Łódź Schools for Climate

The key to a better future in the growing climate crisis is change of mentality, willingness to give up consumerism and respect for resources. Such content is necessity in a modern teaching process, as a part of school educational programs and everyday activities. Effectiveness in shaping the desired system of values depends on the methods of transferring knowledge. Only education through experience is able to lead to a permanent change in the attitudes of recipients in terms of self-respect, other people and the environment.

In school year 2022/2023 a pilot-project was conducted in 6 municipal schools (3 primary and 3 high schools). It was dedicated to teachers (at least 3 teachers from each school), students (at least 20 children from each school). The evaluation showed a great involvement of the institutions in the implementation of the project, so it is continued. Another 12 municipal institutions are participating in the 2023/2024 edition. There are plans to extend the project to all city schools.

The program goes beyond the standard teaching scheme. Learning takes place in it through experience, which deepens the educational effect.

First step is to expand teachers' competences on global education, dependencies and human impact on ongoing climate change. During the workshops, conducted by professional climate educators, they learn how to live more sustainably and how to encourage students to do the same. Then, the task for those teachers is to pass on knowledge to other professors in school.

Later on, climate workshops for students are conducted. Their task is to prepare pupils for the key element of the project, which is participation in educational experiments. They touch on the problem of shrinking natural resources. Experiencing a deficit in this matter builds a sense of respect for the resources at our disposal and it reduces bad habits of wasting goods and consumerism.
 

Then, the experiments involving teachers and students are led. They can be chosen from the following topics: BLACKOUT (energy saving), A MORE PLANT-BASED DIET (limiting meat consumption), I DON'T WASTE FOOD (food), TRANSPORT IN GREEN (ecological mobility), INTO NATURE (nature connection), DON’T POUR WATER! (saving water), and OFFLINE (limiting internet use). All participants keep a diary of the experiment in which they describe its course, feelings, and reflections. The last phase of the educational part is to summarize the experiments and draw conclusions for the future.

The investment component plays a crucial role in the project by transforming previously concreted school spaces into sustainable environments. Introducing diverse plant species, bird-friendly areas and rainwater collection systems highlights biodiversity and natural resource management. Creating urban crops engages students in caring for shared spaces. Additionally, the gardens exemplify the "reuse" principle, incorporating architectural details from historic buildings, such as using old cast-iron window grilles as frames for climbing plants.

The project is being implemented by the Education and Ecological Promotion Unit of the Environmental Management Division at the City of Łódź Office. The educational component is managed by The Center for Ecological Activities “Źródła,” a local Public Benefit Organization with over 20 years of experience in ecological education. The project aims to raise ecological awareness through active education, including workshops for young people, training for teachers, field trips, and various educational projects focused on broad ecological topics.

The 2022/2023 edition had also 3 partners who helped in the investment part. Echo Investment - the largest Polish developer with extensive experience in the main sectors of the real estate market – was the founder of school garden designs, that were made by architects cooperating with the company. Moreover, Dell Technologies and PWC helped finance the construction of the gardens.

In the 2023/2024 edition cooperation with CEA “Źródła” is continued. The investment part of the project is supported by the Omenaa Mensah Foundation - a charitable non-governmental organization that works to support broadly understood education.

The project has its own websites (https://uml.lodz.pl/ekoportal/eko-wiedza/edukacja/lodzkie-szkoly-dla-klimatu/, https://www.zrodla.org/lodzkie-szkoly-dla-klimatu/) which contains assumptions and current information about its implementation. Additionally, progress is communicated through social media profiles on Facebook.

In January 2024, Łódź had the opportunity to present the project on 12th World Environmental Education Congress WEEC 2024 in Abu Dhabi.

The project is financed from the city's own funds. The investment part is also co-financed by willing partners.

The best description of the results of experiment are: SATISFACTION, KNOWLEDGE and MOTIVATION:

-"I managed to cycle a total of 31.16 km and save about 20.5 kg CO2" - Mateusz

-“The experiment gave me the satisfaction that when I ate, no one got hurt” – Maja

- “I am proud to stick to the challenge and encourage my cousin to the project” – Nella

The participants felt a sense of the actions taken, they realized that changing habits was important both for them and the world. A large part of the young people declared that they want to continue the experiment. For some of the participants, changing their habits was not an easy task, the prouder they felt when they managed to persevere. Some young people declared that they had the support of their families, some managed to persuade their loved ones to take up the challenge, but many people had to deal with the experiment on their own. Great involvement of children is a strong point of the project, it turns out that adults have a lesson in activity to catch up with.

“Young people are worried about climate change, they feel fear, sadness, anger and helplessness, and the future seems terrifying to them. With the involvement of teachers and parents and with the support of a psychologist, we’ve tried to transform these difficult emotions into a sense of agency, faith in the strength of the community” - Małgorzata Świderek, President of CEA “Źródła”

Making children aware that they are not alone in struggling with the effects of climate change was one of the challenges of the project. In their conversations, young people often expressed regret that adults are responsible for environmental damage, and future generations will have to face the consequences. While teachers tried to actively participate in all project activities, parents were not as supportive. Meetings dedicated to them were not very popular, which should be considered a matter for re-analysis and improvement.

Climate change is a global problem and learning about limiting its negative effects should be a permanent element in school teaching systems. The formula of the project is universal, it can be easily implemented in all educational institutions, adapting the educational part and investment elements to the age of the recipients.

After the success of the first implementation in 2022/2023, the project will be extended to other municipal schools in Łódź in the coming years.

Łódź Schools for Climate official video: https://utmc.app/resource-351

https://uml.lodz.pl/ekoportal/eko-wiedza/edukacja/lodzkie-szkoly-dla-klimatu/

https://www.zrodla.org/lodzkie-szkoly-dla-klimatu/

Magdalena Martin-Walczak

Environmental Management Division
City of Łódź Office
m.martin@uml.lodz.pl
Tel: + 48 42 272 66 76

Agnieszka Pietrzak

Environmental Management Division
City of Łódź Office
a.pietrzak@uml.lodz.pl
Tel: + 48 42 272 64 16