More information
Description
The implementation of the "Changing with climate" project is based on the active partnership and exchange of good practices between 7 schools from Belitsa, Berkovitsa, Burgas, Veselinovo, Bansko, Svishtov and Sofia, 2 NGOs from Sofia, and Friends of the Earth - Norway. The main goal is to inform about the ways climate change impacts our health, our economy and our environment as well as to offer specific measures on how to adapt to those changes.
Our collaboration will result in the development of a free information and educational online portal, three approved by the Ministry of Education and Science school curricular, the campaign envisages trainings of teachers, carrying out regional campaigns, involving students in climate change projects through educational modules, interactive games, videos and share good practices.
By providing various information meetings, social networks and regional trainings for both teachers and students, the project will aim to actively informing the public about the progress and results of the project and engage them in active participation in activities towards the climate changes and its effect on the biodiversity, forests and water resources as well as the impact of climate change on economic sectors, the urban environment and people’s health.
More information about the project is available here:
http://su-cvetanradoslavov.com/
Summary of project results
The main goal of the project "Changing with climate" is to organize a large-scale campaign to raise awareness and to improve competencies of the Bulgarian society regarding the climate change impact on human health, environment and social and economic life of modern society, as well as the concrete measures related to the climate change mitigation, adaptation and resilience that need to be undertaken.
The specific project objectives are:
• Establishing a partnership between schools and NGOs from Bulgaria and a Norwegian partner;
• Exchanging experience and good practices between the partners on the basis of shared information and visits of delegations;
• Developing online information and educational portal accessible to all;
• Developing three school curricula followed by the Ministry of Education and Science approval;
• Conducting teacher training;
• Organizing regional campaigns and student projects in Belitsa, Berkovitsa, Burgas, Veselinovo, Bansko, Svishtov and Sofia related to climate change;
• Informing the target area communities about the results achieved by the campaign, as well as proposing to the local government concrete measures for adaptation to climate change;
• Ensuring transparency during the process through active exchange of information with the media and the use of social networks;
• Ensuring effective (in terms of content and time) and optimal (in terms of financial resources spent) project management.
An online portal that provides educational and information materials, training, self-training, sharing of experience.
The portal contain texts, videos, illustrations, tests, dilemmas and model stories, as well as educational scenarios for teachers and sample scenarios for civic initiatives. The total number of people reached by educational activities is 4547. Within the framework of regional campaigns and school projects, 31 initiatives were carried out – 7 campaigns and 24 school projects with 4276 participants (parents and students).
271 teachers, principals, deputy principals, experts are included in the trainings on Creation and approval of 3 training programs and training of 120 pedagogical specialists.
All project activities have their educational nature, since for many of the participants this is the first in-depth information on the topic of climate change.
The following results/indicators have been achieved. Quantitative: 1. A full bilingual online portal KLIMADAPT has been created, containing: 1.1. 403 pages of texts, visualized by numerous illustrations, incl. PDF worksheets for direct online or offline work of teachers, parents, specialists, interactive games, tests, scenarios for work in the classroom and for organizing extracurricular and/or out of school activities, sample scenarios for civic initiatives, description of good practices, videos, illustrations, tests, dilemmas and model stories, as well as lesson plans for teachers. They are organized in the following sections: a) General information on the topic - includes texts on: ˗ climate; ˗ greenhouse effect and greenhouse gases; ˗ consequences for climate, sea level, human health, biodiversity, water and forest resources, economic sectors (energy, industry, transport, agriculture, tourism, waste, banking and insurance); ˗ extreme weather phenomena; ˗ measures to address climate change, policy of Bulgaria, the European Union and other international organizations; b) Information and educational materials, including: ˗ educational scenarios for conducting lessons within the framework of general education and specialized training; ˗ dilemmas-case studies to provoke the active position and critical thinking of young people; ˗ description of 15 professions - how they affect climate change and how they are secondarily affected by it; ˗ worksheets (experiments, model stories, topics for discussions, games, fairy tales, etc.). c) Library. For the convenience of teachers and those looking for individual materials, the Library is structured in the following parts: ˗ videos, where in 4 different sections are clustered thematic videos, affected animals, extreme natural phenomena and additional videos. (All 54 videos are integrated into the various general or educational materials); ˗ educational materials in PDF format are clustered in 3 categories: student worksheets, professions and games. All PDF student worksheets are integrated into the general or educational materials; ˗ additional materials include: 18 other educational manuals, some of them in Bulgarian and others in English; 15 good practices from Bulgaria, Norway, the world; materials provided by the partners, including a training manual on the topics Climate, Energy and Environment, provided by the Norwegian partner. All texts are accompanied by 93 illustrations/animations to texts in the General information on climate change section, 262 illustrations to the info-educational materials, 35 illustrations to 22 interactive games. 1.2. Presentation of 15 good practices from Bulgaria, Europe, incl. the Norwegian partner and the world; 1.3. Twenty two interactive games; 1.4. Fifty four educational and documentary videos related to different dimensions of climate change and 3 additional videos. 2. Educational video that helps each new user to be familiar with the functionalities of the portal and the possibilities for using all its parts. One message has been uploaded to the project website, summarizing the results of Activity No. 3. The online portal and online educational module have been tested twice and coordination with the IT specialist and the designer of the online portal and online educational module has been carried out. During the programming, illustration and design of the portal, the subcontractors carried out a consistent check of the correspondence between the structure, texts and interrelationships between the individual components of the portal, and made the necessary corrections until the final product was finalized. The testing of the online portal and the created educational materials in a real learning environment was coordinated and finalized, with the participation of teachers and other experts from the Project Team. Qualitative results: Ensured the possibility of using the portal by an unlimited number of users - teachers, students, parents, citizens and others. The significant effects of climate change are presented and options for individual and group work on significant topics are proposed.
