More information
Description
According to the Strategy for Climate Adaptation, heavy rains affecting the city are to be more frequent due to climate change, the water from the roofs of the primary school No. 195 in Wawer district flows towards the clinics and stores, flooding the area and making access to these services difficult. Similar problems occur in other areas of the district. To change this situation, the knowledge about the use of nature based solutions for landscape retention among inhabitants needs to be raised.
The project will sustainably manage rainwater from 3947 m2 school roofs, using various adaptation and mitigation solutions (45 in total) created with the participation of students, such as rain gardens, flower meadows, green roofs and walls, rainwater tanks, unsealing and permeable surfaces. Educational and instructional materials provided via the educational path (in the field and online) & the publication will enable education of students and teachers from other schools and Wawer residents.
The main goals of the project include:
Engage 450 students & 70 teachers (school 195) in BGI creation.
Educate 2600 primary school teachers from PL how to teach about CC.
Raise awareness of 1000 Wawer inhabitants about BGI implementation.
The beneficiaries of the projects thus include:
Students & teachers from the school 195 via active workshops.
Students and teachers in PL via lesson plans, publication, trainings.
Inhabitants of Wawer district via educational path and activities.
Summary of project results
The project aimed to solve the problem of local flooding and to deepen the knowledge of students and teachers about the effects of climate change and methods of adaptation to them.
The Wawer district is the largest district of Warsaw in terms of area and one of the greenest, but because it does not have a storm sewer system, it is particularly exposed to the effects of climate change related to increasingly heavy rainfall. It is often affected by severe flooding and instant floods resulting from heavy rainfall. Rainwater from the roofs and paved areas around Primary School 195 named after King Maciuś I, where the project activities were carried out, flowed onto the area of the nearby clinic and shop and accumulated on the paved school grounds, making them difficult to use. The roads leading to the school were often flooded, which in turn made it difficult for students and staff to get there.
Therefore, the biggest challenge that the project addressed was the management of rainwater by implementing blue-green infrastructure solutions on the school premises to solve local flooding (also in neighbouring areas), promoting ways of managing rainwater and educating the entire community of the district in this area, so that similar solutions could be replicated in other places throughout Wawer, responding to the need for rainwater management.
An extremely important need was also to deepen the knowledge of Wawer students and teachers about the challenges related to climate change and methods of mitigation and adaptation to them, as well as to engage the school community in the participatory process of creating a model climate-friendly school and conducting an educational campaign addressed to schools in Warsaw and throughout Poland.
In addition to solving a specific problem related to local flooding, Primary School No. 195 in Warsaw''s Wawer was to become a model centre for education on climate change and its effects and counteracting them. A field guide was published presenting how to wisely manage space to retain water where it falls and to increase biodiversity. The educational activities and investment carried out at Primary School 195 were intended to inspire other schools in the district, in Warsaw and throughout Poland to implement similar solutions in their areas.
At Primary School No. 195 in the Wawer district of Warsaw, we created a demonstration educational area with an educational path on adaptation to the negative effects of climate change.
All work was carried out, with the participation of the entire school community, which we had previously prepared to participate in the project. Teachers interested in the topic from Poland could take advantage of a free training program, lesson scenarios developed and publications.
We also carried out micro-realizations to retain rainwater at five additional schools located in the Wawer District of the capital city of Warsaw (Project Partner), as part of practical workshops with the participation of students.
The main educational activities carried out include:
- Workshops for teachers and students of Primary School No. 195 (March-April 2022), during which we talked to teachers about the project, planned activities and worked on lesson plans and extracurricular activities on adaptation to climate change.
- Consultations with the participation of the entire community of SP 195 (April-May 2022), during which students and teachers took part in workshops on the design of a selected element of the investment - a pocket park, to best adapt its function to the needs of the school community, and then the entire school community selected the most interesting ideas for implementation.
- A series of practical workshops for students, including implementation workshops (September and October 2023) during which students and teachers, with the participation of the contractor, created nature-based solutions, which are part of the investment - including rain gardens and flower meadows, and maintenance workshops (April 2024) of the created NBS.
