Conceptualising education for ecological democracy in Lesotho: an African philosophy of education perspective

Abstract

Climate change is a global threat that has brought us to the edge of ecological precarity. The crisis we face due to climate change impacts all aspects of human life, a reality which raises substantial concerns while highlighting our communities' relationship with the environment. Natural factors such as volcanic eruptions, changing ocean currents, solar variations, and internal variability are experienced in different countries. These natural factors are inducing climate change at an alarming rate. Such natural factors have been identified among those responsible for the climate-related disasters experienced by various countries in the recent past. Therefore, we are compelled to articulate and put in place structures to mitigate the causes of climate change to the changes already occurring.

This qualitative study explored the potential contribution of the African Philosophy of Education, grounded in communitarianism and expressed through the concepts of ubuntu and ukama, to conceptualising education for Ecological Democracy in the Lesotho education policy context. The study adopted a transformative paradigm to address the main research question: 𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘱𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘢𝘭 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘈𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘗𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘰𝘱𝘩𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘌𝘥𝘶𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘱𝘵𝘶𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘦 𝘦𝘥𝘶𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘭𝘰𝘨𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘥𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘤𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘺 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘹𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘓𝘦𝘴𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘰 𝘦𝘥𝘶𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘱𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘺? A qualitative approach supported by a literature review, document and policy analysis unpacked the African Philosophy of education and its communitarianism concepts of ubuntu and ukama.

As a literature review study, the study did not have participants but was guided by Samuel's guidelines on policy reading and Gagnon and Labonte's framework of analysis. I analysed the content of selected documents that address climate change in Lesotho and the Lesotho educational policy landscape to conceptualise the potential of Lesotho education for ecological democracy. Analyses of the documents revealed that climate change mitigation in Lesotho is possible when citizens are motivated to work through communities to maintain and preserve the Basotho cultural identity grounded within the African Philosophy of Education and its incorporation of the African ideas of ubuntu and ukama. By communitarianism living and observing democratic governance, people in communities learn to cooperate and collaborate, and care for the environment, and this will benefit not only humans but also non-humans through the creation of structures allowing harmonious living between humans and non-humans, and contribute to the knowledge of ecological democracy.