Students facing Global Environmental Risks at local scale by getting Eco-schools through Nature-based Solutions Erasmus Project

Project Title

Students facing Global Environmental Risks at local scale by getting Eco-schools through Nature-based Solutions

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: Youth (Participation, Youth Work, Youth Policy) ; Environment and climate change; EU Citizenship, EU awareness and Democracy

Project Summary

A central tenet of the 2030 Agenda is the implementation of Nature-based Solutions (Nbs) as catalysts for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, ensuring that no one is left behind while our planet is preserved. Nature-based Solutions aim to help societies address a variety of environmental, social and economic challenges in sustainable ways. Governments, companies and stakeholders are calling to support greater action NbS. However, as Greta Thunberg tough us, youth is the driving force to address the climate emergency, and students should be prepared for future jobs with a systemic approach that combines technology, science, engineering, business, governance, regulatory, psychology and sociology through transcultural contacts and multilingual encounters which promote the global citizenship. Moreover, we have to show students the need of thinking globally and acting locally to face the challenges of global change. Schools and education (environmental education and ecological literacy) have a key role in the establishment of European values based on sustainable development.

The goal of our project is to move from global recognition of environmental risks to local actions at school level, letting students be a creative think tank about designing new perspectives on sustainability while their awareness of belonging to a common community is fostered thanks to cooperation among school partners of different countries. Moreover, students will exchange information and knowledge, from the past, analysing our engineering legacy in harmony with nature, which reflects the value of European heritage, to innovation and future, improving their skills on Nature based Solutions to deal with similar environmental challenges. This helps young people broaden their view of the whole effects that climate change is having in European landscapes and biodiversity as well as strengthen their pan-European identity.

To meet our project goal, four high schools from Spanish (IES Alkal’a Nahar, Project coordinator), Greece (1st Vocational HighSchool of Aridaia), Italy (Liceo Statale Gaio Valerio Catullo) and Turkey (Ozel Ankara ABC School) will carried out an erasmus+ Project in parallel with an eTwinning Project with students from 15-16 years old about exchanging of best practices.

The specific objectives of the partnership are as follows:

1.- Examine our schools from a sustainability point of view and recognise the main environmental necessities.
2.- Develop and set a plan to become our schools more eco-friendly, reducing waste, saving water and energy, and improving the natural spaces outdoors
3.- Define the terms “mimetic” and “biomimicry” and understand how different technological inventions are based on the function of our ecosystems.
4.- Analysed the different approaches of Nature based Solution and identify general strategies to be implemented at local and school escale.
5.- Create an environmental commission in every school, guided by students in cooperation with teachers, families and local stakeholders, and assess a programme to allow collaboration among partners.
6.- Explore the environment/development dilemma from a historic point of view and value the natural and historic heritage of Europe and other Mediterranean countries.

Among our expected results we will point out the reduction of schools environmental impact, health and well-being, impact to the community, innovation and creativity by the methodology “know-how”, students satisfaction and motivation, teamwork, responsibility, empowerment, conflicts resolution, language skills, digital competences, European citizenship, feeling of belonging. A list of the expected products will be recycle and composting bins, xerophytic garden, birds nest and insects farming, school garden with organic vegetables, and awareness panels handbook of NbS for students and teachers, herbarium of gardening plants adapted to climate change and panels of NbS approaches.

To accomplish our especific objectives we have scheduled four short-term exchanges including interesting guided tours to National Museums, Natural Heritage Sites, Best Practices Examples on Landscape restoration and Green Energy plants and Green Infrastructures. Moreover, some workshop will be carried out to implement all knowledge to significant learning. In addition, previous activities in each country will be carried out before each short-meeting as well as virtual meetings for teachers and students.

The participation in this project foresees that, at the end, both students and teachers involved will learn the concept of sustainability and will be awareness about their natural heritage, becoming an example for the entire school community. The locally involvement of families will surely help to spread the idea of an open and united Europe and the changes made at schools to become more eco-friendly will have an impact on future students and all school staff.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 110906 Eur

Project Coordinator

IES ALKAL´A NAHAR & Country: ES

Project Partners

• 1st Vocational High School of Aridaia
• Liceo Statale Gaio Valerio Catullo
• Özel Ankara ABC Fen Lisesi