Earth Ethics Institute

Intro to Faculty Learning Communities

A Teaching & Learning Center Professional Development Workshop Offering 5 Hours of Credit and Presented as Part of the Earth Literacy & Changemaking Symposium 

Participants will develop an understanding of the theoretical and practical elements of communities of practice and the collaborative power and possibilities of FLCs as a viable and sustainable structure for job-embedded learning and development.  

Facilitated by Belkis Cabrera 
WeLearn 366 Institute Grant Director 

Wednesday, April 3, 2024
11:30 AM - 1:30 PM 
Wolfson Campus Teaching & Learning Center, room #3314

Registration link: TCH1126-3 

Culture, Cosmology & Context

A Professional Development Workshop Offering 3 Hours of Credit

Participants will examine the foundations of their own cosmology (story) and discuss ways in which dominant worldviews influence cultural expression and shape the values and perceptions within our educational system, in order to develop an understanding of Earth Literacy in the context of the participant’s respective discipline.

Facilitated by Mike Matthews
Earth Ethics Institute Collegewide Director

Friday, February 23, 2024
1:00 - 4:00 PM 
Padrón Campus Room 201
Registration Link: EEI1017-2

Restoring Soil/Soul in Vanishing Pine Rockland

A Professional Development Workshop Offering 5 Hours of Credit

Why is pine rockland rare and worth restoring? At MDC’s Kendall Campus, the 9-acre Environmental Center has 2 acres of rare Pine Rockland. What role does restoring this small bit of land play in building a resilient, regenerative, and prosperous Miami-Dade County today? And how does the process of saving Pine Rockland transform the hearts and minds of those who undertake this mission? Explore components of a healthy Pine Rockland, the need to revitalize this habitat at Kendall Campus, and the impact this vital work has on students engaged in the process.  

Co-Facilitated by:
Carlos Gonzalez
Senior Associate Professor, English & Communications - MDC Kendall Campus  
Mike Matthews
Earth Ethics Institute Collegewide Director

Friday, March 8, 2024, 2:00-5:00 PM
Kendall Campus Environmental Center 
Registration link: EEI1134-1

Everglades National Park

A Professional Development Immersion Offering 8 Hours of Credit

This immersion for MDC faculty/staff offers participants an overview of South Florida ecology and hydrology by providing a direct field experience of the unique Everglades ecosystem. Participants will explore such habitats as the freshwater slough, sawgrass marsh, tropical hardwood hammock, and the globally imperiled Pine Rockland, along the way learning about local sustainability issues affecting our watershed and fragile natural areas as well as the plants and animals that make their home in the Everglades bioregion.

Co-Facilitated by:
Kiki Mutis
Institute for Civic Engagement & Democracy (iCED) Wolfson Campus Director
Mike Matthews  
Earth Ethics Institute Collegewide Director

Saturday, March 16, 2024
8:30 AM - 2:30 PM 
Everglades National Park 
Registration link: EEI1021-3

Environment, Climate and County Resiliency

A Virtual Professional Development Workshop Offering 6.5 Hours of Credit

Climate change is influencing Miami-Dade County’s thinking on urban, regional, transportation, and economic planning. Florida has more people living less than four feet above sea level than any U.S. state, except Louisiana. The county has the most exposed assets and the fourth-largest population vulnerable to sea-level rise worldwide. This workshop, offered in partnership with the Miami-Dade County Office of Resilience, examines the county’s efforts to move toward resilience by addressing such areas as sea level rise, transit improvements, and socioeconomic concerns affecting our most vulnerable communities. 

Co-Facilitated by:
Sandra St. Hilaire 
County Office of Resilience, Resilience Coordinator
Mike Matthews
Earth Ethics Institute Collegewide Director

Rescheduled. We will be offering this workshop as part of Changemaker Week 2024 in September. Please stay tuned for more details. 

Active Hope for Resilience and Changemaking

 A Professional Development Workshop Offering 6 Hours of Credit

The challenges we currently face can be difficult to even think about, let alone to respond to. Climate change, war, political polarization, economic upheaval, and the loss of species and natural habitats combine to create a planetary emergency of overwhelming proportions. This workshop will help build the resilience needed to expand our capacity to hold the intensity of these times and participate more fully in a positive response. Participants will explore the depths of their emotional reactions, their perceptions, and their relationship to the biosphere, discovering empowered next steps as they tap into inner strength and nurture a strong sense of connection with others and with the living Earth. Participants will create and clarify their intentions and affirm their commitment to positive change while assessing inner and outer resources for collaborative changemaking.

Co-Facilitated by:
Valerie Silidker, M.S., BCC.
Psychospiritual Institute Founder and Director 
Mike Matthews
Earth Ethics Institute Collegewide Director 

Rescheduled for Fall 2024--stay tuned for more details!