Parco delle Groane e della Brughiera Briantea

Citizen science: the contribution of citizens to natural sciences

After observing the value of environmental education for the environment and the entire community, this year's theme from Groane - Brughiera Briantea Park to local schools is a concrete action that students can carry out day by day for the environment and our future, thus acquiring knowledge and using their skills and curiosity. The project offers several activities, all of them aimed at sensitising students and adults on a theme that touches them directly, through workshops and field experiences. We will start on a path of knowledge, exploration and empathy with nature, to involve the citizens by sensitising and informing them about themes that are close to them.

Territory: a school outdoors
Given the guidelines of Region Lombardy and Sistema Parchi for the next school year, the aims of the project are as follows. Involving the schools in initiatives aimed at getting to know the regional parks' territory, to discover their material components as well as the relationships and values that inform them, and their natural, landscape and cultural heritage, through workshops and outdoor activities, in order to:

• develop in the younger generations a sense of belonging to a place and a community
• recognise the territory as a shared good and as a resource to be taken care of
• promote a culture of environmental sustainability
• promote the adoption of responsible behaviours
• improve knowledge, protection and  enhancement of natural ecosystems, landscape, cultural layers, sustainable agriculture

"We do not inherit the land from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children."
(Proverb of the Navajo people)

Our activities are structured as follows:

• Pre-school ("Seeds"): 4-hour long activities including a presentation in class and an outdoor component, organised together with the teachers according to their needs
• Primary schools ("Buds" and "Shoots"): 8-hour long activities including a presentation in class (2 hours), an outdoor component (4 hours), and feedback in class (2 hours)
• Middle schools ("Trees"): 6-hour long activities including a presentation in class (2 hours) and an outdoor component (4 hours)

Activities are divided among 6 subject matters: art, nature, ecology, human activity, senses, history, to be chosen according to the year's school programme; each chosen theme will be tackled from a specific point of view, so that our activities can be included in multidisciplinary projects such as civic education.  

New: some of the activities have been enriched with a "citizen science" approach, and now include the production of an outcome with the participation of the citizens and resulting from the collection of scientific data. A specific citizen science activity has been designed for middle schools, leading to the creation of a thematic map of the town illustrating its natural highlights, to be delivered to the mayor and/or made available online.

Participating subjects: the Environmental Education sector of Senza Frontiere and Eliante cooperative associations are made up of personnel graduated in scientific disciplines, education and communication experts and specialists with proven experience in the field of schools and education.

For further information and bookings: Ente Parco delle Groane e della Brughiera Briantea - E-mail: educazioneambientale@parcogroane.it - Website: www.parcogroane.it Tel: 0296981448

Click here to find all the Environmental Education Proposals (Italian text)