- Practical implementation workshops in five additional primary and secondary schools in the Wawer district (April 2024). The schools were selected through an open recruitment process. On their premises, with the participation of students, micro-retention solutions were created.
- Picnic inaugurating the Model Education Center on Mitigation and Adaptation to Climate Change in the City (October 2023). Activities included debates and numerous workshops on topics related to climate change, nature conservation and supporting biodiversity. The event was accompanied by artistic performances by school groups, a café prepared by the school Parents'' Council and games with prizes.
- A two-stage training program for teachers, educators and school managers from all over Poland. The first stage included a month-long e-learning training on education on adaptation to climate change in cities, during which participants familiarized themselves with the materials, performed practical tasks and exchanged experiences on the forum. The 20 best e-learning graduates took part in the second stage - a two-day stationary workshop, which included a study visit to Primary School No. 195, participation in practical workshops at school, testing a field game with a web application, discussions and lectures.
Investment:
- The executive project of the investment carried out on the premises of Primary School No. 195 was developed taking into account the results of consultations with the school community. The implementation of the blue-green infrastructure on the school premises consisted of, among others, a pocket park, rain gardens in the ground and a container, rainwater containers, flower meadows, a bicycle shelter with a green roof and walls of creepers, a green wall, a sensory path and an obstacle course, a green classroom, a vegetable garden with composters and a pergola made of living wicker. We planted new trees, shrubs and perennials. In addition, we removed part of the hardened surface to enlarge the pocket park and the biologically active area, and in other places, we used permeable surfaces. As a result, the 0.029 ha were unsealed.
- The infrastructure supporting retention was supplemented by small architectural elements, insect and butterfly houses, bird feeders, boards and educational games.
- A demonstration educational area was created, where you can learn about NBS, and an educational path is part of it. The total area of created/revitalized green areas was 0.17 ha.
- Selected elements of the investment were carried out with the participation of students as part of practical workshops.
Micro-investments supporting retention implemented at five additional schools located in the Wawer District of the Capital City of Warsaw are:
- Primary School No. 404 – In the place frequently flooded parts of the school ground, we created a linear rain garden in the ground, the task of which is to drain nearby pedestrian routes and protect the building foundations from flooding. In addition, we planted a climber by the fence and additional plantings that arranged a place for recreation.
- Primary school no. 109 – A school biodiversity corner was created with zones for various organisms: mammals, birds and insects. We created a retention basin, and planted plants of different shapes and properties, which will create a multi-level effect, like in a forest. So that the garden could also be used for growing vegetables, we created raised permaculture planting beds.
- Secondary school no. 26 – we placed a rainwater tank under one of the downpipes so that we could use the collected water to water newly planted shrubs and installed a weather station.
- Primary school no. 124 – we created a multi-species flower meadow, supporting biodiversity - insects, butterflies but also birds, we also placed additional tree plantings on the area and installed a green wall.
- Primary school no. 128 – we created a rain garden in the ground and a container.
Products:
- An educational path on the premises of school 195 in Wawer. The developed educational boards create a knowledge base, combined with a lot of information included in additional materials. Thanks to it, each person can learn how to set up their own rain garden, what the advantages of a flower meadow are, how to make compost valuable etc. It is available in both on-site and online versions.
- The field game "Mission Retention" with a web application associated with the educational path on the premises of SP 195, in which the player can take on the role of a seeker of lost knowledge about retention. To participate in the game, you need a smartphone/tablet with an Internet connection. "Mission Retention" consists of ten activities/puzzles, the hints for which are located on educational boards, and the person who completes the tasks correctly the fastest takes the lead in the ranking.
- Lesson scenarios on climate change adaptation that teachers can use to conduct lessons with both lower and upper primary school students, as well as with the possibility of adapting them to the needs of secondary school students.
