معرفی
Mel McCree is a Senior Lecturer in Early Childhood Studies at Bath Spa University, School of Education. She specializes in eco-social justice, outdoor play, and forest school pedagogy, with a focus on environment-society relationships. Her research investigates how children and families engage as citizens in addressing ecological and social challenges, particularly through participatory and improvisational approaches.
Education includes a PhD in Education (University of Gloucestershire, 2014), MA Creative Writing (Bath Spa University, 2006–07), and postgraduate qualifications in music therapy and community music. Professional memberships include the Common World Childhoods Research Collective, Natural England Strategic Research Network, and Forest School Association Research SIG.
Research interests center on forest school principles, eco-pedagogy, and the role of adults in supporting play. Notable works include analyses of forest school training impacts, eco-social identities, and the interplay between improvisation and environmental education. Key themes in her publications include outdoor learning outcomes, emotional wellbeing, and systemic challenges in environmental education.
Her awards include Fellowships from the Royal Society for the Arts (RSA) and the Royal Geographical Society (RGS UK). She advises on outdoor setting development and practitioner training, emphasizing participatory methodologies and community-based responses to climate change.
Mel leads research initiatives like the Wild Wiltshire project and collaborates internationally on childhood-nature assemblages. She co-founded a permaculture cooperative and engages in arts-based evaluation for health and wellbeing programs.
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