ABSTRACT
This chapter provides an expanded understanding of language as the encoding of particular social realities, and how it shapes individual as well as collective perspectives about the environment. It integrates the dual concepts of sense of place and linguistic relativity in explaining how language constitutes the cognitive and social fabric of our everyday lives. It offers a unique case study of children's language about the environment in China, a nation where human and natural landscapes are being irreversibly altered. Few studies have sought to understand children's language about the environment even though children are, like adults, people whose agency plays an important role in the development of their worldviews. The chapter elaborates on the primary themes that emerged from this case study; namely, children's language about the environment as affective expression, linguistic assimilation, and discursive practice. It concludes with broad considerations for attending to language and the discourse surrounding notions of equity and sustainability.
