ERASMUS+ 

KA210-ADU - Small-scale partnerships in adult education 

Project title: Raising adults’ environmental consciousness through creative training by redefining the human-nature relationship

(RAEC) 

National Agency: Nationale Agentur Bildung für Europa beim Bundesinstitut für Berufsbildung (Germany) 

Project code: 2023-1-DE02-KA210-ADU-000160468 

Participating organisations: RIZA PERFORMING ARTS GbR (Germany), EN ARMONIA (Greece), ASSOCIATION-COMPAGNIE NOURA (France)

DESCRIPTION OF THE PROJECT

Contemporary ecological thought and criticism recognise the dialectical interaction of man and nature as the driving force behind the development of history and culture and as a means of dealing with the recent environmental crisis.

 

Many political analysts, scientists and theorists believe that the only way out of this global environmental crisis is to stop the exploitation of natural resources by humans for economic interests and to re-define the human-nature relationship. According to educational theorists, aesthetic experience through artistic education develops awareness of values and relationships not easily perceived through rational education.

 

This project aimed to provide adult trainers with alternative art-based methods which will offer adult learners a possibility of redefining the human-nature relationship while developing their environmental awareness. It aimed to act as a springboard for awakening and re-evaluating the human-nature relationship and to be a path of criticism and awareness of the balance in the human-nature relationship, necessary to deal with the climate crisis.

 

More specifically, an art-based training module was created which included:

 

1. Narration referring to philosophical and literary texts which mainly express the dialectic relationship between nature and human beings.

 

1. Digital projections reflecting images related to recent ecological disasters and images showing human intervention in nature.

 

iii. Development of a kinetic improvisation and experience-based movement methodology, inspired by emotions and feelings stemming from the above-mentioned philosophical and literary texts.

 

The proposed project also reinforced the response of adult training to the need for implementing projects that promote social inclusion by involving people with fewer opportunities in all the phases of the project.

 

 

OBJECTIVES OF THE PROJECT

 

The objectives of the proposed project are:

OBJ-1: To improve the capacity of adult trainers to teach adult learners to become environmentally conscious through creative methods.

OBJ-2: To enhance the ability of adult trainers to support adult learners to raise awareness about environmental and climate change challenges and redefine their relationship with nature through an art-based training module.

OBJ-3: To promote environmentally sustainable and responsible behavior by integrating sustainable practices in the implementation of the project.

OBJ-4: To enhance diversity awareness and promote equal opportunities and access, inclusion and fairness across all the stages of the project by involving participants with fewer opportunities in the implementation of the project.

OBJ-5: To increase capacity and professionalism to work at EU level and reinforce cooperation with partners from other countries.

OBJ-6: To enhance the access of open source art-based training tools to adult trainers and learners, including those with fewer opportunities, thus reducing disparities and promoting social inclusion.

 

OUTCOMES OF THE PROJECT

 

The outcomes of the project were:

- Improvement of the capacity of adult trainers to teach adult learners to become environmentally conscious through creative methods.

- Enhancement of the ability of adult trainers to support adult learners to raise awareness about environmental and climate change challenges and redefine their relationship with nature through an art-based training module.

- Promotion of environmentally sustainable and responsible behavior by integrating sustainable practices in the implementation of the project.

- Enhancement of diversity awareness and promotion of equal opportunities and access, inclusion and fairness across all the stages of the project by involving participants with fewer opportunities in the implementation of the project.

- Increase of the capacity and professionalism to work at EU level and reinforcement of cooperation with partners from other countries.

- Enhancement of the access of open source art-based training tools to adult trainers and learners, including those with fewer opportunities, thus reducing disparities and promoting social inclusion.

 

The results included:

- A digital handbook linked to tutorial videos, presenting an art-based training module to help adults to re-define their relationship with nature and raise awareness about environmental and climate change challenges.

- A case study based on this art-based training module.

 

 

ACTIVITIES OF THE PROJECT

 

The training activities which were organised during the implementation of the RAEC project were the following:

 

TA1: Staff training activity

Paris, France, 12/12/2023 – 16/12/2023

Participants: 2 trainers from each participating organisation

The staff training activity TA1 was organised by NOURA in Paris, France. Two staff members from each partner participated for 5 days.

 

Before this activity, the three partners did research on philosophical and literary texts in order to select writings which express the dialectic relationship between nature and human beings, as well as the feelings of alienation, isolation, fear, stress and loneliness resulting from our destructive tendency against nature, from the over-exploitation of nature for human interests and from distancing ourselves from nature.

 

Also, the three partners selected digital projections reflecting images related to recent ecological disasters and images showing human intervention in nature.

 

The involved staff created kinetic improvisation and experience-based movements inspired by emotions and feelings stemming from the selected texts and digital projections.

 

In the staff training activity TA1, the involved staff trained each other by demonstrating ways of interpreting their selected texts and digital projections into a series of kinetic improvisation and experience-based movements.

