Gift as task – Erasmus Project

Project Title

Gift as task –

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: Energy and resources; Environment and climate change; EU Citizenship, EU awareness and Democracy

Project Summary

Gift and Task – our Responsibilities for a Common Future
The project team has been inspired by recent discussions about universally important topics like climate, environmental protection, responsibility for our future and changes of consumer behaviour. These issues have not only been broached by the activists’ movement “Fridays for Future”, but they have likewise been picked out as central themes on many levels, in politics and culture, in trade, industry and economics, as well as by educationalists. Everybody involved in the process of forming public opinion is looking for relevant suggestions, for workable approaches to solving the manifold problems, for models suitable to create an awareness for steps which are necessary – and in parts overdue.
The project team found these issues immensely suitable to be discussed and worked on in a transnational context as they are relevant across countries and the effects of our behaviour are not limited by national borders but they are the concern of our neighbours as well as our own. For this project we have chosen five topics which will be dealt with in the course of our joint working process.
1. Traffic / 2. Energy / 3. Waste / 4. Food / 5. Clothing
All those topics are relevant for students as well as teachers, and ultimately, they are of immediate significance for school as an institution. At the same time, all those issues are highly important for people concerned with more general patterns in politics, economics and technology.
The project team propose to start working on the project by collecting data about the initial position of all the participants and their schools by means of a questionnaire. At “half-time” the survey is meant to be repeated as a kind of test in order to infer possible modifications. At the end of the project there will be a final repetition of the survey because the project team will then examine whether dealing with the topics has changed opinions, widened interests, influenced attitudes.
Students of the University of Kassel (course of studies: environmental psychology) and lecturers of the University of Liepaja (education) will help us to develop the questionnaire. In both institutions we have contacts with students and lecturers who have done research on this kind of work and will support us.
However, the project is not only about taking stock; when dealing with those five topics, it is also about actively influencing and changing the awareness and the behaviour of those directly involved – at best even the greater community “school”, “parents’ home”, “peer group”. At present these are just ideas which will have to be discussed and put into motion. Indeed, the project group has already started a collection of relevant impulses and propositions:
Ad 1. Looking for alternative routes: bicycle / e-scooter / car-pooling / bus services
Ad 2: Doing research on new energies: examine and – if possible – test photovoltaics or wind power
Ad 3: Preparing a survey of waste separation: systematic waste separation, conscious waste avoidance? Sandwich boxes instead of plastic bags? Further changes?
Ad 4: Using homegrown products: testing urban gardening, initiating cooking with leftovers, preferring seasonal products, analysing eating habits
Ad 5: Talking about the carbon footprint: propagating and trying upcycling, debating the issue of “getting quantity for little vs. getting quality for more”, examine people’s throw-away mentality
The mixture of the project group which has been put together is a deliberate one. Thus, South-West Europe (ES / BE), North-East Europe (Fl / LV) and countries situated in the middle of Europe (DE / SK) are represented. In this way we guarantee that, on the one hand, comparative studies will be conducted on climate, on the quality of flora / fauna / water, and on the other hand we will allow comparative work which points out unique features. This is e. g. true of sunshine hours (North vs. South) or of the utilization of regional products.
There are two new partners (ES / SK) and four experienced ones in the project group. Sixth-form secondary schools, schools for adult education and schools based on the programmes of pedagogical reformers are going to cooperate: they are committed to religion, progressive education, social education, and they are experienced in working on projects.
Everybody involved is aware of the issues and prepared to deal with “difficult topics”: ecology in the hometowns and alternative ways of live. We, the partners, are different from each other, but our zeal, our enthusiasm for pedagogical challenges and our wish to offer “more” than everyday school life to our students go well together.
We believe that we will obtain concrete results concerning the above mentioned five topics, these will be results which will change school life – and people’s private lives – in a sustainable way. They will touch on our five topics. The subject of individual responsibility is of the highest importance!

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 136853 Eur

Project Coordinator

Westfalen-Kolleg Paderborn & Country: DE

Project Partners

• Arcibiskupske gymnazium biskupa P. Jantauscha
• Oskara Kalpaka Liepajas 15.vidusskola
• Kontiolahden lukio
• Deutsche Schule Bilbao
• Middelbare Steinerschool Vlaanderen vzw