The programs were developed in the form of the Information Register of Approved Qualification Programs and were submitted for approval to the Ministry of Education and Science through the Information register of the approved programs for the qualification of pedagogical specialists (IROPK) platform of the Ministry of Education and Science (MES). The programs have the following names: 1) Environmental Education at School - Climate Change and the Effects on Economic Sectors - 2 credits; 2) Environmental Education at School - Impact of Climate Change on Environmental Components - 2 credits; 3) Environmental education at school - climate change, natural disasters and human health - 1 credit. We received approval from the MES for the three training programs, with Order РД 09-1431/24.01.2022. The three training programs are registered in the IROPK with the following Unique Identification Number (UIN) numbers: • Environmental education at school - climate change and effects on economic sectors, 2 credits, UIN 90930064; • Environmental education at school - impact of climate change on environmental components, 2 credits, UIN 90930065; • Environmental education at school - climate change, natural disasters and human health, 1 credit, UIN 90930066. All proposed trainers have been approved for the three training programs. The IPE prepared and organized 2 trainings under the first program in the period 11-15 July 2022: • Environmental education at school - impact of climate change on environmental components - 2 credits. • Environmental education at school - climate change and effects on economic sectors - 2 credits. 47 pedagogical specialists - teachers, principals, school psychologists, project coordinators, pedagogical advisors participated in it. The training under the second program was in the period 13-15 July 2022 and 31 pedagogical specialists participated in it. In this way, 78 pedagogical specialists were trained.
Thus, activity 6 of the project “Regional Campaigns and School Projects” led to: • raising public awareness regarding climate change and its impact on human health, the environment and social and economic life; • generating real ideas for undertaking specific measures to mitigate the impact, adapt and be resilient to the oncoming climate change; • creating trust between citizens, local authorities and local businesses, as well as increasing the capacity of local communities to interact in implementing the generated ideas and action measures.
In this context, the proposed activities are orientated to the following target groups:
• at school level - to students, their parents and teachers from 7 schools participating in the project
• at local / regional level - to fellow teachers and their students, as well as to representatives of local / regional authorities, local business and local
• at the national level - to teachers and lecturers from the country, to members of civil society organizations, to the general experts and leaders from the Ministry of Education and Science, the Ministry of Environment and Water and the Regional Ministry
• at the international level – the project activities will support the interaction and exchange of experience between the Bulgarian partners and the Norwegian organization.
The following results were achieved: • 31 regional campaigns and school projects were conducted with 4276 participants. • Models for solving emerging challenges related to climate change and its impact on human health, the environment and social and economic life were discussed in schools, as well as proposals for formulating/adapting local policies in this area. • Increased awareness and willingness to contribute to climate change mitigation, adaptation and resilience activities. • There were 19 publications in local, regional and national media.
Summary of bilateral results
Norges Naturvernforbund (Friends of the Earth Norway) are involved in a wide range of activities related to environmental and nature conservation, but work specifically in the area’s conservation, climate change, energy and transportation. The work methods range from awareness raising, policy development and lobbying to practical projects that make the environmental life style more easier for ordinary citizens.SPARE, an international school project on energy and climate, is one of the main international projects of Naturvernforbundet. It is aimed at pupils aged 12-16 and it has been developed in cooperation with environmental NGOs and teachers from more than 15 countries. Methodological materials and teacher training programs are also available, as well as material for kindergartens.The visit of a group of Bulgarian teachers to Norway and their meetings with their colleagues, as well as activists of civil society organizations, will contribute to better knowledge on and transfer of the Norwegian experience in the field of environmental education and civic initiatives to tackle the climate change consequences.