FOREST and sustainability: Open Science Schooling and Citizen Science Project
The goal of the Forest and Sustainability project is to link the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) using our forests as a common thread. We seek to
associate air and water quality with the woodlands in order to make young people aware of how important these resources are in the struggle against
climate change.
THE FOREST is the best example of harmonious growt, with key ecosystem services around the planet. The greatest and most beautiful things in life ... grow
in silence ...
Regional
Spain
Catalonia / Several municipalities
It addresses urban-rural linkages
It refers to other types of transformations (soft investment)
No
No
Yes
As individual(s) in partnership with organisation(s)
First name: Dolors Last name: Grau Gender: Female Please describe the type of organization(s) you work in partnership with: EXPLORATORI of natural resources in the Sustainability Science and Technology research group of Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya. Nationality: Spain Function: Headmaster and researcher Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: Av Bases Manresa, 61-73 Town: Manresa Postal code: 08242 Country: Spain Direct Tel:+34 938 77 72 33 E-mail:dolors.grau@upc.edu Website:https://www.exploratori.org
First name: Lorena Last name: Mulero Gender: Female Please describe the type of organization(s) you work in partnership with: EXPLORATORI of natural resources in the Sustainability Science and Techbology research group of Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya
The EXPLORATORI is a research project that offers activities led by scientists with the aim of stimulating and promoting scientific vocations, encouraging young people's interest in scientific and technological subjects, using the sustainable use of nature's resources as the backbone. Nationality: Spain Function: Researcher Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: Av Bases Manresa, 61-73 Town: Manresa Postal code: 08242 Country: Spain Direct Tel:+34 938 77 72 33 E-mail:lorena.mulero@upc.edu
URL:https://www.exploratori.org Social media handle and associated hashtag(s): #Boscisostenibilitat #STEAM #Bosc
The goal of the Forest and Sustainability project is to link the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) using our forests as a common thread. We seek to associate air and water quality with the woodlands in order to make students aware of how important these resources are in the struggle against climate change. The project is aimed at secondary-school teachers and students (12-18 years old) as well as society in general (students’ families). Participants are encouraged to take part in several activities they can complete online using open-source software. They learn about the SDGs through a key resource—our forests—and by studying their immediate surroundings, town or county. Students from all social backgrounds can take part, both urban and rural communities are included.
A real process of co-creation involves the teachers of secondary school participants, it is an excellent example of Citizen Science and Open Science Schooling project, with different stakeholders involved. Several documents were needed to make the project possible; specifically, six “Activity Documents” with a common aesthetic to show that they were all part of the same project. The students study the water and air quality in their area, and realize that their daily water and energy consumption—including electricity, heating and transport—has a big impact and can be reduced with a simple change of habits. Using the data collected, they can evaluate whether there are sufficient green spaces nearby and assess the level of pollution they are exposed to. Participation in the project means that students ask themselves questions, which they alone cannot answer, and force them to interact with the community: family, public administration, companies...
This project involves no physical transformations. Rather, it is an educational initiative that makes students empower to create positive changes in the world with their actions in their immediate surroundings in contribution to a more global impact.
Forest sustainability
Open Science Schooling
Citizen Science
Secondary School
SDGs
The goal of the Forest and Sustainability project is to link the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) using the forests as a common thread, while giving value to the ecosystem services of forests. We seek to associate air and water quality and the woodlands in order to make students (12 to 18 age old) aware of how important these resources are in the struggle against climate change (see Fig.1). The project has been developed by EXPLORATORI of natural resources in the Sustainability Science and Technology research group of Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya.
This project is aimed at secondary-school teachers and students as well as society in general (students’ families). Participants are encouraged to take part in several activities they can complete online using open-source software, accompanied by experimental activities. They learn about the SDGs through a key resource -our forests- and by studying the situation in their immediate surroundings (their home, town or county). To achieve the objectives the participants can use 6 Activity documents available to teachers and students. Although the key SDGs are 4 and 15, these are used as a path to the others—particularly SDGs 6, 7 and 13.
The project is in line with the agreements that the Council of the European Union (EU) adopted in June 2022 “Recommendation on learning for the green transition and sustainable development”. In this sense, the project gives support to educators in developing their knowledge and skills to teach about the climate crisis and sustainability; creates supportive learning environments for sustainability that span all activities and operations by an educational institution and enable teaching and learning that is hands-on, interdisciplinary and relevant to local contexts; and actively involve students and staff, local authorities and the research and innovation community in learning for sustainability.
A series of documents were needed to make the project possible; specifically, six “Activity Documents” that were originally prepared in Word and PDF format. The project also made use of digital tools such as the Greenhouse Gases (GHG) calculator and a system for collecting results that originally used Excel spreadsheets.
