綜觀世界遺產教育計畫內容與相關活動,主要都是針對青年學子而設計,而與遺產教育密切相關的環境教育,在臺灣各級正規教育體制中也已經推動數十年,但目前國內針對成人設計的環境教育課程仍然相對缺乏。性質上屬於非正規教育的社區大學,在臺灣成人環境教育中扮演著重要的角色,本文整理2009~2011年全臺社區大學中與自然環境相關課程內容,分析課程類型與實施作法,並邀請社區大學經營成員進行訪談與參與座談會,瞭解社區大學對推動成人自然遺產課程的看法與建議,並藉由回顧國外成人環境教育的概念、取向與發展,反思國內成人自然環境與遺產教育不足之處。分析國內社區大學與自然遺產有關的課程發現,國內的成人環境/遺產教育目前以知識講授的學術課程為主,搭配戶外體驗學習活動,精神上偏向自由成人教育典範。若以批判成人環境教育的觀點來看,課程內容較缺乏對於所面臨的環境/遺產破壞問題,缺乏對社會-政治制度與法令進行反思並採取行動,以改善人與土地之間缺乏永續的關係。但隨著近年來國內公民社會運動的興起與發展,成人環境教育結合社會-政治行動取徑已逐漸開始增加。
The youth are main targets of the UNESCO World Heritage Education Programme and of environmental education in formal education systems worldwide. Comparatively, environmental education specifically for adults is relatively poor in Taiwan. The community university, as one of the non-formal education systems in Taiwan, plays an important role in environmental adult education (EAE) and in heritage education. This study introduces the concepts, approaches and development of environmental adult education worldwide to reflect on adult environmental and heritage education in Taiwan. The study collected courses related to the natural environment in the community universities of Taiwan and analyzed both their course contents and learning styles. Members of the community universities were interviewed, providing their comments about promoting heritage education for adults. Results show that most of the natural environmental courses in the community universities are comprised of lectures with outdoor experiential activities, close to the paradigm of liberal environmental adult education. From the perspective of critical environmental adult education, the courses are short of critiques and actions about the problems of local environmental and heritage degradation, which are induced by social-political structures, legislation and unsustainable lifestyles. As the public activities of protecting our environment and heritage have been progressively developing in Taiwan recently, the importance of critical environmental adult education will increase in the future.