„Our environment is our future“ Erasmus Project

Project Title

„Our environment is our future“

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : School Exchange Partnerships

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2020

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Creativity and culture; Environment and climate change; ICT – new technologies – digital competences

Project Summary

Summary
Our project has been inspired by global concerns about climate change and the international protest movement “Fridays for Future”. It aims to raise awareness of the problematic use of natural resources that endanger the survival of future generations.

In addition to mere protest, the elementary meaning of the problem requires us to analyse, question and permanently change one’s own actions in everyday life. Every member of society should be made aware of his or her individual responsibilities. By using a questionnaire our students will analyse their own behaviours in various categories (nutrition, clothing, mobility, etc.) and hopefully find that changes in their own lives are needed.

The recording of personal actions on self-chosen points throughout the entire project in a “Sustainability Diary” urges the students to carry out long-term checks and is intended to keep participants motivated and on task. Their own goals and measures to change their lifestyle will be documented and discussed during the meetings.

In the subsequent phases, the search for individual solutions for more sustainable action expands to a social level in the region, including aspects such as urban design, mobility, food production, ecological systems and recycling. Finally, the results should be transferred into the school environment, and tested for sustainability.

Solutions are sought through dialogue with politicians, regional institutions and environmental organizations. The young people can experience themselves as part of a democratic system and learn about ways to actively influence politics. International participation also offers the opportunity to get to know similar problems and their specific solutions and to test transferability. The planning comprises four different phases that will build on one another and focus on the following topics:

1. “Personal lifestyle”: Own data will be collected and goals set for more sustainability such as nutrition, clothing, mobility, which will be noted into a “Sustainability Diary”.

2. “My region”: Data on topics such as urban design, ecological systems, food production and recycling are collected and compared.

3. “My ideal living space”: Solutions for relevant problem areas according to the regions are compared and checked for transferability. Furthermore, a Europe Day is to be held at school level.

4. “My school – Go green”: In advance, an assessment catalogue for our own schools will be drawn up, and the data used to check the extent to which measures for more sustainability can be implemented. An action day to work on the school’s grounds is planned for one year group of students.

During each meeting we will take symbolic action such as planting a tree, sowing flowers in a meadow for insects, creating a bee pasture, setting up insect hotels etc.

The group, which has been operating for two years, is made up of four participating schools that have been cooperating with one another for many years in the Erasmus programme: Barga (Italy), Elk (Poland), Dublin (Ireland) and Halle (Germany). The students (between 15 and 19 years) attend differently oriented educational institutions (secondary school, high school, vocational college) which creates a heterogeneous group. Working in international groups not only trains foreign language skills, but also social and intercultural skills, willingness to integrate, constructive coping with conflicts, and autonomous ability to act with independent tasks.

The knowledge gained during the project work is depicted in tutorials, artistic objects (graphics, painting, posters, plastics, collages and role-playing games), which creates a special intensity in the intellectual discussion. Supported by professional guidance from the Media Center Saxony-Anhalt for the production and distribution of the digital tutorials, as well as from the art college “Burg Giebichenstein”, with which the school has a longstanding cooperation through a special artistic profile, work is carried out on high quality exhibits. All outputs created in parallel (tutorials and artistic work) are to be understood as accompanying the project process, i.e. in the preparation phases conceptually conceived, discussed during the meetings, created and to be perfected at home. These outputs are exhibited as high-quality results in our own and neighbouring schools as well as in suitable public institutions with visitor traffic in the region.

Furthermore, all outputs and findings are published digitally, e.g. on etwinning, on different learning platforms, in yearbooks and on school websites. These should also be shared with teachers at our schools in order to further educate staff and students.
For dissemination of the results, relevant data, results and outputs should be passed on to politicians / city councils, environmental organizations, companies etc. in order to inform them about our results and to encourage positive changes to more environmentally friendly behaviour.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 90147 Eur

Project Coordinator

Giebichenstein-Gymnasium “Thomas Müntzer” & Country: DE

Project Partners

• I.S.I. Istituto Superiore D’Istruzione Barga
• Luttrellstown Community College
• Zespol Szkol nr 5 im. Karola Brzostowskiego