Proposta metodológica de indicadores de avaliação de políticas públicas de educação ambiental em municípios: o caso de Almirante Tamandaré, no contexto Karst do Paraná

Abstract

This doctoral thesis, developed within the Graduate Program in Urban Environmental Sustainability at the Federal University of Technology – Paraná (UTFPR), addresses the integration of environmental education indicators as a strategy to strengthen municipal environmental management. The study assumes that the effectiveness of Public Policies for Environmental Education (PPEA) depends on systematic evaluation and monitoring processes capable of articulating actions across formal and non-formal contexts. The research is justified by the need to overcome fragmented practices and by the lack of consolidated instruments for the evaluation and monitoring of PPEA, which are essential to support decision-making, strengthen democratic governance, and expand the reach of environmental education within the territory. This is an analytical study with a qualitative and empirical approach, developed through a participatory perspective, involving educators from the Municipal Education Network and technical staff from the Municipal Secretariat of Supply, Agriculture, and Environment. Data analysis was grounded in the Policy Cycle approach and the Theory of Enactment, aiming to understand how environmental education guidelines are interpreted and operationalized in local practice. The main outcome of the research was the proposition of an integrated methodological approach that articulates the Environmental Education Indicators Matrix (MIEA), focused on formal environmental education, with the MonitoraEA System, applied to non-formal environmental education. This integration enabled the identification of weaknesses and potentialities of PPEA by linking the dimensions of the MIEA (management, curriculum, physical space, and community) with the dimensions of the MonitoraEA System, thereby expanding the evaluation to include aspects related to diagnosis, dialogical training, social participation, socio-environmental intervention, subjectivity, institutionalization, communication, and complexity. It is concluded that the proposed methodological approach enhances the evaluation and monitoring of PPEA by integrating formal and non-formal environmental education indicators, increasing the capacity to identify socio-environmental vulnerabilities and supporting more efficient, contextualized, and participatory public management actions. Thus, this thesis offers a strategic and replicable tool to improve the effectiveness of PPEA in municipalities and contributes to the strengthening of urban environmental sustainability in territories characterized by socio-environmental fragilities.