Considering the intended audience, it soon became clear that we needed to use graphic design to make these materials more attractive and motivating. It
was very important that the Activity Documents share a common aesthetic to show that they were all part of the same project, and a graphic designer redesigned all of our contents to this end. Furthermore, the resulting format allowed participants to work entirely online, without the need to print out any of our documents. Since this is a clear advantage, the documents were designed largely to ensure they would be attractive in a digital format (see Figures 2, 3 and 4 with the covers of the documents).
First, the six Activity Documents were adapted to make them much more visually pleasing. Second, all Excel spreadsheets were transformed into Google Forms questionnaires with the addition of eye-catching photographs and other complements. Finally, a simplified, more pleasant adaptation that included images was prepared for the GHG calculator.
Science and technology are often seen as harsh and unpleasant, particularly for young people. As a result, it is very important to make these topics more attractive with interactive, up-to-date, aesthetically pleasing formats.
On the other hand, the project has an intrinsic beauty because promotes the study of a very important natural resource: THE FOREST, a very great example
of harmonious growth with key ecosystem services around the planet.
The greatest and most beautiful things in life ... grow in silence ...
This project is an excellent example of Citizen Science and Open Science Schooling (OSS). OSS includes several stakeholders such as the University; secondary schools and their teachers, students and families (co-creation project); local and regional administrations (town councils and the Department of Education of the Government of Catalonia); and local businesses. On the other hand, it is a citizen science project in which the researchers receive the information provided by the participants. For this reason, it is necessary that all participants have access to all the tools and software they need to consult.
The project has grown thanks to a real process of co-creation with the teachers of secondary school participants, with their feed-back to applicant. Students from participating schools take part in the project, evaluating the quality of the water, air and green spaces in their local area. They can access all data they need to do so through open-source software generated by the public administration of Catalonia. An earlier stage of the project did make use of programs that needed to be downloaded, but this led to problems since some participants did not have the required computers (Chrome Books). As a result, online materials were prepared and the software used was adapted to make the project as inclusive as possible. The project can be completed online using any sort of computer. Students from all social backgrounds can take part, and both urban and rural communities are included. Field trips visit either rural forests or urban areas with trees.
The methodology used and adapted allows us to obtain data from students from schools belonging to any social level. It is very important for the project that students from all over Catalonia can participate, regardless of their location and economic situation.
The first beneficiaries of the project are the students themselves, as their participation makes them aware that local changes in their daily lives have an impact on global changes. A pre-test and post-test carried out with the participating students allows to evaluate the change obtained.
This project has become a team effort between the university that initially developed it (the applicant) and participating secondary schools. Each year, teachers complete a training course lasting from October to April and recognized by the Education Department of Catalonia. Although the teachers are the recipients of this training, they also play an active role with the feedback they supply; this includes new proposals and solutions to possible inconveniences.
As for participating students, this project allows them to learn about their immediate surroundings: the quality of air, water and forests. To this end, they use both data provided by the administration and data they collect themselves in hands-on activities in the field: Explore Lichens, Explore Riparian Forests, and Explore Water Quality. These three projects perfectly complement the work students do in the classroom (see Figure 5).
Most young people are entirely unaware of how much water, electricity and fuel is consumed in their household. To learn more about this they need help from their families, and this opens the project up to a much larger part of society. The evaluation of the resulting data is key to learning how we contribute to increasing Greenhouse Gasses in our daily lives. The project makes participants aware of the urgent need for a change in habits and the role played by forests and forest management in reducing climate change.
Participation in the project means that students ask themselves questions, which they alone cannot answer, and force them to interact with the community: family, public administration, companies... This is the involvement of the society in the project.
This project involves several stakeholders on different levels:
Many stakeholders take part on a local level. Local companies involved in forest management participate, as do municipal governments and local departments of education.
On an educational level, this proposal comes from a university research group that works with secondary school teachers from across Catalonia who are not especially used to research work. This gives them a chance to dive into this new world and provides them with plenty of new opportunities. For the University, sharing knowledge and promoting sustainability values in this group is a significant challenge. This relationship exists on a regional level, as the project is promoted through the Government of Catalonia’s Department of Education and the University’s Institute for Educational Sciences. These entities help to promote the training course provided for participating teachers, which is key to the proper development of the project.
Several administrations and research centres also take part on a regional level, as all (open access) information consulted online comes from the Catalan Water Agency, the Catalan Department of Climate Action and Climate Change Office and the Cartographic and Geological Institute of Catalonia, among others.
On a European level, the project was inspired by two Erasmus+ projects related to Open Science Schooling in which the applicant group took part. Furthermore, participants consult EU websites on forest management that provide information on the role of women in this field.
