La educación ambiental y el senderismo en el cerro Teligote, cantón Pelileo

Abstract

The Teligote hill is considered a protective forest located in the community of the same name, belonging to the Pelileo cantón in the province of Tungurahua. This hill contains 200 hectares of primary forest that harbors a rich biodiversity and represents an ideal environment for native species found on the site. Thus, the following research aims to investigate environmental education and hiking in the Teligote hill. The importance of this research lies in raising awareness among people who practice hiking and visit the site. A qualitative approach methodology was used, using an observation sheet and aninterview, focused on environmental education, observation of people's behavior and hiking, in addition to a non-experimental cross-sectional design and two types of nonstatistical sampling by judgment and by convenience. The results determined that environmental education does have an influence on the people who go hiking, since the visitors demonstrate low environmental responsibility and inadequate waste management at the site. Finally, the research contributed to the implementation of an environmental awareness and responsible hiking campaign for all people, especially adolescents, young people and adults between the ages of 12 and 59, highlighting the natural wealth of Teligote hill and the importance of its conservation.