This panel invites theoretical and pedagogical explorations of experiential approaches to teaching environmental studies in higher education through the frameworks of new materialism, transcorporeality, affect theory, and embodied pedagogy. Aligning with NeMLA 2027’s theme, “Empowering Communities,” the panel examines how environmental learning can move beyond hierarchical and text-centered models toward collaborative, community-oriented, and experiential forms of knowledge production. Drawing on theorists such as Stacy Alaimo, Donna Haraway, and Jane Bennett, the panel foregrounds pedagogies that cultivate ecological agency through place-based learning, tactile and haptic engagement, play pedagogy, and other experiential practices that position students and local communities as active participants in environmental knowledge-making.