Through this project, we aimed to teach young people to take responsibility for the environment and to establish an ecological identity for schools that consciously care for green spaces and crops, conserve natural resources, avoid polluting water and air, and sort waste. Hence, the main objective of the project was to increase by 40% the proportion of pupils in partner schools who, by the end of the project, would have improved their environmental competence in terms of knowledge, skills and attitudes. We were keen to bring about a real change in the school pupils’ attitude towards environmental issues – to foster conscious attitudes, underpinned by knowledge and skills. We sought to achieve this by pursuing the following specific objectives: 1. A 50% increase in knowledge regarding the protection of water resources and the prevention of their pollution; 2. A 50% increase in knowledge and skills regarding the practice of environmentally sustainable farming to protect the soil; 3. A 50% increase in knowledge regarding the prevention of air pollution; 4. The development of creative ways to promote environmental awareness in schools and local communities.
We applied to run this project because we wanted to have a real impact on educating young people to respect and care for the environment. We recognised the problems of air pollution, soil degradation and the need to protect and manage water resources sustainably. Despite numerous information and educational initiatives, the partner schools’ pupils’ knowledge of ecology was very limited, indicating that the measures taken had been largely ineffective. Through this project, we aimed to tackle the problem comprehensively and equip pupils with the environmental skills they lacked. We were keen to ensure that these were not one-off initiatives, but rather wide-ranging and long-term actions. We assumed that a prolonged period of engagement would foster certain habits and instil a sense of responsibility for the environment. We also wanted to draw on the experience of partner schools and their innovative approach to the issue. A key element of the project was developing effective tools for engaging young people, which teachers will be able to use in the future.