Environmental Education Awareness Strategies and Sustainable Farming Practices in Cross River State, Nigeria

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to ascertain the relationship between environmental education awareness strategies and sustainable farming practices in Cross River State, Nigeria. Two research questions and two null hypotheses were formulated and tested at 0.05 level of significance. Co relational research design was used for the study. The study’s participants consisted of all the 73,002 registered farmers within the state of Cross River, who are enlisted in the respective senatorial district.  Purposive and accidental sampling techniques were used to select a sample size of 1, 443. “Environmental Education Awareness Strategies and sustainable Farming Questionnaire (EEASSFQ)”- was used in order to gather data. The questionnaire was validated by three experts. One expert was from Measurement and Evaluation and two from Department of Continuing Education and Developmental Studies, all from University of Calabar. The reliability of the instrument was established through Cronbach alpha method. The reliability index ranged from .72 to .87.  Simple linear regression was used to analyze the data collected for the study. According to the study’s findings, there was a significant relationship between the variables of environmental education awareness strategies and sustainable farming practices in Cross River State, Nigeria. Based on these findings it was suggested among other things that awareness creation through use of traditional plays and faith-based organizations be adopted as a sustainable farming practices awareness strategy and made an integral part of community norms and values by community elders and chiefs.