparation of environmental health students in Costa Rica and in the United States in terms of their (1) knowledge of key global environmental problems, (2) attitudes about the severity of specific environmental issues, (3) attitudes about the role of the environmental health professional, and (4) attitudes about skills needed to be successful as professionals responsible for worker health and safety. We found that these two groups of students generally shared professional identities and ideals but that neither had a high level of understanding of global environmental problems. The environmental health workforce being prepared through these structured academic programs has excellent potential for multi-national collaboration through their sharing of many professional values and skills; however, their ability to serve effectively as leaders addressing large-scale environmental issues is problematic.

Environmental Practice 9:179–194 (2007)

Type
FEATURES & REVIEWS
Information
Environmental Practice , Volume 9 , Issue 3 , September 2007 , pp. 179 - 194
Copyright
© 2007 National Association of Environmental Professionals

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Anton, W. R. Q., G. Deltas, and M. Khanna. 2004. Incentives for Environmental Self-Regulation and Implications for Environmental Performance. Journal of Environmental Economics and Management 48(1):632–654.Google Scholar
Casey, P., and K. Scott. 2006. Environmental Concern and Behaviour in an Australian Sample within an Ecocentric–Anthropocentric Framework. Australian Journal of Psychology 58(2):57–67.Google Scholar
Cottrell, S. P. 2003. Influence of Sociodemographics and Environmental Attitudes on General Responsible Environmental Behavior among Recreational Boaters. Environment and Behavior 35(3):347–375.Google Scholar
Delmas, M. A. 2002. The Diffusion of Environmental Management Standards in Europe and in the United States: An Institutional Perspective. Policy Sciences 35(1):91–119.Google Scholar
Foulon, M., P. Lanoie, and B. Laplante. 2002. Incentives for Pollution Control: Regulation or Information? Journal of Environmental Economics and Management 44(1):169–187.Google Scholar
Friedman, F. 2000. Practical Guide to Environmental Management, 8th Edition. Environmental Law Institute, Washington, DC.
Gordon, L. 2002. Setting the Context: Environmental Health Practitioner Competencies. Journal of Environmental Health 65(1):25–27.Google Scholar
Holl, K. D., G. C. Daily, S. C. Daily, P. R. Ehrlich, and S. Bassin. 1999. Knowledge of and Attitudes toward Population Growth and the Environment: University Students in Costa Rica and the United States. Environmental Conservation 26(1):66–74.Google Scholar
Hudson, P. 2007. Implementing a Safety Culture in a Major Multi-National. Safety Science 45(6):697–722.Google Scholar
Hughes, C. S., and C. Estes. 2004. The Influence of Environmental Education on Environmentally Responsible Behaviors of Undergraduate Students in a Traditional and Nontraditional Setting. SEER 2004 Abstract, Journal of Experiential Education 27(3):308–310.Google Scholar
International Atomic Energy Agency. 2006. Statistical Energy & Environment Data from Open Sources, http://www.iaea.org/inis/aws/eedrb. Accessed August 9.
McMillan, E. E., T. Wright, and K. Beazley. 2004. Impact of a University-Level Environmental Studies Class on Students' Values. Journal of Environmental Education 35(3):19–28.Google Scholar
Moody, G., H. Alkaff, D. Garrison, and F. Golley. 2005. Assessing the Environmental Literacy Requirement at the University of Georgia. Journal of Environmental Education 36(4):3–9.Google Scholar
Neumayer, E., and R. Perkins. 2004. What Explains the Uneven Take-up of ISO 14001 at the Global Level? A Panel-Data Analysis. Environmental Planning Association 36(5):823–839.Google Scholar
Orloff, K., and H. Falk. 2003. An International Perspective on Hazardous Waste Practices. International Journal of Hygiene & Environmental Health 206(4/5):291–302.Google Scholar
Owen, A., and J. Videras. 2006. Civic Cooperation, Pro-Environmental Attitudes, and Behavioral Intentions. Ecological Economics 58(4):814–829.Google Scholar
Rivera, J., and P. De Leon. 2005. Chief Executive Officers and Voluntary Environmental Performance: Costa Rica's Certification for Sustainable Tourism. Policy Sciences 38:107–127.Google Scholar
Shalauta, N. M., T. A. Burke, L. I. Gordon, B. S. Stern, and N. L. Tran. 1999. An Examination of the Educational Needs for Environmental Health and Protection. Journal of Public Health Management & Practice 5(6):1–12.Google Scholar
Smith-Sebasto, N. J. 1995. The Effects of an Environmental Studies Course on Selected Variables Related to Environmentally Responsible Behavior. Journal of Environmental Education 26(4):30–35.Google Scholar
Stafford, S. L. 2007. Can Consumers Enforce Environmental Regulations? The Role of the Market in Hazardous Waste Compliance. Journal of Regulatory Economics 31:83–107.Google Scholar
Uchida, T., and P. J. Ferraro. 2007. Voluntary Development of Environmental Management Systems: Motivations and Regulatory Implications. Journal of Regulatory Economics 32(1):37–65.Google Scholar
University Leaders for a Sustainable Future. 2001. University Leaders for a Sustainable Future, http://www.ulsf.org/programs_talloires.html. Accessed August 16, 2006.
World Health Organization. 2006. Protection of the Human Environment, http://www.who.int/phe/en. Accessed September 15.