Memorandum from the co-ordinator meeting in Neumünster

the 20/7 - 2001

Participants:

Ute Grönvoldt (D), Eva-Maria Hartmann (D), Martin Jarrath (D),

Johannes Bang (DK), Birthe Zimmerman (DK), Jens Dalsgaard (DK),

Susanne Mellvig (Swe), Per Eliasson (Swe),

Kaija Salmio (Fin),

Stanislav Babitch (Rus),

Anne Kivinukk (Est), Linda Metsaorg (Est), Reet Kristian (Est),

Velga Kakse (Lv),

Martynas Janulaitis (Lith),

Jolanta Mol (Pol) and Iwona Toborowicz (Pol).

Here are the reports of the countries. We start clockwise with Denmark and end with Germany.

Denmark

One school has studied water quality at Gedser.

Christian Bo Bojesen and Niels Kornum are working hard on a learner’s guide on “Environmental History“ and at National report

The Danish BSP schools have been involved in midwinter bird count, environmental history, air-quality, coast-watch, phenological studies and also the Finnish pine needle project, energy and energy production, sustainable tourism in the Baltic area, rivers and re-establishing of wetlands and sustainable fisheries have been part of the programmes.

the same Time they have organised Corses in Environmental history at Sønderborg Amtsgymnasium.

The Nature School “Esrum Møllegård“ has carried out projects especially in the Kaliningrad area.

Many of the schools have good contacts with other schools in the BSP member states and several school exchanges have taken place during the year.

In October 2000 we had a very good course in the neighbourhood and Sønderborg where representatives from the Danish BSP- schools took part. We had the opportunity to visit the wetlands on the west coast of Jutland and the local coastal area and planing the BSP activities

In the beginning of 2001 we ran into budget-problems and luckily there has been found a solution to that. As Johannes Bang has retired from July 1st this year the co-ordination of BSP has been taken over by

Jens Dalsgaard

CIRIUS

Vandkunsten 3

1467 Copenhagen K

phone 45 33 14 20 60

e-mail: jd@CiriusMail.dk

Sweden

Currently there are 57 Swedish schools from all over the country participating in the Baltic Sea Project and 3 new schools are interested to take part.

The aim of the work in Swedish schools taking part in the Baltic Sea Project is to enable teachers to develop their ability to teach about environmental issues in terms both of methodology and subject theory.

The National Agency for Education is intended to aid achievement of the following objectives in 2001.

-           An increase in awareness of the Baltic Sea Project among the Swedish schools

-           A development of environmental issues in different subjects.

-           Create opportunities for teachers from different schools to meet, share ideas and work together to develop their activities within the Baltic Sea Project.

-           Stimulate and support schools to continue and develop their international co-operation

To achieve the objectives the National Agency for Education will focus on the following activities during 2001:

·          Information

·          In-service training

·          Workshops for teachers

·          Evaluation

·          International co-operation

·          Co-operation with the Baltic 21

The present situation:

Information

Learner's Guide No 4 "Working for Better Rivers in the Baltic region" and information about the Baltic Sea Project has been distributed to all Swedish Upper Secondary schools. Information about the Baltic Sea Project and the River protocols have also been presented in "Biologen", a newspaper that is distributed to biology teachers.

In-service training

To stimulate development of environmental perspectives in different subjects the National Agency for Education gave the opportunity to teachers involved in art to meet and get in-service training. The meeting gave the opportunity for teachers who wants to teach about EE from different schools to share ideas and work together to find out different ways to bring in environmental issues in the subjects they teach. It was also an opportunity to work with the new syllabuses. The In-service training is carried out in 2+1 days with a period between to allow for home based work. Twenty-five teachers met on March 30-31 and worked together and developed a plan on how they want to go further and include the environmental issues in their teaching. In October they will meet again and discuss and share the experience from the different activities that have been carried out. The results will be presented at the Swedish Schoolnet. The Schoolnet is a guide in integrating ICT in education. The School Data Network runs several services for students and teachers and many teachers and students use the Schoolnet and therefore this is one way to increase the awareness to the Baltic Sea project.

Evaluation

We decided at the latest co-ordinators meeting in Ahrensburg, that evaluation would be an important issue at the next co-ordinators meeting. BSP co-ordinator in Germany, Finland and Sweden got the task to think and prepare a basis for an evaluation to discuss at the next co-ordinators meeting. The co-ordinators in Germany, Finland and Sweden have not been able to prepare a basis for evaluation of the Baltic Sea Project.

Workshop for teachers

To stimulate and support a development of democracy in environmental education the National Agency for Education invited teachers to a meeting. It was cancelled because of to few teachers registered for the meeting.

