School goes green
“School goes green” was a project led by Per esempio, in response to ACCTING’s call for pilots Cultivating changemakers. The project aimed to promote the active engagement and participation of young people in the local territory, learning by practicing a healthy, equal and sustainable lifestyle, as well as contributing to the impact of the hosting associations involved.
Per esempio is a non-profit organisation based in Palermo Italy, aimed at reinforcing social cohesion and creating equal opportunities for young people, adults and professionals through education and training.
Activities
Activities were implemented in Palermo and addressed to students between 14 and 17 years old. The project successfully engaged 21 students of R. Margherita High School in a summer volunteering experience with local NGOs in the field of social and environmental sustainability. Central to the project’s approach was the co-creation and -implementation of the project with a students’ committee (the ‘Sindacato’), leveraging the element of ‘peer influence’.
The project was implemented through the following key phases and activities:
- Preparation phase: The programme was co-created with students and teachers of the high school. Six students of the student’s committee were engaged as peer facilitators. Local hosting organisations were contacted through Per Esempio’s network and seven organisations agreed to host voluntary internships in the field of biodiversity (Legambiente Palermo), circular economy (Sartoria sociale, Emmaus) and social justice/education (Santa Chiara, Casa ancora, Booq, Per Esempio).
- Information campaign: An information campaign advertising the programme was co-created and implemented with the support of teachers and the student committee. This included class visits, a video promotion, podcast and social media campaign, as well as an info day for interested students.
- Volunteering experience: Applicants to the programme were matched with host organisations based on their interests and needs. Volunteering agreements were signed between volunteers, parents, Per esempio and the host organisations to clarify objectives, responsibilities and benefits. The participating students supported the activities of the local organisations for an average of 45 hours through the summer break in June & July.
- Mentoring & peer-support: A mentoring programme supported participants throughout in their reflection and learning. An initial workshop distilled basics of the European Green Deal, assessed learning expectations and stimulated critical thinking around activism and sustainability. During the volunteering experience, participants used a learning diary and filled quick feedback questionnaires weekly. The final workshop was an opportunity to reflect on participants learning experiences and developing outputs for the final event.
- Final reflection & celebration: Small groups of volunteers from each host organisation created multi-media narratives that were integrated by Per Esempio into video stories. The final event gathered 100 attendees (volunteers, teachers, students, local organisations, school representatives etc.) to celebrate participants engagement and serve as a source of inspiration. A final reflection of the experience fed into the Green Guide as a source of multiplication of the project learnings.
Key outputs & impact
- The Green Guide (Italian and English versions available), a co-created step-by-step guide aimed at inspiring representatives of school communities and civil society organisations to create a similar volunteering learning experience.
- A video story on YouTube, showcasing the volunteering experience of the student participants
By offering tools like the Green Guide and showcasing successful outcomes, “School Goes Green” sets a path for others to follow in transforming schools into hubs of sustainability and student empowerment. The project, enabled through collaboration and co-creation, is a highly replicable model for engaging adolescents in climate and civic activism.