Current Projects
"Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world". Nelson Mandela
Y4Trees - European Youth for Trees Project
Y4T - For the future of trees and young people
The European Y4T project was inspired by young people's interest and concern for trees and forests. Many young people have now had experience of Forest School approaches from an early age. So to extend this experience four European organisations, with a range of experience in forestry and environmental education, have now developed some learning resources to support youth/ student group leaders and educators.
Many young people feel a strong urge to conserve trees and forests as a heritage from previous generations and to plant them as a legacy for future ones. With all the political focus and funding on tree planting, re-wilding, agroforestry and woodland carbon trading, there will be a vast range of new enterprises and careers for young people to explore and develop. So this timely pack of resources will provide some guidance on developing more entrepreneurship in young people related to their own future work and lifestyles. Over the next generation young people will have many opportunities for developing new sustainable forestry-related projects and enterprises - related to forestry, nature conservation, agroforestry, eco-tourism, hospitality, food production, wood manufacturing and non-wood forest products.
The project will also help to develop and support young people’s responsible citizenship and political engagement as it focuses on exploring and promoting the multiple values of trees and forests, as well as empowering the youth voice and campaigning. There are many forest-related matters that concern young people. There is a lot to change. Forests around the world are under threat from unsustainable felling, competing land uses, poor management, pollution, and the international spread of pests and diseases. Most significantly for the future of humanity and especially young people, they act as carbon sinks in helping to mitigate against climate change. In Europe forests and woodland are also the largest contributors to renewable energy.
The Guide, Activity Sheets, Case Studies and videos provide a comprehensive, freely downloadable resource enabling youth workers, educators and organisers to support youth and student groups. Additionally we have expanded the Young People and European Forests competition to include the UK, organised by our partners The Royal Forestry Society.
Website www.y4trees.net
Contact
Adam Cade, Project Coordinator y4trees@gmail.com
The Guide has three sections:
Introducing trees
Preparing for the future
Exploring trees and forests
Training and education
Promoting trees
Organising group projects and activities
Raising awareness
Checking our impacts
Influencing decision-makers
Calling for a change
Working with trees
Being creative and enterprising
Volunteering
Thinking about careers
The 22 Activity Sheets provide short practical activities for educators to use with youth and student groups.
The 14 Case Studies describe a range of activities carried out by youth and student groups across Europe.
The Royal Forestry Society have now joined The Young People in European Forests competition with partners in eleven other European countries. Details of the competition are here on the Royal Forestry Society website.
The short videos give examples of young people’s views and simple activities.
Youth for Trees was a 3 year project from September 2019 to September 2022 funded by EC Erasmus + Youth Strategic Partnership
Target audience
Youth/ student educators and coordinators working with youth, trees and forests eg. in National Parks, Regional Parks, nature and forest parks, environmental education centres, forest organisations, land management and environmental organisations, local authorities.
The four partner organisations are social enterprises, non-profit organisations and a university. They all educate about trees, woods, their products, people and sustainable management as well as providing education and training. They are coordinated by SustEd – Sustainability Education, UK, and includes partners from Portugal – ASPEA (Portuguese Association for Environmental Education) www.aspea.org, Spain – Iroko Desarrollo Forestal Sostenible www.iroko.org.es,
Poland - Warsaw University Of Life Science – SGGW www.sggw.pl
Toolkit for learning about traditional orchards
More than 80 percent of all traditional heritage orchards have disappeared across Europe within the past 60 years. In the same way the skills and knowledge associated with traditional orchards and local heritage varieties of fruit trees, including their rich biodiversity and cultural heritage, are declining over Europe. However new orchard social enterprises are increasingly being established over many parts of Europe.
In most regions lack of marketing and loss of expertise has severely threatened their viability, as well as all the other economic, social and political forces against traditional orchards. But they have unique and multiple values especially for biodiversity. So the focus of this project is education about the value, conservation and sustainable management of these invaluable orchards and ways of processing and marketing their fruit.
We have developed some innovative learning and teaching resources which are copyright free and easily downloadable. We hope that this will motivate and guide more people and groups working together to set up, manage and use traditional orchards and their heritage fruit trees both as commercial and social enterprises. But above all we hope that it will educate a new generation of skilled and knowledgeable orchard enthusiasts and growers. Our target audience is all learners, educators and trainers of land-managing community organisations and social enterprises, as well as farmers, smallholders, and fruit growers.
The Toolkit includes:
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Case studies of organisations that educate about traditional orchards.
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A learning and teaching guide about the traditional management and use of fruit trees and orchards.
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Examples of education programmes, events and courses provided by the partners.
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Videos about the traditional management and use of fruit trees and orchards.
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A network of traditional orchardists and orchard organisations across Europe.
https://coreorchard.wixsite.com/core
Partners
The CORE Orchard European Project is a two-year Erasmus + Partnership project
with partners in the UK, Germany, Hungary, Italy and Poland.
SustEd – Sustainability Education, UK
https://susteducation1.wixsite.com/susted
Fundacja AgriNatura, Poland
Ecological Institute for Sustainable Development, Hungary
Streuobstwiesen Netzwerk Nordeifel eG, Germany
Archeologia Arborea Foundation, Italy
Adult Education Strategic Partnership - Funding of 59,000 Euro was contributed by Erasmus Plus Key Action 2 Co-operation for innovation and the exchange of good practices.
For further information:
June 2022
http://coreorchard.wixsite.com/core
LLOOF - Living and Learning on Organic Farms
Educating adults about volunteering and organic food production on farm enterprises is the focus of this partnership project with national WWOOF organisations from ten European countries. It has developed and promoted a Learning Guide as an online open educational resource for adult learners about organic food production, entrepreneurship, volunteering and cultural exchange on farm enterprises. The adults, especially 18-34 year olds, can then relate this online learning to practical residential work experience and informal learning on a range of small enterprises in different European countries as well as worldwide.
Living and Learning on Organic Farms - Your introduction to learning as a volunteer on an organic farm, March 2016
Downloadable as a pdf here.
Learn sustainability online course
A 15 hour course about Sustainable Development and Education.
A short online course developed by SustEd as an introduction to sustainable development for educators and trainers.
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The sessions include links to downloadable books, films and websites.
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Each session has units with a downloadable .doc file which includes weblinks to downloadable books, films and websites.
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The files are based on draft notes, images and activities.
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The activities include role-play, games, discussion, and cases-studies.
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SustEd uses this online course in association with in-service training courses, workshops and other training events.
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Please contact SustEd for feedback on the educational resource.
www.learnsustainability.weebly.com
Youth Xchange Guidebook to Climate Change and Lifestyles
The YouthXchange Guidebook on Climate Change and Lifestyles, which focuses on the challenges, opportunities and good practices of climate change, is the first in a series of thematic guidebooks. This series is produced for young people and people working with young people, educators, teachers, trainers and youth leaders around the world.
Download the pdf file here.
Youth Xchange Guidebook to Climate Change and Lifestyles, UNESCO/ UNEP, 2011
Ethica - The Ethical Finance Game
Ethica -The Ethical Finance Game is an educational board and role-play game. It lets players assume the roles of bank customers, investment bankers or co-operative business entrepreneurs with money to save, invest and loan.
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Exploring the social and environmental impact of personal banking, investments and businesses.
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Helping players make more responsible and ethical decisions when managing their money.
Game available from SustEd at discount price £5 + p and p.