Odtü Gelistirme Vakfi Özel Ilkögretim Okulu Primary School from Ankara, Turkey won the prize for its innovative project ‘I take Responsibility’. The project invites students to take responsibility for the electricity use in the classrooms. This aim is achieved by installing electricity switch units operated by a card – similar to the ones found in hotel rooms. Per class a student takes responsibility for carrying the class’ card. The project and the theme of energy saving was completely integrated into the curriculum of the entire school and its effects were closely monitored.
The Environment & Innovation Project, run by Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE) in the Eco-Schools network and funded by Toyota Motor Europe through the Toyota Fund for Europe, held a European competition in 6 countries: Norway, Finland, Denmark, Italy, Portugal and Turkey. Over 80 schools involving about 20,000 students were involved in the competition and 28 projects were awarded a grant to implement their innovative energy saving projects.
Earlier in 2009, national best projects were selected in each country. From those national projects, the international jury today selected Europe’s best project. The jury contains prominent members of European organisations like the Executive Agency for Competitiveness and Innovation, British Council, UNEP and CSR Europe. Chair of the jury is a member of the board of the FEE. The Award ceremony will take place at the winning school in Odtü Gelistirme Vakfi Özel Ilkögretim Okulu Primary School, with participation of local stakeholders and key members of the community.
The Eco-Schools methodology includes seven steps that any school can adopt. The process involves a wide range of stakeholders, but pupils play the central role. After a period of participation, an evaluation of the success of these initiatives and the methodology is undertaken, and the Eco-Schools programme for each school is assessed. Successful Eco-Schools are awarded the Green Flag, an internationally acknowledged symbol of environmental excellence. For more information, visit www.eco-schools.org.
The Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE) is an international organisation that has promoted environmental education for sustainable development since 1981. FEE is an umbrella organisation with members in more than 60 countries around the world. FEE is active in environmental education mainly through five programmes: Blue Flag, Eco-Schools, Young Reporters for the Environment, Learning about Forests and Green Key. More information about FEE and its programmes can be found at www.fee-international.org.
The Toyota Fund for Europe (TFfE) was created in 2002 to enhance corporate citizenship through social contributions in Europe. TFfE supports projects in three areas directly linked to Toyota’s core business:
- Environmental awareness
- Technical education
- Road safety.
TFfE encourages the development of cooperative partnerships between NGOs and Toyota companies throughout Europe. Today, environmental education for children and youth is one of the most important and active areas of focus for TFfE. For more information visit www.toyotafund.eu.
