Case study: The Edu4Clima programme
Photo acknowledgement: Edu4Clima website
- Primary, Secondary
- Indoor & Outdoor
- Citizen science, Experiment, Field trip, Hands-on activity
- Greece
The Edu4Clima programme
Edu4Clima is a programme for primary and secondary schools in Greece based on experiential and exploratory learning that aims to introduce the fundamental concepts of anthropogenic climate change, including soil degradation.
The programme is run by the Research, Innovation, and Dissemination Hub in Finokalia, in collaboration with the University of Crete’s Laboratory of Environmental Chemical Processes (EPEHEDI). The Hub is located in the old primary schools of the Finokalia and Nofalia settlements in Ano Merabello, within the Municipality of Agios Nikolaos. The Hub acts as a comprehensive destination for education and awareness on climate change, sustainable development, and sustainability and is where school visits and the EDU4Clima training program take place. In addition a research station, Finokalia Atmospheric Observatory, takes atmospheric measurements that can be used in educational activities.
Objective
The educational goals for pupils and teachers are to:
- Evaluate climate data and analyse the earth’s energy balance in relation to climate change (e.g. What does climate change mean?)
- Understand the effects of climate change on environmental, biological, soil, and social systems, from local to global scales (e.g. Why does climate change matter?)
- Compare climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies, considering current environmental, economic, political, and ethical implications. (e.g. What can we do?)
- Enable pupils to process real experimental results from data collected at Finokalia station, experience the research process and what researchers do, and explore potential careers related to climate change.
Approach
The Edu4Clima programme is structured to be interactive and experiential, requiring active pupil participation. It includes short interactive presentations, films, and the use of an online assessment tool after each unit, as well as out-of-classroom activities. Real-time assessments help gauge understanding, with a focus on areas where pupils show lower comprehension or need further clarification.
The programme employs simple experiments and demonstrations to illustrate phenomena such as the ability of carbon dioxide to absorb infrared radiation, the impact of ice melting on sea level and salinity, the basic principles of ocean circulation, increasing ocean acidity and its effects on marine life, and soil erosion and degradation. Pupils are also involved in processing data collected by the Finokalia station.