We introduce the Descriptive Mapping of Adult Education in Environmental Awareness and Sustainable Development.

This report was developed within the project WE: Real-World Education to foster environmental awareness.

You can read it by downloading it here
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We are thrilled to introduce our innovative project “ARCH: Bringing Cultural Heritage to the digital Era; Unifying Past, Present and Future”, which aims to engage and educate Primary Education students aged 9 to 12 through an exciting combination of a mobile application and a cultural heritage game.

At our first transnational meeting in Patras (Greece), our consortium made significant progress in developing the project’s first and second outcomes: an interactive application and an engaging game centred on cultural heritage. These educational tools are being carefully designed to ignite children’s curiosity, foster appreciation for cultural heritage, and provide a fun learning experience.

Our cutting-edge application serves as a gateway to an immersive world of cultural heritage. Through captivating visuals, informative content, and interactive activities, children will embark on a journey of discovery. They will have the opportunity to explore various cultural sites and engage with the rich tapestry of human heritage. Our application is not just educational; it also ensures an entertaining experience that keeps children captivated and eager to learn more.

In addition to the application, we are working on our cultural heritage game. This dynamic and interactive game invites children to answer questions related to cultural heritage in a fun way. By navigating different locations and historical periods and deepen their understanding of the fascinating world of cultural heritage. Our game tries to merge entertainment with education, making learning an enjoyable and rewarding experience.

In this project our mission is to inspire children to explore and appreciate cultural heritage, and we firmly believe that ARCH will achieve this goal. By combining the power of technology, interactive experiences, and educational content, we aim to ignite a lifelong passion for cultural heritage in young minds. 

We have joined the Confederación de Empresarios de Aragón (CEOE Aragón), which is the organisation that represents the entire business community of the Autonomous Community of Aragon thanks to the high level of representation achieved since its foundation in 1982.

It encompasses more than 30,000 companies through its member associations: the provincial business organisations of Huesca, Teruel and Zaragoza, and sectorial and intersectorial associations of the Community.

The objective of CEOE Aragón is to coordinate, represent, promote and defend the general and common interests of the business community of Aragon under the principles of free initiative and market economy. To this aim:

CEOE Aragón works for the socio-economic development of the Autonomous Community, the growth of business activity, the improvement of performance and productivity of companies and the training of employers and workers, among other aspects.

The association is the voice of companies in social dialogue and in a wide range of bodies whose decisions affect their activity, especially at the regional level, and provides them with a channel at the national and international level through its membership of CEOE and CEPYME.

We would like to thank the CEOE for allowing us to be associated and thus be able to continue contributing to the business fabric of our region, and internationally. Especially in areas related to training, innovation and internationalisation.

As part of the “Cohesion Policy Stands by you!” information campaign, Aspon Consulting (CY), Alpha Cyprus (CY), Innovation Hive (GR), and GEInnova (ES) have launched a new scenario-based gamified learning experience called “Cohesion Island“. The game aims to educate youth and the public about the Cohesion Policy of the European Union and its role in improving the lives of all EU citizens.

In “Cohesion Island” players take on the role of governor  of Cohesion Island, one of the largest islands of Artea, an imaginary country in the European continent and a member of the EU. They face various challenges which require them to take decisions that will effectively solve the various problems and thus improve the level of well-being of their constituents. Players have access to the city budget for investments, and certain investments may be eligible for co-funding from Cohesion Policy funds. The game also includes a city library, which provides players with useful readings and real examples related to the Cohesion Policy to help them make informed decisions during the game, which are in line with Cohesion Policy’s objectives.

“We believe that ‘Cohesion Island’ is a unique and fun way to educate youth and the public about the Cohesion Policy,” said a spokesperson for the project. “By putting players in the role of a mayor/governor, we hope to provide an interactive learning experience that will familiarize players with the different Cohesion Policy funds and how they are utilized to achieve the policy objectives across the EU. We also want to show how Cohesion Policy funds have a real impact on people’s daily lives.“

The objectives of the game are to provide an overview of EU Cohesion Policy, make participants aware of the different Cohesion Policy funds and how they are utilized to achieve the policy objectives across the EU, make participants acquire a deeper understanding of how Cohesion Policy funds have an impact on their daily life, and familiarize players with examples of real projects implemented through Cohesion Policy funds.

“Cohesion Island” is available to play now through this link: https://cohesionisland.eu/ 

For more information about the game and the “Cohesion Policy Stands by you!” project, please visit the project’s social media accounts on Facebook and Instagram and subscribe to our YouTube Channel. 

GEINNOVA organised through the SCALE funded Erasmus+ project a piloting activity at the ‘Colegio San Vicente de Paúl’ on 15/03/2023. The activity plan was developed and implemented by Geinnova’s staff, consisting of Micol Petrone, Michela Orrù and Alessandro Marconi. The target group was a class of 20 students aged around 12, supported by their English teacher Carmen Pinilla.

The program of activities was developed by combining the principles of ACLs and the theme of climate change. Applied Creativity Labs (ACLs) equip children and young people with the creative behaviors and thinking skills needed in order to develop innovative solutions to real world challenges. Young people are presented with an overview of a real world ‘challenge’ (ie. Climate change) and then receive bespoke creativity training, which builds their creative capacity to generate solutions.

Creative skills are essential for life, learning and future work: they are highly valued by employers and international organizations such as the World Economic Forum, as they develop positive attitudes, flexibility and openness to new challenges. Additional employability skills are developed such as teamwork, communication, leadership, critical thinking and problem solving. These skills enable young people to be successful in their learning and future careers.

During the ACL implementation in SPAIN, Geinnova’s team worked with young students aged 12 starting with an icebreaker activity called “bish, bosh, what are you doing?”

Then, GEINNOVA staff showed a presentation on climate change, its effects and consequences; supplemented by an overview of ACLs methodologies. The games supplied as ACLs activity combined to the climate change topic were:

– Quiz about climate change

– If climate change was an animal

– If climate change’s solution was an animal

– I don’t like your idea

– Recycling

The recycling activity consisted of using empty plastic bottles in order to create plant pots. To stimulate students’ creativity, they were also provided with materials to decorate the pots. The plants chosen to be grown were lentils, grown in cotton balls. The choice is justified by the fact that these seedlings will need daily care, so as to empower the students.

The main objective of ACLs is the creative problem-solving process, following some steps: 

– Clarify the task

– Think divergently

– Choose an idea

– Think convergently

– Do it in practice

– Refine and improve

– Present

– Review the process

Students embraced the project and activities with enthusiasm, actively participating and practicing the methodologies administered. The result was a good 3-hour lesson on climate change, which allowed the class to think actively and critically about the topic.