- Educational publication entitled “A climate-friendly school at your fingertips!” (1,500 printed copies and online version) consisting of 4 parts: 1. Model solutions for blue-green infrastructure, 2. Guidelines on how to implement selected blue-green infrastructure facilities in the form of workshops, 3. Formal and legal conditions, 4. Sources of investment financing.
- A video report of the implementation of the project.
- Educational film “How to plant a tree?”
- Project website https://spk.sendzimir.org.pl/
The project allowed for comprehensive management of rainwater using the blue-green infrastructure around Primary School No. 195 named after King Matt I in Warsaw, thanks to which we solved the problem of immediate floods in the areas adjacent to the school.
A very important result of the project is the integration of the school community. The school where the project activities were carried out had its social problems before joining the project. Its implementation contributed to the renewal of the spirit of cooperation. Both among students and teachers. Involving the entire school community first in the process of co-designing and then co-creating the changed space of the school allowed them not only to gain knowledge in the field of counteracting the effects of climate change, but also gave the entire school community a sense of pride, agency and belonging to the place, and responsibility for it. This effect is invaluable and will last for a long time.
The educational and information activities carried out and the wide-ranging promotion of easy-to-replicate solutions used in Primary School No. 195 allowed for their use to be disseminated in other educational institutions and by residents of the entire Warsaw. The implementation of smaller investment activities in five additional schools allowed to increase the scope of the project''s impact and areas conducive to retention in Wawer.
It is worth adding that changing the surroundings of schools to be more green has a major impact on the quality of children''s daily functioning at school and their mental condition. Creating, as part of the implemented investment, green places for learning and resting between classes is also valuable for this reason.
The school has also become a place of recreation after its working hours, it is eagerly visited by trips from other institutions and residents from neighbouring areas.
The positive impact of the communication activities carried out is also noticeable - a larger number of people than originally expected learned about the effects of the project and its indicators increased. The participatory activities carried out increased the indicator of the area of created/revitalized green areas and the indicator of the area of unsealed land because the school youth pressed for the removal of the concrete blocks in front of the school and the enlargement of the green area.
The created area is also an excellent place to conduct outdoor activities or deepen knowledge during a walk. It is complemented by a field game, which was met with great enthusiasm by teachers and students.
All activities carried out as part of the project formed a coherent information and educational campaign, which resulted in great interest in its effects. The website dedicated to the project is gathering more and more users, and the knowledge base in the form of an online educational path and the publication, which is a kind of guide on how to conduct a similar process in another place, are very popular. Thanks to the publication, knowledge on a comprehensive approach to the process of implementing changes at schools is distributed, regardless of the conditions and location, which is why schools all over Poland use it. Participation in conferences, training courses and workshops - aimed at diverse recipients: architects, waterworks workers, local government officials or students and teachers, has always stimulated lively discussion, and the project has been appreciated. In particular, the participatory approach, which has translated into measurable results in the form of increased indicators and impact on the local community.
Summary of bilateral results
Thanks to the participation of Kirsten Paaby, a representative of PS Paaby Prosess Edu Action from Norway, the project gained additional educational value. She participated in training activities for teachers, showing good practices of engaging education methods in the field of climate and sustainability education in Norway and other Scandinavian countries. She indicated examples of students'' participation in shaping the school environment and real influence on its functioning. She also showed how Scandinavian educational units cooperate with stakeholders – groups of neighbours, non-governmental organisations and research centres, which inspired the community of Primary School No. 195 to identify such opportunities in their case. The materials prepared by the project partner inspired teachers from all over Poland, encouraging them to implement proven Norwegian solutions, as part of as part of formal and non-formal education.The bilateral partnership allowed the Sendzimir Foundation employees to deepen their knowledge of effective climate education for children and young people and what to pay special attention to. This is extremely valuable because the Foundation mainly deals with adult education. The conclusions from the project and the good practices provided by the partner in the materials (webinar recording) will certainly be used in subsequent projects. We are in contact with Kirsten Paaby, a representative of PS Paaby Prosess Edu Action from Norway and have also worked with her on other project proposals. Depending on the needs and possibilities, we will use joint educational experiences in the future and the cooperation will continue.