Without contextualization and explicit links to centuries of relevant educational theories, research presentations at conferences risk appearing disconnected from teaching method development or evaluation. Environmental and Sustainability Education (ESE), is a highly vibrant research area, benefitting from the work of hundreds of scholars all over the world. The aim of this paper is not to belittle the work done by ESE researchers. On the contrary, the quality of ESE research is evident in the various journals covering the field. Rather, this is an appeal to researchers to exercise vigilance in their claims, and to avoid focusing only on outcomes when participating in conferences. Normative statements instructing students or the general public on how to behave, or how not to behave, can be both unethical and undemocratic. We argue that ESE research can avoid such issues of normativity by incorporating elements of, and insights from, educational philosophy.