E3 Washington: Education, Environment, Economy

E3 Process

The E3 process was designed around the principles of inclusion and diversity and a central belief that in a healthy democracy those affected by a decision should participate directly. Additionally, the process was based on a ground-up, top-supported approach. E3 utilized the best tools in participatory planning applicable to Washington’s unique history and diverse professional, cultural, and regional communities.

The chart to the right encapsulates all parts of the E3 planning and network-building system. Thousands of people became engaged over the course of the three years of E3 state and regional plan development. At the center of the process (and chart) are the core sectors where environmental and sustainability education has taken place and is rooted. Each sector provided an assessment and priority recommendations that were reviewed, refined, and presented in regional and roundtable summits. Sectors gave input to regions and regions provided feedback to sectors in a continuous cycle. All benefited from the exchange across regional and professional boundaries. The collection of plans and summit reports was cross- referenced, and used to shape the five priority goals in the E3 Statewide Comprehensive Plan. As these five goals are updated, improved and implemented by regional and sector “communities of practice”, they will achieve the E3 vision of a sustainable future for all in Washington.

A Mission and Vision-Driven Process

An initial, key step in the E3 process was convening a diverse steering committee, and hiring of a brand strategist, and graphic designer. These professionals conducted interviews and provided the E3 leadership with key messages, choices of name, and tagline that gave the process an image that reflected core E3 approach and Principles of Partnership. Mission, vision, and goal statements also defined and guided the process.

E3 Mission

To optimize environmental and sustainability education for everyone who lives, learns, works, and plays in Washington State—to create thriving environments for schools, communities, and businesses.

E3 Process Vision

To make education for sustainable communities the norm in Washington; to inspire educational opportunities, community behaviors, business practices, legislative policies, and other strategies that support sustainable and thriving environments for everyone in the state of Washington.

Note: The term “education for sustainable communities” was adopted by the E3 Steering Committee in June 2008 as the most inclusive and unifying reference for the education work underway across the state. The original version of the vision referenced “environmental education”.

E3 Process Goals

• Develop 18 regional networks and strategies to strengthen environmental and sustainability education programs in schools and communities.
• Secure commitment by public-private decision makers and institutions to ensure implementation of strategic priorities.

A Process Begun by State Leadership and the EE Report Card

In 2004, the Governor’s Council on Environmental Education (GCEE), a group of state agency education and communication specialists and nongovernmental stakeholders recognized an opportunity to strengthen environmental and sustainability education. They produced the Report Card on the Status of Environmental Education in Washington State for the state legislature with the leading recommendation that a statewide comprehensive planning process be conducted.  The report card gave an “A” to the effectiveness of environmental education in improving students’ standardized test scores, to Washington’s innovative approaches to EE, and to the legal foundation for EE, but a “C” to the public’s awareness of EE’s benefits, and a “D” to state support of EE.

To remedy the low scores in public awareness and state support, the Governor’s council asked the Environmental Education Association of Washington (EEAW), the statewide professional association, to seek funding for and coordinate the initiative that later became known as E3 Washington – Education, Environment, Economy.

E3 Process Chronology

Project Launch

On Sept 22, 2006, in Tacoma, the E3 Honorary Co-Chairs Billy Frank, Jr., Governor Chris Gregoire, and Bill Ruckelshaus, and other statewide leaders launched the E3 Washington initiative. They were joined by 250 participants who were interested in environmental and sustainability education, and who represented diverse professions, cultures, and regions diverse leaders and stakeholders.

The First E3 Regional Gatherings – Creating a Model

The first E3 regional steering committee and county summit took place in Pierce County on March 31, 2006, at the University of Puget Sound. The members of the PCE3 Steering Committee worked tirelessly with EEAW staff to build the first set of local outreach messages, recruit diverse community and regional leaders, and develop summit session descriptions and tools, most of which were utilized in each of the 17 regional summits that followed.

The Northwest E3 Region (Whatcom, Skagit and Island Counties) held the second summit in LaConner at the Pipe fitters Union Hall November 15, 2006. Evaluations from this summit spurred the creation of the E3 sectors, another regional contribution to the process.

Thurston-Mason E3 hosted the third summit at the Longhouse at The Evergreen State College on June 1, 2007.  The multi-stakeholder TME3 steering committee put considerable effort into taking the processes, tools and approaches used and evaluated at the PCE3 and NWE3 summit and fine tuning these into the final model that included sector strategies. By the time of this summit a wide array of E3 promotional, summit and leadership development tools had been created.

The final E3 Summit took place in King County, June 19, 2008.  Between March 31, 2006, and June 19, 2008, 15 summits were locally planned and implemented.

E3 Sector Meetings

The first sector to provide input to the E3 process was the Tribal Education sector. Tribal educators provided invaluable input on the E3 planning process itself as well as the content of the plan. The K-12/Teacher Education Sector was convened next and 10 other sectors followed. As regional summits took place, participants noted sectors that were missing such as Agriculture Education. These were added and later convened. The E3 Business-Education Roundtable included involvement from Dr. Peter Senge along with Washington business and education leaders. This sector experimented with systems dynamics and casual relationship diagrams to identify strategies that dovetail systems thinking, organizational change and youth engagement with environmental and sustainability education.

Sector groups focused on the development of “Lay of the Land” assessments of the strengths, challenges, and opportunities for their sector, as well as descriptions of the decision-making and funding within the sector. Each sector developed a set of priority goals with associated strategies and outcomes. These strategic elements informed the state E3 Washington Comprehensive Plan and are cross-referenced in each of the five E3 goals.

These documents can be found on each of the sector pages on this site.

The First State Summit

On November 7, 2007, leaders from across the state came together to collaborate on the E3 Washington comprehensive plan. The summit kicked off the EEAW Annual Conference, which convened the following day. It was a day to reflect and work on Core Sector Strategies as well as orient the process towards cross perspective exchange and partnership-building.

E3 Leadership Retreat

In June 2008, statewide Regional, Sector and Roundtable leaders met for two days to review the first draft of the E3 Washington Comprehensive Plan, including the five cross-sector and cross region E3 Goals.

Completion of E3 Washington Comprehensive Plan and Regional Plans

During 2009, elements of the E3 Washington Comprehensive Plan and regional plans underwent revisions and public review. These plans are officially launched at the time of the E3 website launch in early 2010.