The 2030 Agenda reflects the importance of an appropriate educational response. Education (SDG 4) is both a goal in itself and a means of attaining the other SDGs. Not only is it an integral part of sustainable development, it is also a key enabler; this is why education is an essential strategy in the pursuit of the SDGs. Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) is explicitly recognized as part of SDG 4. It is part of Target 4.7 along with Global Citizenship Education (GCED), which UNESCO promotes as a complementary approach.
This project is designed by university professors and collaborators from a range of departments: chemical engineering, electrical and power engineering, computer engineering and forest engineering. It also includes a graphic designer who makes materials and documents more appealing to young people.
It is also worth noticing the highly interdisciplinary character the project has in practice, as teachers from a range of areas are involved to ensure its success. It initially focuses on the subjects most closely related to science and technology, such as natural sciences, chemistry, physics, mathematics or biology. Nevertheless, it can also include areas such as social sciences, geography or even English, as the activity document on forest management (document no. 5) includes many international pages written in English.
Since the goal of the project is to make participants aware of a global problem—climate change—the involvement of teachers from a range of departments is important for addressing real-world problems (conserving water and energy, changing transportation habits, etc.).
Finally, on a university level, it should be noted that this project has inspired many bachelor’s and master’s dissertations, as well as an ongoing doctoral thesis within the UPC’s Natural Resources and the Environment program. All of these facts help to consolidate the project and give it greater added value.
This project includes a series of innovative elements, starting with the learning and teaching methods used. In the 21st century we should not be asking ourselves what to teach, but rather how to teach. Traditional education divides content into subjects, making it impossible to deal with challenges from the real world. Our society is faced with problems that include a whole range of different subjects; they need to be addressed holistically. Our project allows for a way of working that is developed through Open Science Schooling, and involves a range of different stakeholders: the University, secondary schools (with their teachers, students, and families), the administration (the Department of Education, local city councils...) and businesses. This connection with the real world inspires students and gives them meaning. It also pushes teachers to work together on different subjects (natural sciences, chemistry, physics, mathematics, biology, technology...).
Furthermore, this project is based on Citizen Science. The research group (applicant) automatically receive data provided by young students from across Catalonia. The online platform for sharing knowledge, tools, training and resources makes this process much simpler. In fact, Citizen Science is sometimes described as "public participation in scientific research"; it is participation in research by the community, for the community.
At the final workshop, participating schools share their results. This provides a clear look at the current circumstances in Catalonia, and the applicant takes part in the final conclusions of each edition, because the project is linked to a doctoral thesis that evaluates the impact produced on the participating students.
Another innovative aspect is that the follow-up of the project through a teacher training course allows the project executors to be co-creators and provide feedback. In this way, the project improves with each new edition.
The methodology of learning applied in this project can be replicated because the European Commission promotes the application of OSS in a whole range of initiatives such as Erasmus Programme. The participation of society through Citizen Science projects can also be applied anywhere.
As for the subject of the Forest and Sustainability project, it allows us to deal with essential issues such as water quality and conservation, air quality and energy conservation, the evaluation of forested areas and forest management, which are all very current and of interest to any community fighting climate change. Any European secondary school could replicate the project in their local setting. This is the appeal of this project: a topic associated with sustainability and the SDGs from the 2030 Agenda can be studied anywhere. The challenges involved directly appeal to a key part of society - the young students- who become actors, pushing their families to adopt the change in habits that is so essential to dealing with this great global challenge. The key to motivating the students lies in getting them involved in solving real problems that affect their community. They can be able to evaluate the status of their town in order to be critical and feel the need to change towards a more sustainable society and cities more in tune with nature.
Moreover, the methodology can be applied to other topics. The applicant team has started to work on a similar methodology for the study of the water-energy binomial. In this case, each group of participating students can evaluate the water consumption in their city and the need for energy to make it drinkable or to treat wastewater. Similarly, in each area, the amount of water needed to obtain the energy necessary for daily use can be evaluated.
In all cases, the aim is for students to become as familiar as possible with environmental issues in their immediate environment.
For the preparation of the project the teachers attend a training course that allows the project executors to be co-creators and provide feedback. The participants use 6 Activity documents:
1. Working on the SDGs through forests: a guide for teachers (see PDF).
2. Studying water quality and consumption (forests and water): evaluating water quality and determining your water footprint (see PDF).
3. Studying air quality and CO2 emissions (forests and air): evaluating air quality. Determining the tons of CO2 generated by your heating, electricity, water and transportation, as well as your total carbon footprint (see PDF).
4. Studying woodlands (forests and cities): evaluating wooded areas and whether or not they can absorb sufficient CO2. The relationship between water, air and forests.
5. Studying forestry management (sustainable management): evaluating the situation worldwide in comparison with your county and country. The role of women in forestry management.
