The project “Culture-coding: Contributing to global culture of environmental concern’ involves partners from Serbia, Italy and Mexico along 22 months from 1/09/2020 till 1/07/2022. Its aim is to contribute to building a global culture of environmental concern.Personal experience and various forms of information, be it through media coverage, government campaigns or environmental education, will affect the development of environmental concern. However, such factors are obviously not the only ones that influence attitudes and beliefs. If we want to influence (young) people’s attitudes toward the natural environment, we must lead them to explore, contrast and understand how such attitudes are part of systems of interpretation and meaning – how they are imbedded in cultural patterns. For example, driving cars is a pivotal culture element for some working class youngsters, loaded with symbolic meanings regarding masculinity, technical skills and freedom. For them, information about the advantages (environmental or otherwise) of public transportation does not touch the core of the behaviour we want to alter. At the very core of environmental problems is an individual's understanding of his or her relationship with the natural environment. We would like to contribute to a global culture or environmental concern by unpacking individual’s understanding and values behind personal cultural patterns and life choices and how they impact the environment. The desired impact of the project is in the change of attitudes of young people, as agents of change, reflected in their life choices that have a lesser impact to the environment and a stronger commitment to a global culture of environmental concern.OBJ1: raise awareness among young people on how different cultural patterns impact the environment, and challenge their attitudes and values embedded in personal cultural patterns that have a negative impact to environmentOBJ2: establish an NFE methodology for use by youth workers that is easily implemented among young people, that challenges and shifts their attitudes and cultural identity towards being more environment friendly in their daily lives and advocate for its use among 50+ international youth organisationsActivities:• Kick-off meeting of partners, IT, 12/20• Training of leaders, RS, 4/21• Youth Exchange, MX, 7/21• Follow-up activities, all 3 countries, 8-10/21• Evaluation seminar, RS, 2/22It also includes creating and translating a brochure with a toolkit, examples of good practice and lessons learned and its dissemination to 50+ youth organisations worldwide.Target group: • young people aged 18-26; focus on outreach activities in order to bridge the participation gap to those underprivileged, mainly economically or otherwise intersectionally disadvantaged• youth workers in partner organisations• 50+ youth organisations reached through networks Alliance and CCIVS
AIM: contribute to building a global culture of environmental concern O-1: raise awareness among young people on how different cultural patterns impact the environment and challenge their attitudes and values embedded in personal cultural patterns with a negative impact to environmentO-2: establish NFE methodology easily implemented among young people that challenges and shifts attitudes towards being more environmentally friendly in daily lives and advocate for its use among 50+ youth org.
This project examines the influence of culture on the beliefs, attitudes and behaviours relevant to environmental issues and it offers practical solutions to formal and non-formal education practitioners to tackle this topic with young people. It explores "the elephant in the room" - the undeniable, yet alarmingly overlooked in non-formal and formal educational settings- link between nature and culture, environmental awareness and identity.
<< Background >> This project examines the influence of culture on the beliefs, attitudes and behaviours relevant to environmental issues and it offers practical solutions to formal and non-formal education practitioners to tackle this topic with young people. It explores "the elephant in the room" - the undeniable, yet alarmingly overlooked in non-formal and formal educational settings- link between nature and culture, environmental awareness and identity. << Objectives >> AIM: contribute to building a global culture of environmental concern O-1: raise awareness among young people on how different cultural patterns impact the environment and challenge their attitudes and values embedded in personal cultural patterns with a negative impact to environmentO-2: establish NFE methodology easily implemented among young people that challenges and shifts attitudes towards being more environmentally friendly in daily lives and advocate for its use among 50+ youth org. << Implementation >> The project was realised by CSO-s from Serbia-MAGNET, Italy-YAP and Mexico-VIVE in coop with Technical Institute Morelia, 11/2020 - 1/2023, with COVID induced suspension of 3 months (7-9/2021).•Residential activities: CBA: kick-off meeting 12/21; MA: training 3/22, youth exchange 7/22, seminar 9/22. •Practice phase for young participants in their communities: summer 22•Youthpass phase of self-assessment 7-9/22•Manual design and dissemination among likeminded youth organisations 9-12/22 << Results >> We created the definition and educational practice of the environmental competence one needs to develop in order to contribute to a global culture of environmental concern.We designed the non formal education methodology aiming to develop such competence: approach, setting, partnerships and exemplary methods, as well as tools to self or peer assess the level of competence and a practical suggestion on how to recognise and valorise the environmental competence using tools such as YouthPass.