United Pollinations (of Europa) Erasmus Project

Project Title

United Pollinations (of Europa)

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 2019

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Civic engagement / responsible citizenship; Social/environmental responsibility of educational institutions; Environment and climate change

Project Summary

UNITED POLLINATIONS OF EUROPA

“Now the flower is frail. Then cold, storm and drought and it passes away. From then barren patches on earth. Within men bare men who have never tasted peaches, pears, melons, watermelons, plums, apples” (Jean GIONO).

Europe has passed into the 21st century. It meets new concerns and questions our ways of life. Sometimes it shuts itself away, or even fragments. It looks skeptical, doubtful.

Objective:
Our goal is to bring young people together and to unite them to face the challenges of our time. One, indeed, is of paramount importance: pollination, as it is threatened by the scarcity of flowers and worsened by the progressive disappearance of bees. We have to wake up to this reality and raise awareness among young people of our nations, to open their eyes on different natural environments, experiment, change our practices and pass them onto others. Let’s scatter, let’s spread!
Participants:
Because it is deeply cross-disciplinary, this project brings together different educational pathways, from two French schools (the vocational high school in Pézenas and the agricultural college in La Canourgue), from a Czech Republic college (Gymnasium in Rumburk) or from a Spanish/Basque Country High School (Ordizia Ikastola). In those two last institutions, the students included in the project are in their final years that is to say the equivalent of Year 13 in UK and taking science subjects. As far as the French schools are concerned, the students attend vocational courses in their last year of qualification (they train in woodwork, administration and sales (Pézenas vocational school) or in aquaculture (La Canourgue). Thus, scientists, primary, secondary and tertiary workers will meet on a regular basis and share their skills. In concrete terms, ten young people from each of our four schools will be reunited in organized and educational vacation.

Mobility:
We’ve considered four study trips for each school. First, teachers and key people will meet in the agricultural college to learn about beekeeping, biodiversity and honey plants. This training will be combined with a discovery of the Cévennes and Grands Causses Regional Nature Reserve on the environmental theme. Thus, we’ll be able to think over and prepare adequate training stays for our students. Genesis!
The second trip will involve 10 students at least from each school, who will embark on a 6-day-trip in order to discover a new cultural and natural environment. Prospection! Students will immerse themselves in the project and start the first construction work (beehives and honey-plants prospecting). Mobility will be held two by two at the same time over two separate weeks (April 20-25 and May 4-9, 2020), so everyone will be able to move and host groups.
The third trip will gather two groups bound for one high school. In this way, Pézenas and Rumburk will go to Ordizia (September 23-28) while Ordizia and La Canourgue will head for Rumburk (October 14-19). Flocking! The aim will consist in grasping the first results as well as promoting them via media circles. Natural environment exploration will also remain the theme at stake.
The fourth meeting will reunite all the actors of the project: honey-plants and their environment will be dealt with, events will be organized in a city certified APIcité. Let’s shine!

Activites and operating results
Our college students will then embrace those nature reserves and parks, will construct beehives, will sow, plant and collect! From 2019 to 2021, the educational team will think up a new programme that’ll allow to study the theme of pollination and bees in every subject. This substantive work will fit in the larger theme of sustainable development. In each school, students will set up their own original beehive and agreements will be negotiated between local organizations and apiarists.
Throughout the whole project, learners will communicate between each other through the radio, videos, press, social media and organizing events. They will eventually shoot a multilingual film entitled “Beerasmus, the pollen of nations” in order to disseminate the observations collected. They’ll become proficient and proactive. They will rise to the current challenge by weaving sociability at the individual as well as the associative or interprofessional level, on a European scale on the one hand and on a local scale on the other hand. Finally, an international event will take place to round this project off and all the actors and participants will be convened.

With this project, we hope that the young people will take up this ecological challenge, this European challenge – and become de facto citizens of the new century.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 131562 Eur

Project Coordinator

Lycée Charles Alliès & Country: FR

Project Partners

• Gymnazium, Rumburk, Komenskeho 10, prispevkova organizace
• Jakintza ikastola Sdad. Cooperativa
• LYCEE D’ENSEIGNEMENT GENERAL TECHNOLOGIQUE ET PROFESSIONNEL AGRICOLE DE LA LOZERE