6. Experimental activities: several hands-on activities in order to evaluate the quality of water and air in the immediate surroundings. The activities can be carried out in the field (‘Explore Lichens’, ‘Explore Riparian Forests’ and ‘Explore Water Quality’) and other ones in the laboratory.
After they analyse the situation in their local area, they learn about their own impact by looking at their consumption of water, electricity, heating and transportation. The students review the water, electricity, heating and fuel bills provided by their families. The data is collected online using Google Forms. They can also evaluate the importance of green spaces and whether there are sufficient green spaces in their county. The analysis of the results is completed in the classroom using data tools provided to schools that convert their data into graphs. Using a common template, these graphs are used to make an infographic, and the infographics produced by different participants are presented in a final session.
This project involves no physical transformations. Rather, it is an educational initiative that makes students empower to create positive changes in the world with their actions in their immediate surroundings. This improvement is connected to the struggle against climate change and helping students see that the natural spaces that surround them—be they forests or urban parks—are key to improving our welfare. Forest management plays a key role, and the participant students realize that preserving these natural spaces benefits water quality, air quality and biodiversity while also making our cities more liveable.
This project is focused on the participants’ local area (municipality or county) and encourages them to make changes in their everyday habits. Small, local actions (saving water and energy, new diet, mobility...) can help deal with more global challenges such as climate change. This is why it is so important to work on the relationship of the different SDGs, which are key to the entire project. The final activity document on forest management includes a change of scale, going beyond participants’ immediate surroundings and taking a look at different regions of the world facing serious deforestation problems. This is used to show the importance of appropriate forest management. Here, the gender-based perspective can also be introduced: in some of these regions, the women are the ones responsible for collecting the forest materials that provide their homes with energy.
In the final session, participants share their results with other members of the local community such as municipal authorities or businesses. Students need to be able to show the results of their research on air and water pollution in their local area and the connection between this and local forests, calculated as m2 of green spaces per inhabitant. This way, the participant students can even have an impact on matters like the need for more green spaces in their cities.
The Figure 6 shows the areas of Catalonia where the project has been implemented (60 Secondary schools, 110 teachers involved and 1.400 student participants). It shows the evolution of the project by including more counties in each of the three editions. The Figure 5 shows images that participants shared in social media when they participate in hands-on activities.
The impact of the project on the participating students has been evaluated from a pre-test and a post-test that allows verifying the effect in them of carrying out the project. In addition a questionnaire is carried out among the participating teachers. These results have been presented at several scientific congresses (6 publications) and in some scientific articles (2 publications, one of them in revision process). The project has been included in the Mediterranean Youth solutions report 2021 (p. 21), published by Sustainable Development Solutions Network-UN . See the documents attached (PDF) in “Documents that demonstrate the maturity level of the initiative”.
This project helps to develop students’ capacity to do research, ask questions, be critical and make decisions. These decisions can be applied in their own homes and can involve their entire family. Small changes and actions on a local level can have repercussions on a global scale. The results of the project have been spectacular, and have reconnected many students with nature—particularly those living in urban areas. Most of the teachers who take part are eager to repeat the experience with new students.
The project is already well-established but entirely dynamic, and can continue to grow in the near future. If it receives this award, it will be able to include other aspects like evaluating urban forests and the capacity of the trees on the city to absorb the CO2 generated. Moreover, the data obtained so far on water and air quality and the study of forest situation for several areas of Catalonia must be processed and treated as a whole.
For the four competence groups there is a clear relationship with the project, specially:
Embodying sustainability values: The project enables learners to reflect on their way of thinking, their plans, and their actions. It is an opportunity to discuss on values about their habits in relation to climate change (Activity documents 1, 2, 3 and 4). Access to green spaces can reduce health-related socio-economic inequalities (Activity documents 4 and 5). In this project the forest is the common thread to know that our wellbeing, health and security depend on the wellbeing of nature (Activity documents 2,3,4, 5 and 6).
Embracing complexity in sustainability: The main objective is for young participants to become aware of their power to change the world on an individual and collective level within the context of society as a whole. To emphasize the need to preserve our forests and to understand that sustainable management is key to maintaining our forests’ natural resources. To become aware of two lines of action in the struggle to fight climate change and conserve the natural resources: resource management in forests, and control of their consumption of energy and water.
Acting for sustainability: It is a clear example to encourage learners to take action at individual and collective level to shape sustainable futures and invites them to demand action from those responsible to make change happen. Their individual actions (at home, saving water and energy) have repercussions at the local level (in their city) and at the global level. Analysing the situation of green areas in their district allows them to formulate proposals to their local government.
Envisioning sustainable futures: The project enables learners to visualise alternative future scenarios and identify actions to achieve a sustainable future and encourages them to change their own habits of everyday life, and permits that sustainability problems must be tackled by combining different disciplines.
