An education for regeneration and abundance.
At its simplest, regenerative education emphasizes connection to Self, connection with Others, and connection to Nature. In exploring these connections, regenerative education seeks to cultivate an understanding of our interdependence and inspire a sense of responsibility toward preserving and enhancing the ecosystems that sustain us.
If we don’t learn how to live in this way when we are young, if we aren’t taught the scientific reasons why all of us need to shift our patterns of life to a more regenerative model, we probably won’t change later on, and unhealthy patterns will become fixed in place. And for those currently in school, there may not be much of an environment to inherit, when their time comes. One quality of an RC Scholar is Responsibility, “to be aware of the needs of society and be a changemaker.” What greater responsibility than to work towards the regeneration of our planet.
We are part of a web of environmental connections, and day by day we are realizing that if we are to lead healthy, happy lives, the world around us needs to be healthy, too. This is why regeneration and environmental awareness are key priorities for Robert College. We are determined to continually review our practices to ensure that resources are used optimally, without compromising the needs of future generations.
RC Principles of a Regenerative Education
Beyond Sustainable
- Simply meeting the bottom line is no longer enough. Our goal at Robert College is to maximize our positive impact by ensuring value is added to all systems, whether we are speaking of our beautiful forest ecosystems or our cultural values.
Design and Systems Thinking
- We strive to utilize design and systems thinking principles when approaching problems on campus. This is exercised by RC students and modeled by RC staff, faculty, and administrators in everyday practice.
Holistic and Restorative
- In entering leadership roles beyond RC, our students must be prepared to think from a transdisciplinary lens to connect, synthesize, and analyze complex problems. Furthermore, a regenerative model sparks interest and deepens passion within each student.
Hopeful
- Regenerative Education combats the common “doom and gloom” narratives that are often stationed in our minds. Instead, we intentionally focus on positive solution-orientations that mobilize action, without ignoring the problems we must address.
