Educação ambiental e agroecologia: uma interface por meio da ciência cidadã na percepção de agricultores da região metropolitana de Fortaleza-CE

Abstract

The present work seeks to analyze the potential of agroecology in the development of environmental education practices in metropolitan spaces, having as its study area the city of Fortaleza (Ceará) and its Metropolitan Region. Based on this premise, the available bibliography on the following themes was analyzed: Citizen Science, Environmental Education, Environmental Perception, and Agroecology, giving emphasis on urban agroecological farming, in search of greater understanding and interpretation of the issues at hand, as well as creating a set of pertinent information for the on-site analysis. Gathering the references and the available data, a mapping of the main agroecological producers of the RMF was carried out, using field data collection through interviews and the application of a questionnaire, in which it was possible to concretely evaluate the environmental perceptions of those involved. The results of the present study, point out that agroecology is a potential way to fulfill its ecological function, both in the sustainable production of food, and in the establishment of a critical mentality and preservation of the environment in Greater Fortaleza, acting through the local communities and populations, showing the importance of agroecological processes as an educational way of transforming environmental thinking, in addition to the various social and economic benefits of the practice in question.