"Mother Nature - Empowering mothers as agents of change toward environmental sustainability in a digital era"

Mothers are increasingly aware of the climate crisis and are fearful of the world for their children. Our project aimed to create and share learning tools, including digital tools and resources to support mothers in becoming agents of change in their families and communities: in being proactive with strategies to initiate thinking, behavioral and cultural changes in tackling climate change. We applied for this project also because we had been very successful as a team previously, and had produced innovative tools for mothers and professionals in the framework of Mother Nature I project, to which this project was a kind of continuation. The needs addressed: - Need for networking and creating community for mothers and professionals (blending target groups) - Need for online tools both by mothers and professionals (it is more feasible for mothers to participate in online events and trainings than in offline ones) - Need to increase personal nature connection of mothers (using time in nature to recharge and recover, and at the same time strengthen engagement in tackling climate change in everyday lifestyle choices) - Need of professionals working with mothers: get tools to empower mothers and to help them organise mother circles

Our overarching aim has been to PROVIDE PEER SUPPORT FOR MOTHERS AND INCREASE COMPETENCES OF PROFESSIONALS IN THE POST-PANDEMIC ERA, WITH A SPECIAL FOCUS ON AN ECOLOGICAL SHIFT through our publications, a handbook and a visual aid, training, and podcasts shared on Mother Nature (MN) social media sites, website and online community, newsletters and events. In particular, our objectives were: - Raising awareness on the role of mothers as change agents to support ecological and sustainable practices to tackle climate change. - Empowering mothers and equipping them with concrete tools to act as change agents toward an ecological shift at personal and community level. - Equipping mothers with tools and skills to strengthen their own support network and creating support networks for other women, with a special focus on navigating the changes brought by the pandemic and on using online tools. In coherence with the programme priorities we’ve wanted to achieve: - an increase in ecological literacy and strategies for tackling climate change, – an enhanced capacity and opportunities for online learning by mothers, touching the issue of digital transformation, - community building and networking of mothers.

We chose the following project results to reach our aims and objectives: a handbook, a digital e-learning course, visual aid (cards with methodological booklet) and podcast series. The project focused on creating these. We chose the following project results to reach our aims and objectives: a handbook (PR1), a digital e-learning course (PR2), visual aid (cards with methodological guidebook – PR3) and a podcast series (PR4). The project focused on creating these. The process was integrated with 3 in person training courses (C1, C2 in the UK and C2 in Slovenia), and supported by 20 multiplier events (10 in person and 10 online) in the 4 participating countries, by 4 international partner meetings (2 in Hungary, 1 in Italy and 1 in Slovenia), and by organisational, project management, monitoring and dissemination activities.

PR1 The “Mothers as Natural Leaders” book explores how we can use the transferable skills that we gain as mothers to be agents of change towards environmental sustainability. The world is facing numerous complex challenges and a new style of leadership is necessary to help us navigate these. In this book we give tools to bring agency into our personal leadership, to guide our family culture, to be proactive in our communities. All together these weave possibilities for a new global leadership centred on Earth care. Format: theoretical text, accompanied with stories of women who can be role models from each country and extracts from the visual aid and guidebook, plus nature connection and personal development & design for leadership activities, and green lifestyle advice. The book contains 250 pages and is divided into 5 parts: Part 1 - Regenerative Feminine Leadership- Part 2 - Personal leadership- Part 3 - Family leadership - Part 4 - Community leadership - Part 5 - Global leadership. PR2 The output is an online course targeting mothers and professionals working with mothers to enable them to lead circles of mothers (called Mother Nature Circles). The name of the online course is “Leading Mother Nature Circles”. The online course is made of 2 hours length videos, hosted on 2 e-courses hosting platforms, in English (with subtitles in Italian, Slovenian, Hungarian) One handout (around 35 pages) with further content and activities based on the videos in English, Italian, Slovenian, Hungarian The course was integrated with a series of live calls on Zoom with participants who had watched the videos to offer them further content and practice teaching space to trial leading their own circles with peer learners, in English, Italian, Slovenian, Hungarian. The videos are publicly available for learners and they can be watched without taking part in the live calls. Those participants who attended the live calls, lead their own circles in their communities and reported back on them could gain accreditation to become Mother Nature Circle Facilitators and be listed on our websites. PR3 The visual material (card deck with methodological support material) is an important support to reflect about nature connection in mother circles and groups aimed to strengthen ecological lifestyles and inspire associated topics. The target group of this output are primarily facilitators and educators delivering non-formal learning programmes for mothers. Secondary target groups are mothers themselves, through these programmes, courses, circles, groups or for personal use. The Mother Nature Leadership Card Deck (in Italian and Hungarian is called the Earth Mothers Card Deck) includes 32 cards and a guidebook describing each card and supporting the use of them with methodological advice. The development of the content of cards was connected to the four levels of care that mothers provide: self care, family care, community care and Earth care. The other four dimensions were mothers as leaders, pain for the world, nature connection and going green. This so-called matrix helped us to develop a holistic approach to the topics which are linked to the content of other project results (book PR1, e-course PR2, podcasts PR4). The draft version of PR3 cards was trialed in C1 course and the 1st set of multiplier events, and the revised version was used as a teaching aid during C2 courses and at the second round of multiplier events. As to the supporting guidebook accompanying the cards: originally we had planned to have some „methodological cards” together with the core card deck. However, we realised that the card format didn’t allow enough space for detailed explanations of each of the topics covered, so we created this supporting material not as cards but as a comprehensive guidebook. The book format allowed for providing far more in depth explanations, which are useful both for professionals and for mothers using the cards. PR4 The podcasts in 4 languages engage mothers new to nature connection and practices tackling climate change and enable them to increase their awareness of the issues and encourage them to move further in their learning through the handbook PR1, visual aid PR3 and e-course PR2. This output, completed successfully with 13k+ plays, is shaped in the form of 3 seasons. The first season was in English, while the second season was in English AND national languages (Slovenian , Hungarian and Italian) and the final 3rd Season in English. In total we produced 75 episodes (15 in the first season, 50 in the second one, and 10 in the third one). C1, C2 training Offline course materials were developed, and all together 40 participants were trained at the C1 “Nature connection for mothers” (focusing on the role of mothers in the ecological crisis, on regenerative feminine leadership and on sharing and harvesting ideas and feedback for the development of project results) and C2 “Mother Nature in Action” courses (focusing on how to use the project results, such as leading Mother Nature Circles based on principles learnt through PR2 e-course, using PR3 card deck, and exploring leadership of mothers as detailed in PR1 the Mothers As Natural Leaders book ). ADDITIONAL RESULTS OF THE PROJECT: - an enhanced awareness of ecological issues, of ways to navigate the current ecological crisis, and the spread of ecological practices in response to climate change - empowerment of mothers and the recognition of their transferable skills and role as natural leaders of themsleves, their family, their community and the wider world - increased competences and capacity of mothers to be active change agents and of organising self-support groups - networking of mothers, and the proliferation of mother circles, self –support groups and communities of mothers, and strengthened local, regional, national and European networks of mothers and professionals - contribution to the fields of European adult education and support services for mothers through partners / professionals integrating new tools, practices and approaches into their activities - participants and the wider public reached through multiplier events and online media deepened their understanding on motherhood as part of life-long learning - professional development of project staff members - solid network established between the project partners, with the potential to develop further joint activities