GreenCOM Human Nature Vol. March 2001, Vol. Evaluators Tell WWF Educators to Go for a Spectrum of Strategies World Wildlife Fund for Nature, with projects in 100 countries, is the largest international NGO involved with environmental education. They propose that each discipline is distinct and builds on the previous one. As one moves from information to capacity building, the processes become more complex.
Many environmental managers confuse the four disciplines, thinking that they are synonymous.
They think, for example, that providing information on a topic is the same as education, or that communicating to the public is the same as capacity building. However, this does not mean that they are synonymous or that it is not important for WWF to have a network-wide understanding of the scope, objectives, and boundaries of each one and to develop appropriate organizational structures to enable the potential contributions of each to be maximized. Four Disciplines as a Spectrum Information Communication Education Capacity Building Objective To increase awareness and understanding of conservation issues. To promote knowledge and understanding of conservation principles, an attitude of concern for the environment and the motivation and capacity to work cooperatively with others to achieve conservation goals. To increase the capacity of civil society to support and work for conservation through training, policy development, and institutional strengthening.