Plastic Ocean

It should come as no surprise that we have a serious problem with plastic in the oceans and on land. Plastics have negative effects on biodiversity. We all recognize the problem, but the solutions...

There were three main objectives of this project. 1. To conceptualize, create and streamline PBL teaching materials for STEM-based entrepreneurship for you adults in upper secondary schools. 2. To have students learn about the scientific aspects of plastic pollution and to help them have the courage to enter international entrepreneurship in this essential field. 3. To have our organisations develop the tools and gain the know-how to teach in this complex problem while at the same time become better at cooperating across borders.

It should come as no surprise that we have a serious problem with plastic in the oceans and on land. Plastics have negative effects on biodiversity. We all recognize the problem, but the solutions are scarce. While plastic production is booming, recycling is hard and inefficient. We simply need more STEM-based entrepreneurship from young people, but teachers are not equipped to boost the entrepreneurial courage of their students. We can see it in the plummeting numbers of new entrepreneurs across the EU. This project aimed at bringing students together to understand the factors behind the Plastic Ocean and to craft solutions to real problems. This resulted in a compilation of teaching materials, ready to use and easy to implement. From Tahiti in the Pacific Ocean to Valencia in the south, via Greece to Copenhagen the problems are diverse and complex and not least epochally important. We learned from each other, not only regarding plastic pollution but also regarding the teaching of young students through best practice. Spanning two years the project took a total of around 100 students and teachers on an academic adventure to the partner schools and each time, we focused on a new aspect of plastic pollution.

The project resulted in a compilation of streamlined PBL and STEM-based teaching materials in the field of entrepreneurship related to plastic pollution, ready to use and easy to implement. It boosted the confidence of our particular students to create environmentally focused start-ups and to enhance the skills of the involved teachers and the international capabilities of the school organisations. Now we will release the materials onto various platforms and to all our school contacts. A more fluffy, yet important result was friendships across Europe and a feeling of European belonging.