Home | Alex Kudryavtsev

Alex Kudryavtsev (Alex Russ)

Research Associate

Cornell University

I am an environmental education researcher in the Civic Ecology Lab at Cornell University. I explore urban environmental education and social outcomes of urban agriculture education. I also develop and conduct research on online courses for professional development of environmental educators. CV (PDF file)

I believe that through environmental education we can empower urban residents to influence processes that shape our environment, such as environmental governance, resilient social-ecological systems, and civic participation.

Outside research and teaching, I am a traveler (all 7 continents, 50 US states, and 38 countries so far), vegan, reader, and lover of national parks.

Current projects

Urban Agriculture Education & Civic Participation

Currently, I am exploring how urban agriculture in New York City – in community gardens, farms, schools, botanical gardens, and parks – encourage youth to become civically engaged environmental citizens Co-PIs: Kudryavtsev, and Krasny; Sponsored by USDA NIFA. Read more.

Green Cities online course

Each summer, I teach the Green Cities online course for the Cornell University School of Continuing Education. I always look for new materials to improve this course, including relevant theoretical frameworks and case studies. In 2020, my TAs and I have successfully converted this in-person course to an online course. See the syllabus (PDF file).

Online Professional Development of Environmental Educators

Along with my colleagues, I am investigating how social norm messages and study group discussions in online courses influence practice of environmental educators. Co-PIs: Krasny, Kizilcec, Li, and Kudryavtsev; Sponsored by Cornell China Center.

Selected articles

DuBois, B., Krasny, M., and Russ, A. (2019). Online professional development for environmental educators: Strategies to foster critical thinking and social interactions. Environmental Education Research, 25(10), 1479-1494. doi: 10.1080/13504622.2018.1564247 PDF
Russ, A., Peters, S.J., Krasny, M.E., and Stedman, R.C. (2015). Development of ecological place meaning in New York City. Journal of Environmental Education, 46(2), 73–93. doi: 10.1080/00958964.2014.999743 PDF
Krasny, M.E., Kalbacker, L., Stedman, R.C., and Russ, A. (2015). Measuring social capital among youth: Applications in environmental education. Environmental Education Research, 21(1): 1-23. 10.1080/13504622.2013.843647 PDF
Kudryavtsev, A., Krasny, M., and Stedman, R. (2012). The impact of environmental education on sense of place among urban youth. Ecosphere, 3(4):29. doi: 10.1890/ES11-00318.1 PDF, Survey
Kudryavtsev, A., Stedman, R., and Krasny, M. (2011). Sense of place in environmental education. Environmental Education Research, 18(2), 229–250. doi: 10.1080/13504622.2011.609615 PDF