The Town I Want to Live in: A Sustainable Approach Erasmus Project

Project Title

The Town I Want to Live in: A Sustainable Approach

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 2018

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Civic engagement / responsible citizenship; Environment and climate change; Research and innovation

Project Summary

The project was initially conceived with the objective of contributing to sustainable development by providing small-scale solutions that will help solve the environmental problems in which we are immersed. This project was designed by putting the students at the center of the project and that they would be the ones to provide solutions to local problems previously identified in their closest reality, which is none other than the place where they live, their city. The problems were approached from the premise that since they are the ones who will inherit the city and live in it for a long time, they are the ones who should redesign an urban environment for the 21st century. This was the main motivation for the project: what the students could imagine and do to improve their city in terms of quality of life and sustainability, that is, in terms of energy efficiency, less pollution and noise.
As for the objectives we can say that the following were clearly achieved with the development of the project:
– To create a positive environment for the teaching-learning process and integration between the different levels.
– To train students as future responsible citizens endowed with global awareness.
– Encourage the responsible use and learning of ICTs, highlighting the use of platforms such as eTwinning, as well as advanced software for graphic design and augmented reality.
– Acquisition of new teaching methodologies in general.
– Instilling an international feeling throughout the community.
– Improve competence in the use of a foreign language.
– Improve teachers’ competencies, to adjust their professional development to new challenges.
Regarding the results obtained, we have to say that through the implementation of the project, we have created a wide range of products that are uploaded to the European Results Platform. The most important products have been the design using advanced computer tools of different solutions to environmental problems encountered in the immediate environment of our cities. The four centers have been using Qgis, Sketchup and Twinmotion as localization, graphic design and augmented reality programs in the development of their projects, as well as, in the case of three of them, models obtained by 3D printing of the new spaces created. It should be noted that the achievements of
the project are not only the final products, but also the exchange of experiences of working in graphic design and 3D printing among the teachers of the participating schools, as well as the work in international teams of students. The virtual reality section included among the objectives of the project focused on the use of the Twinmotion program, for which teachers were previously trained by means of a classroom course given by the company Iscar, which took place in Madrid. The use of this software obliged the participating centers to acquire equipment that met important requirements in terms of processing capacity and graphics cards.
Subsequently, the students received online training on the use and management of this advanced tool. Due to the situation caused by the pandemic, this training in graphic design and augmented reality could not be completed with visits to industries and businesses, which would have given us a better understanding of them.
We must also mention among the achievements and results of the project, the awareness of students in environmental issues and the development of activities that allow them to propose improvements in the environment. Likewise, with the development of activities such as the international debate, the students were able to freely express ideas with responsibility and respect, assume different roles, and learn to listen to other opinions. The improvement in the practice of the English language and the awareness of environmental problems can also be considered as other results or benefits of the Project
As for the difficulties encountered, we have to say that the biggest problem we faced was the appearance of the pandemic in early 2020. This came to us with the project half developed and with the problem of how to deal with such a serious situation. The first thing we did was to consider the possibility of requesting an extension of the deadline for its completion, which we did and was accepted, changing the deadline from November 2020 to June 2021. After that, it was necessary to change the dates foreseen to carry out the short-term mobilities in Portugal and Finland, deciding to carry them out if possible in the months of November and February, something that in the end could not be done either. Faced with this situation, the partners decided to change the format of the mobilities, converting them into virtual mobilities and designing new activities that could be completed with the computer resources available in the centers. These new activities included an online workshop on Twinnmotion, a virtual exhibition of the work done, a workshop on sustainability, an international debate, and an international race from Portugal to Finland.
Another of the problems caused by the pandemic has been the situation in which a Spanish student who was doing a long term mobility in the Czech Republic had to spend the confinement with the host family in this country. This caused an important task of coordination between the two schools.
As for the conflicts that may have arisen, we believe that those that have arisen have been small scale and that thanks to the dialogue and the proactive attitude of the different partners have been resolved within the normal channels.

Project Website

https://mytown2020.home.blog/

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 100022,66 Eur

Project Coordinator

IES Escultor Juan de Villanueva & Country: ES

Project Partners

• Escola Secundária José Saramago-Mafra
• Gymnázium, Frýdlant nad Ostravicí, nám. T. G. Masaryka 1260, příspěvková organizace
• Lappeenrannan Lyseon lukio