Environmental science education in Nepal: Historical development, current status, and prospects

Environmental science education (ESE) in Nepal has developed over the last few decades with a focus on promoting natural science, environmental awareness, and sustainable development. This paper aims to document the evolution of ESE at the higher education level, appraise its status, and identify the opportunities and challenges for its improvement in Nepal. A multi-pronged strategy including a survey questionnaire, personal interviews, and consultations was used to collect and analyze the data in terms of institutional capacities, quality, excellence, effectiveness, and graduate employability. This study shows that the development of environmental science education in Nepal can be traced back to the 1970s, when environmental science content was integrated into the curricula of various fields rather than being regarded as a separate subject. University-level environmental science education began at Kathmandu University and Tribhuvan University in the mid-1990s, and has since expanded rapidly proliferating across universities in Nepal within a wide range of academic disciplines. The number of institutions, enrollment capacity and the employability of the ESE graduates have been steadily increasing. Despite this progress, the implementation of environmental science education faces challenges, including a lack of resources, limited teacher training, and inadequate infrastructure. There is a need for increased government funding, teacher training, and the development of innovative teaching methods. Additionally, collaborations between academia, government departments, donor agencies, and non-governmental organizations can help to further strengthen environmental science education in Nepal. • The paper traces the development of environmental science education (ESE) in Nepal. • ESE has emerged as one of Nepal's most popular science disciplines. • ESE lacks resources, infrastructure, and proper teacher training. • Government, donors, and non-governmental organizations can help ESE initiatives.