Atlantic Salmon Conservation Schools Network Erasmus Project

Project Title

Atlantic Salmon Conservation Schools Network

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 : Strategic Partnerships for Schools Only

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2016

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Environment and climate change; Agriculture, forestry and fisheries; ICT – new technologies – digital competences

Project Summary

The Atlantic Salmon Conservation Schools Network is an innovative project which uses the context of Atlantic Salmon to bring young people together in a collaborative study, exploring a variety of complex environmental issues. This project is designed to place ICT and specifically Geo-media at the heart of the project. An overarching objective is to develop a framework to enable collaborative studies of environmental issues with outputs fully embedded in the digital age. Atlantic salmon are found throughout the bio-region of the North Atlantic. They inhabit the rivers and seas of a significant number of European countries within their range. As they are a migratory species, they therefore face an array of environmental pressures. The studying of Atlantic salmon acts as a catalyst to investigate these numerous environmental problems in the fields of sustainable food production, ecotourism, renewable energy, pollution, agricultural impact, forestry, ecosystem management, fishery management, conservation methods and most notably climate change.

The aim of the project was to deliver an innovative pedagogical project to improve the teaching of environmental issues. The utilization of a single species with a wide geographical distribution and intercultural iconic significance was adopted as vehicle for the stated aim. The participating organisations subscribed to delivering this aim with the support of relevant stakeholders within their local context.

The project had 4 distinct themes; (a)The value of Atlantic salmon.(b)A comparison between Baltic and Atlantic salmon.(c)The southern range of the Atlantic Salmon.(d) Industry and Atlantic Salmon. The project will provide 78 students aged 16 to 18 years, from the UK, Finland, France, Germany and Greenland an opportunity to participate. The students are from a range of socio-economic backgrounds. A variety of methods were to be used to deliver the project aims.

The project was highly innovative. It used a single species to teach in context a wide array of environmental challenges, liking directly to sustainable living in terms of food sources, economy and energy. The wide spread of participants geographically added to the global sense of the project and the sense of environmental challenges being global. Inter cultural attitudes towards sustainable living objectives were also explored and experienced.

The development of ICT skills such as the use of Geo-media applications in studying environmental issues were central to all mobilities. All students had the opportunity to engage worth this type of learning and all students across all the mobilities developed greater ICT skills. The implementation of the teaching and learning activities were delivered in accordance with the stated aims in the application. The aims of developing scientific skills as planned were exceeded. Student had opportunities to deliver such skills due to the collaborative work schools were able to organise with local universities, environmental NGOs and STEM outreach programmes.

At international the project was recognized as mentioned and then replicated beyond Europe. Including the participating schools at total of 15 schools across 8 countries have engaged with project. Approximately 500 students and stakeholders have engaged with the project either through participation directly, participation through replication or by hosting visiting students.

Beyond the life of the Erasmus funded project, the Atlantic Salmon conservation Schools Network is now running in North America with 4 schools and links with the original partner schools within this project. The project is now a listed event in the International Year of the Salmon 2019 and the Atlantic Salmon Conservation Schools Network, born out of this project remains an observer NGO of the NASCO international treaty and is invited to report annually and attend the annual inter governmental NASCO meeting.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 120849 Eur

Project Coordinator

Perth High School & Country: UK

Project Partners

• Iin lukio
• Lycée Albert Londres
• Gymnasium Marne
• Campus Kujalleq