Why are green skills important in education?

To maintain the quality of our life ensuring a healthy, sustainable future it is essential to improve environmental conditions. This can be done with the help of green skills, which is why teachers should share their knowledge about it with students to help them understand the importance of environmental responsibility. These skills empower students to contribute to solving global ecological challenges and promote a more eco-conscious society.

​The new edition of the course “Green skills for education” took place in Palermo from 20/10/2024 to 26/10/2024. The participants came from all across Europe, with Anne-Marie Molenberg from EPFC in Belgium, Maeve McNamara from LCETB in Ireland, Raffaella Montecucco from Collège Jacques Prèvert in France, Agnė Paprockaite and Dalia Versekėnaitė from Kauno Martyno Mazvydo progimnazija in Lithuania, Ingunn Helga Bjarnadóttir and Kristin Björk Gunnarsdóttir from Símenntunarmi∂stö∂ Eyjafjar∂ar in Iceland, Jakub Eltman, Marta Eltman-Bryś, Marta Cygańska and Michal Cygański from Stowarzyszenie “Kadry dla Konina” in Poland and participants coming from two different Hungarian schools: Elena Zdrakova Zdrakova from Budapest XIV: Kerületi Teleki Blanka Gimnázium and Krisztina Muresán coming from Kecskeméti Katona József Gimnázium.
 

​The first day of the course started with an overview of key concepts related to green skills, helping participants understand the course structure and fundamental ideas of sustainability. They particularly enjoyed engaging with the Green Skills Pyramid, which illustrates the hierarchy of green skills and the connections between different elements.

​The next day, a new and interesting topic about sustainable development began. In order to understand which approaches to everyday life need to be changed, the participants took part in an activity on the Agenda2030, learning how to improve their lives, well-being and as a result the ecological state of the world as a whole. Moreover the participants discovered environmental success stories as a way to talk about the climatic global crisis in an appropriate way, encouraging students to take action without feeling helpless and overwhelmed. 

​In the course, we discussed the 5 R principles for the future, which outline key strategies for improving modern life while combating pollution and global warming. We also talked about the importance of developing critical thinking skills. Participants had the chance to apply their critical thinking to the topic of greenwashing, learning to differentiate between legitimate brands and false claims.

​One day of the course was spent outdoors in a local park. Teachers that wish to introduce the topics of sustainability and care for the environment can really benefit from the use of outdoor education since learning to be in nature is the best tool to foster a sense of protection for our planet. To promote team building, groupwork, collaboration and inclusion, participants were divided into groups and had to complete an outdoor activity made of different tasks. As the participants sang, played and had to take on the role of their students for once, it was a very fun part of the course. 

​Gaining new skills and establishing a connection with nature, this course was an unforgetable experience for each of the participants, that really put their hearts into building new knowledge. 
 
Discover more about this course here.