Engage schools and youth in NBS activities
Engaging youth in NBS education and activities has much potential and can benefit the youth, as well as educate them in more sustainable practices which they can apply later in their adult life.
Specific Advice
Engaging youth in NBS education and activities with a focus on NBS in the school system, can be implemented through changes in educational policies and regulations. For example, it can be implemented through teaching targets for specific subjects, where NBS related themes are already being addressed and taught.
With the addition of new targets or modification of existing subjects such as biology, food science and social science can include teaching elements on NBS. These classes can also be held in cooperation with the local community and/or take place in a dedicated project week, for example once a year. A greater emphasis on outdoor-school principles, where more classes are held outside and are focused on nature-elements such as gardening, education in nature-connectedness and environment and elements from Education for Sustainable Development can also lead to a greater understanding and attention to climate, sustainability and biodiversity in the long term.
Good to Know
Engaging schools and youth in NBS activities should consider a perspective on climate psychology to promote psychological resilience rather than disengagement.
There are several existing projects concerning nature, science, climate and education for sustainable development, that could supply knowledge into the design of educational materials and activities concerning NBS.
NBS education can come in many forms and ways, and can be implemented in schools through curriculum, developing physical learning environments, improving teacher competencies, establishing partnerships with local sustainable actors etc.
Teacher competencies, limited school resources and lack of preparation time are some of several important barriers, that should be addressed in developing teaching materials on this area.
Incorporating considerations for national formal teaching and learning targets into the material can support the use and implementation of NBS related teaching material in schools curriculum.
Engaging schools and youth in NBS has the potential of improving not only their knowledge and competencies regarding NBS, but also their critical thinking skills and their mental and physical wellbeing.
Context
By implementing a greater and more specific focus on NBS activities in schools, and hereby teaching the youth and providing them with early understanding of the benefits of this, they will be able to acquire competencies, knowledge and an understanding of the subject, and of nature and sustainable practices, that will later on equip them to address related issues, barriers and possibilities in their adult life.
An emphasis on active learning processes and more outdoor school also has the potential to increase physical and mental wellbeing in schoolchildren and youth. It is though important to be aware of climate-psychology in this process, so to ensure, that the children and youth are not exposed to information that can affect their well-being. This is important to consider, as increased focus on the ongoing natural crises can contribute to eco-anxiety among youth. It does not mean that topics such as climate change and loss of nature should not be addressed, but rather that it needs to be done in an explorative way, where there is space for a range of feelings and support from adults.
Even though it is quite new to connect NBS to schools and youth there are already many examples on how to design classes and activities that could relate to NBS, and several research-fields has already paved the road for more nature-oriented teachings. The REGREEN project and the NBSEduWORLD project addresses several different projects, theories, methods and tools to improve children and youth knowledge and competence in NBS. It will still require the development and/or collection of formalised teaching materials and teachers guides, fitted to national educational standards and requirements, to ensure that the teachers can conduct relevant teaching activities, that truly embraces NBS.
Examples and Cases
Nordic examples of engaging schools and youth in NBS activities:
#ICELAND – Introducing school children to the importance of forestry
The Yrkja Fund was established in 1992. Resources from the fund are used to purchase plants, that are given to elementary school children for them to grow in order to introduce school children to the importance of forestry and thus raising the future foresters. This has received a very positive response from the Icelandic schools, and half the schools in the country participate each year.
This example showcases a broadly and well implemented initiative, that engage children and youth in active learning processes about, and interactions with, nature-elements, where they learn about NBS as part of their formalized education.
More information about this project focusing on Introducing school children to the importance of forestry can be found here:
Yrkja (in english): https://yrkja.is/english/
#DENMARK – Teaching materials for Danish schoolchildren
Copenhagen University has, in corporation with University of Southern Denmark, developed a set of teaching material, within the project ‘A greener climate’, suited for the middle school in Denmark. The material lives up to national educational frameworks and teaching targets in three different areas of natural science teachings, with specific reference to where and how the teachers can implement the teachings in practice.
