The Lycée Polyvalent Simone Veil in Marseille and the Liceo Ginnasio Gian Battista Vico in Naples have chosen, for their first partnership, to collaborate on an ‘Erasmus +’ project. The “Marseille-Naples: Beyond The Seas” project will allow each establishment to use their knowledge and expertise in the pursuit of a common goal: to raise awareness within the student community of environmental and climatic challenges. In order to do this, the Marseille school will bring their knowledge of sustainable development to the partnership, whereas the Naples school will call upon their years of experience in a number of international schemes to ensure the smooth running of the project. The participants – students from the first and second classes, aged 15 to 17 – will thus be engaged with the notion of responsible citizenship in the same way as their respective schools, which have a social and environmental responsibility towards the educational community. Finally, Modern Languages, in this case French and Italian, will be essential tools for communication, the promotion of common values and the engagement and participation of the students in the project. The first year will focus on allowing the participants to get to know one another, learning about their respective educational environments and ways of life by means of digital communication tools as well as school exchange programmes. In this way, each establishment will have the opportunity to showcase local awareness and sustainable development initiatives (eco-delegates, recycling, zero waste…). Visits and activities will provide an opportunity for the students to acquaint themselves with the historical and cultural heritage of both cities but also with the biodiversity of the Parc National des Calanques in Marseille and the Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn in Naples. These visits will also pose the question of how to manage serious risks such as strong seismic activity in Campanie and the problem of forest fires in Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur. Participants will meet with experts at the site of Vesuvius and forest fire prevention experts (Office National des Forêts and the Sapeurs Pompiers des Bouches-du-Rhône – the regional fire brigade), as well as visiting protected sites. The objective of these activities is for the students learn about the environmental problems facing each partner city and produce a comparative piece of work which will be assessed at the end of the first year of the partnership. By this point in the programme, the participants will have become aware of the environmental and climatic challenges facing each city, as well as the fact that their engagement and their responsibility is not limited to their daily life as a school student. One of the aims of the project is for the students to be able to extrapolate their learnings and project them onto the wider European scene in the longer term. The second year of the partnership will be centred around a joint initiative born out of learnings from the first year. This initiative will sit within the parameters of the partnership programme and be decided upon by way of a referendum, thus engaging and involving the whole student community in both establishments. The participating students will become ambassadors for the project within their schools and will be responsible for a final presentation. The Lycée Simone Veil will host an interactive exhibition during the final meeting in Marseille, aimed at students from the establishment but also from other classes in the Etoile network. Participating students will show visitors around, explaining their approach to the project and sharing their experience. The closing evening will be reserved for the reception of representatives of local authorities: the elected representatives; partners; members of the Consulate General of Italy and the Italian Cultural Institute in Marseille and the local media will all be invited. On the previous day, the Sustainable Olympic Games will be organised to encourage students to come together over common interests and values, such as sport. The activities offered during the year by the teachers will have demonstrated that eco-responsible sport is possible (using sports equipment made from recycled materials). This moment of sharing and conviviality will strengthen ties between partners. "Marseille-Naples: Beyond The Seas" was conceived as a starting point for a lasting collaboration between two establishments, two cities: so close and so different at the same time, because the environment is a common good that goes beyond our borders. In our establishments we are teaching the European citizens of tomorrow!
Simone Veil Highschool entered the Erasmus+ program thanks to the “Marseille-Naples: beyond the seas” project in partnership with the Liceo Ginnasio Statale Gian Battista Vico in Naples. This first collaboration aimed to boost openness to international and the teaching of modern languages, to share our respective expertise and to develop the concept of eco-citizenship with our educational communities. Indeed, the Simone Veil high school, although recent, already benefits from a certain expertise in the field of sustainable development, expertise recognized by its level 3 E3D label. The Liceo Gian Battista Vico, for its part, has extensive experience in international programs which are at the center of its training offer. Thus, our Participants, students aged 15 to 18, from the general and technological series, in the Euro or Esabac French section, were made aware of the climatic and environmental challenges facing our two cities. Indeed, the numerous activities offered during this partnership allowed them to better understand their immediate environment and their living place, the E3D projects carried out within their school, their city and their region, their remarkable and protected historical and natural heritage. It was therefore possible to engage a reflective and comparative work during the mobilities thanks to the numerous visits and exchanges organized with local actors. Indeed, in Naples, during visits to Herculaneum, Pompeii, Baia, the sunken city and the meeting with the teams from the Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn in Portici and the Aquarium, seismic and volcanic risks were discussed, aswell as the richness and fragility of marine ecosystems and the protection of threatened species. In Marseille, the students were offered the possibility to discover the Calanques National Park, the Frioul Islands and the Côte Bleue. A discovery punctuated by meetings with those involved in the prevention and management of forest fires, firefighters, forest guards and visits to surveillance posts, lookouts. Our participants became aware that today a civic attitude requires eco-responsible actions on a daily basis and that our local issues go far beyond our borders. Being a young European citizen means being able to exchange with your peers, know their language and their culture, share common objectives and interests, act together to build and preserve the living space of tomorrow. Our participants had a very enriching experience on an academic but also human level which prepares them for their future life as students and young adults. The partner establishments have designed this project as the first step in a long collaboration which seems to be taking shape thanks to obtaining Erasmus + accreditation, an accreditation which will make possible in the longer term to continue this great adventure.