在已開發國家中，現代人與食物的關係裡最常呈現的課題是營養不均衡或是營養過剩，因此也成為當前的營養教育中認知與行為改變的核心。這種介入策略包含一種前提假設是：「人們有東西吃，只是不知道怎樣正確的吃」，因此營養教育強調「吃什麼，會形成怎樣的你」。然而「你有能力，就可以這樣吃嗎？」富裕社會裡的過重問題及減重訴求，與貧乏地區的一餐難求、飢童眼神形成強烈對比；土地、糧食資源分配不均，物種、能源的耗竭等生態環境的危機，在在提醒營養教育者，重新思索並反省我們習以界定的「人與食物」的關係。本研究嘗試統整並建立具有在地關懷的生態取向營養教育課程理論基礎。在九十二學年度，選擇台北地區的某一所國民中學為對象，與學校教師團隊形成伙伴關係，透過充權策略，共同發展出「民以食為天」生態取向營養教育課程。經由過程及總結性的評量，研究成果確認應用充權策略的課程發展模式之可行性，對教師個人與專業的深刻影響，最重要的是透過理論與實作，數據與生命經驗的反覆對話，教師與研究者對教育及營養教育的觀點與如何落實生活環境有進一步的省思與超越。

You are what you eat? Or, you are how you eat! Nutrition educators always care about what people eat. Nutrients analysis, healthy and balance diet, calories control are major themes in contemporary nutrition education. What is Food, or they are living creatures on our earth sharing the same fate with human beings. Beyond specie arrogance, this study aims to restore the relationship among human and other spices on the food chain through school curricula by changing students' food perceptions, consuming pattern, and value concerns. Habermas' concept of knowledge paradigm and a set of ecological philosophy were held to examine the underlining conceptual models of later nutrition education programs, also applied to facilitate the establishment of new theoretical foundations for the ecological approach of nutrition education. After working with a group of junior school teachers for one year, a set of nutrition curricula and activities focusing on problem ownership, self-empowerment toward environment action was developed and implemented under the new approach. Process and outcome evaluation have confirmed the consistency and feasibility between construct and practice.