Besides being directly developed for use in specific classes and across different subjects, by experts on didactics as well as on NBS, the materials also take into regard existing knowledge on pedagogical approaches to climate-teachings and sustainable education.
More information about the project ‘A greener climate’ (Danish: Et grønnere klima) can be found here:
#FINLAND – Schools and youth engagement in Finland: aquatic biodiversity monitoring in Tampere and Finnish Nature Association
Within the Horizon 2020 project UNaLab (Urban Nature Labs), the front-runner city Tampere (Finland) experimented with citizen engagement in NBS activities. As part of the project, schoolchildren were engaged in monitoring water quality as well as aquatic biodiversity in ditches and lakes of Vuores neighbourhood (one of the NBS demonstration areas in Tampere within UNaLab). Pupils were provided with equipment to measure the pH, turbidity, oxygen, visual depth, temperature and algae in the water. They also had species identification cards to help them identify different aquatic species which they caught with nets. Both children and parents gave positive feedback of the activity the aim of which was to raise awareness and educate the youth.
Finnish Nature Association (Luontoliitto, ca. 6800 members) is a nationwide environmental NGO for nature and environmental protection for children and youth. Members of the Association, most of which are between 5 and 29 years old, are offered opportunities to learn about and appreciate nature as well as influence the environmental policy. Finnish Nature Association offers themed activities, courses and camps as well as produces two magazines: children’s nature magazine Sieppo, and youth magazine Nuorten Luonto. There are six action groups under the Finnish Nature Association which work on nature conservation and influencing environmental policy.
More information about the schools and youth engagement in Finland can be found here:
#FAROE ISLANDS – Engaging students in land restoration
Lendisbati is the first large land restoration initiative in the Faroe Islands. It is a pilot project aiming to restore degraded landscapes by preventing soil erosion and improving biodiversity, as well as restoring wetlands for carbon storage.
The project has involved local students in Vestmanna high school from the start. The restoration activities are part of a school class on resource management. In addition to carrying out the restoration measures, the students have collected data and contribute in the monitoring of the effects of the measures. In 2023 the project organised “Lendisbati Day,” with lectures and restoration activities at the site of a landslide, involving both local students and visiting abiology students from another school.
By including the students, the project aims to raise awareness about soil erosion, biodiversity loss and nature restoration. The project is led by Tjóðsavnið (the Faroe Islands National Museum) and financed through the Nordic NBS programme.
More information about the student participation in Lendisbati can be found here:
Learn more
Sustainability competence framework.
GreenComp outlines a framework of sustainability competencies designed to enhance education programs for promoting environmental sustainability.GreenComp – The European sustainability competence framework (
Punie & Bacigalupo (eds.), 2022) https://publications.jrc.ec.europa.eu/repository/handle/JRC128040Resources for NBS Education.
This repository provides a lengthy list of available resources, including guidance, reports, tools, and services developed in the EU for education about NBS.
The European Union (n.d.): Resources for NBS Education. www.nbseduworld.eu. https://nbseduworld.eu/resources
Education for Sustainable Development (ESD)
is an overarching framework for education targeted towards the green transition.UNESCO Education for sustainable development
www.unesco.org, https://www.unesco.org/en/sustainable-development/educationNBS Learning Scenarios.
This project has developed innovative educational programmes and resources to raise awareness on NBS and their benefits among children, young people and their families. It was initiated and funded by the European Commission Directorate-General for Research and Innovation and coordinated by PPMI, in collaboration with European Schoolnet (EUN). 15 learning scenarios to integrate NBS resources in the classroom were developed on different topics for different age groups: https://www.scientix.eu/pilots/nbs-project-02#LearningScenariosThe forest – more than just trees (Skogen - mer enn bare trær)
is a Norwegian collaboration project between four different environmental NGOs. The project aims to create engagement for protecting forests through dissemination of knowledge and activities in the forest. The project targets “forest champions” of all ages. https://skogglede.no/https://naturvernforbundet.no/skogen-mer-enn-bare-traer/International Obligations
Sustainable Development Goal 4
“Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.”