Think globally, act locally

The project's objectives were to have the students become more knowledgeable about and interested in biodiversity and environment, not just about climate change. In addition, we wanted them to see...

The project's objectives were to have the students become more knowledgeable about and interested in biodiversity and environment, not just about climate change. In addition, we wanted them to see the topic as not just a threat, but as a possibility, and at the same time learn about other countries’ and cultures’ traditions and viewpoints, by having them work internationally. The language used throughout the project was English, which was also something we wanted to concentrate on: language as a tool, not just an object to be learnt. Moreover, we wanted the students to be active participants and actors and learn concrete ways to study and help the environment, which included for example gathering and microscoping samples and cleaning and growing a part of a meadow. Learning to use technology was also one of the main aims of achievement, as even though students use their phones every day, they are still not very adept at using other technologies. We also wanted to give the quieter and/or less fortunate students a change to participate, as they are often somewhat overlooked.

The project was divided into five parts which had smaller projects within them. First, a distance project getting to know everyone and understanding the topic and what we wanted to achieve. Second, a mobility to Greece where the students took part in and organized smaller projects regarding biodiversity/aquatic life, eg. posters about water’s importance, visiting the Mesologgi wetland and participating in a lecture, cleaning the beach, researching the town’s water system, visiting a bridge and having a lecture on its infrastructure and its effects on the surrounding environment.Third, a distance project using the Artsteps website which worked as a continuation to what the students did in Greece by learning more about water. Fourth, a distance project to acquaint the students with biodiversity on land by making Pecha Kucha presentations about the participating countries’ flora and fauna and their history. Lastly, a mobility to Finland learning yet more about biodiversity. There were eg. lectures, presentations for the whole school, visiting a wetland and getting samples there, doing water quality tests and microscoping samples, visiting a sewage treatment plant and a recycling center, a meadow project and the final ceremony.

The main concrete results were the know-how and practices the students learnt, such as collecting samples, microscoping, recycling, recognizing flora and fauna, and using different technologies as well as learning about the topic. In addition, some concrete outputs of the project include presentations in different forms, videos, posters, questionnaire answers, a Facebook page of the project and an Etwinning page, a newspaper article and some smaller mentions, among others. The presentations include several different formats. There were several Powerpoint and Google slides presentations about the students themselves and about the project's topics. The students then produced Artsteps digital museum tours online about water, which were presented as well. The Pecha Kucha format was used for presentations about flora and fauna, and physical posters were made to promote e.g. saving water and depicting the water samples they sampled and microscoped. After both mobilities, the students also edited videos of the week that showed what they had done and learnt during the week. The Facebook page and Etwinning page show the whole year-long process in more detail.