 

This activity led to the development of:

1. a digital handbook linked to tutorial videos and presenting an art-based model which will include:

• narration based on the selected texts,
• the selected digital projections,
• the development of a kinetic improvisation and experience-based movement methodology, inspired by emotions and feelings stemming from the above-mentioned narration and digital projections,

2. a case study based on this art-based training module.

 

This digital handbook and the case study will become a training tool for adult trainers in art and humanities in order to enhance the ability of adult trainers to train adults how to raise awareness about environmental and climate change challenges and redefine their relationship with nature.

 

Pictures from this activity:

Click here to see more pictures

 

TA2: Blended training activity

Skiathos, Greece, 01/06/2024 – 10/06/2024

Participants: 24 youth trainers in art and humanities (including 12 with fewer opportunities and 6 staff members (2 from each participating organisation)

This blended training activity (TA2) was organised by EN ARMONIA on Skiathos Island in Greece, in an exterior place in nature, which was equipped by the Municipality of Skiathos. In this activity, 24 adult trainers in art and humanities (including 12 with fewer opportunities) and 6 staff members (2 from each participating organisation) participated for 10 days.

 

Taking into consideration:

• the NATURA-protected areas and the advanced forest protection services of Skiathos,
• the expected results responding to the need for raising environmental consciousness,
• the offer of an equipped exterior place for implementing this activity by the Municipality of Skiathos,

RIZA had decided that Skiathos would be an appropriate place for this activity.

 

The immediate contact with nature gave the participants a chance to talk about green policies and environmentally sustainable behaviour adopted during the implementation of this activity, by using sustainable food, sustainable means of transportation and eco-friendly materials.

 

Before this activity, the participants were trained virtually for one month by the participating organisations. In this virtual training session, the digital handbook and the case study created in activity TA1 were used as a training tool. The participating organisations were in direct contact through emails and Skype/Zoom conference meetings in order to prepare the appropriate material for this activity.

 

EN ARMONIA was responsible for the practical and logistic matters (e.g. sustainable travel, accommodation, safety and protection of participants, etc.). The participants were advised before travel to issue a European Health Insurance Card. EN ARMONIA also prepared an information package for the participants.

 

In this blended training activity, the participants developed their professional skills and capacities, using as a tool the digital handbook and the case study created in the staff training activity TA1.

 

Pictures from this activity:

Click here to see more pictures

Click here to see video from the presentation of a performance, part of activity TA2

 

TA3: Sharing and promotion conference

Athens, Greece, 12/01/2025

Conference lecturers: staff members from EN ARMONIA

Participants: adult trainers in art and humanities, including those with fewer opportunities, representatives of RIZA and NOURA, representatives of German, Greek and French artistic and humanistic organisations

Activity TA3 was a sharing and promotion conference, organised by EN ARMONIA in Athens for one day. In this activity, 4 staff members from EN ARMONIA were conference lecturers. Representatives of RIZA and NOURA participated in this conference.

 

During the preparation phase of this conference, promotional material was created and distributed to the target group of this activity.

 

EN ARMONIA rented an appropriately equipped place and was responsible for the promotion of the conference. Sustainable food (catering) and sustainable means of transportation were adopted for the invited non-local participants.

 

This conference included:

• lectures,
• open discussions,
• presentations of the project results,
• evaluation of the project results and of the impact on the target group participating in the activity through questionnaires.

 

In this conference, adult trainers in art and humanities, including those with fewer opportunities, and representatives from national and international artistic and humanistic organisations who had shown interest in the content and results of the project were invited.

 

Pictures from this activity:

Click here to see more pictures

 

TA4: Sharing and promotion conference

Düsseldorf, Germany, 23/03/2025

Conference lecturers: staff members from RIZA

Participants: adult trainers in art and humanities, including those with fewer opportunities, representatives of EN ARMONIA and NOURA, representatives of Greek, German and French artistic and humanistic organisations

Activity TA4 was a sharing and promotion conference, organised by RIZA in Düsseldorf for one day. In this activity, 4 staff members from RIZA were conference lecturers. Representatives of EN ARMONIA and NOURA participated in this conference.

 

During the preparation phase of this conference, promotional material was created and distributed to the target group of this activity.

 

RIZA rented an appropriately equipped place and was responsible for the promotion of the conference. Sustainable food (catering) and sustainable means of transportation were adopted for the invited non-local participants.

 

This conference included:

• lectures,
• open discussions,
• presentations of the project results,
• evaluation of the project results and of the impact on the target group participating in the activity through questionnaires.

 

In this conference, adult trainers in art and humanities, including those with fewer opportunities, and representatives from national and international artistic and humanistic organisations who had shown interest in the content and results of the project were invited.

 

Pictures from this activity:

 

Click here to see more pictures

 

 

RESULTS OF THE PROJECT – DIGITAL HANDBOOK AND CASE STUDY

Click here to see the Handbook and the case study

 

 

 

Link to the official site: https://raec-project.com