International co-operation

Several Swedish schools have participated in exchange activities with schools around the Baltic Sea Area. They will present their experiences in the next issue of the BSP Newsletter and the Swedish BSP newspaper.

Co-operation with Baltic 21

A survey on environmental education (EE) and Education for sustainable

development (ESD) at 9 schools taking part in the Baltic Sea Project has been

conducted during spring 2001. The survey in the BSP schools is part of an

evaluation on EE/ESD in Swedish schools within the Baltic 21. A discussion

based on the result have taken part with teachers from the participating

schools. Many teachers feel that environmental issues becoming increasingly

complex and there is a need for many teachers currently teaching environmental

issues to go further and develop their teaching regarding the broader concept of

sustainable development. The future activities in the Swedish part of the Baltic

Sea Project will focus on the result from the evaluation.

Planned activities in 2001

To stimulate and support teachers to develop they're teaching regarding the broader concept of sustainable development the National Agency for Education will focus on the following activities:

Development of resource materials or learning methods

To make it possible for teachers to develop resource materials or methods regarding the broader concept of sustainable development an invitation will be send to teachers in the BSP-schools and give them the opportunity to attend a workshop.

The workshop will give the opportunity for teachers currently teaching EE

from different schools to meet, share ideas and work together to develop

resource materials or methods regarding the broader concept of sustainable

development. The workshop will be carried out in 2 + 1 days with a period between to allow for home based work with the learners.

In-Service Training

To stimulate development of environmental perspectives in different subjects the National Agency for Education will send an invitation to different groups of teachers to give them a possibility to meet and get in-service training.

The meeting will give the opportunity for teachers who wants to teach about EE from different schools to share ideas and work together to find out different ways to bring in environmental issues in the subjects they teach. It will also be an opportunity to work with the new syllabuses. The In-service training will be carried out in 2+1 days with a period between to allow for home based work.

Eva-Lotta Nyander

Skolverket

S-10020 Stockholm

Tel.: +46 8 723 3274

Fax: + +46 8 244420

e-mail: eva-lotta.nyander@skolverket.se

Finland

National Board of Education did not admit any financial support this year 2001 for the project. It is very sad, and means limits in my work possibilities with the schools. I see it as a value question in my office. On our national level the situation is much more better, because our President and our Prime Minister, Environmental Minister and Education Minister are clearly for environmental questions and for the Baltic Sea, and will co-operate with all countries around the sea. The directors of National Boards do not value enough the Baltic Sea and the area around it. They do not see that it is a question about the future.

Our schools work well, they have their nets of their own, and they use them. For example Meri-Pori Upper secondary school and Langinkoski upper secondary school. They present here themselves their works. We co-operate well with the Finnish UNESCO group, too.

We organised our national meeting in the very beginning of the last September in Hamina, at Pappilansalmi primary school. The view of this meeting was the environmentally history. We had a very successful session about domiciliation under centuries on the coasts of the Finnish Gulf. We hired a boat and visited the island Ulko-Tammio, which is very near the by the Russian boarder. The island was under the wartime a very important defended area, and there much cannons and tunnels left there.

We have got one new school to the BSP, the Rudolf Steiner School in Helsinki. It takes part to the environmental history program.

In Finland we start just now to change and work our national curriculum on National Board of Education. It means much work and development also at schools. The schedule has been changed by the governmental decision, too. Through the national curriculum National Board of Education gives information guide to the schools, which make the curricula of their own. The national curriculum is the way we can best effect to the schools. Practical ways are using e-mail and phone. It is possible to organise education, but it needs money we do not have enough. In the new national curriculum will be a chapter containing different topics, which are not subjects. It is very good, because the subjects are too important, the main point at all Finnish schools. It is our traditional. The aims of these topics are to learn problem solving, understanding, experimental research and integrative totalities. The aim is also to connect to these topic knowledge, skills, emotions and attitudes.

I have thought the role of the national co-ordinator. Maybe it is only my problem. I think, that international co-operation works well between schools and programs leaders. The result does not need to come first to the national co-ordinator, but that means in my case, that I am a little apart. Program leaders send sometimes results to me. It is not easy for my part to activate schools, because they are very independent. I am only adviser; I can not order them to do anything. The projects should have a firm connection to the curricula, which we do not have. I think that is why international projects stay separate.

Kaija Salmio

National Board of Education

Tel.: +358 9 77477 235

Fax: +358 9 77477 335

e-mail: Kaija.salmoi@oph.fi

Russia

In Russia they have a new ASP-co-ordinator.

Russia is divided into 7 regions. The region, which is working within the BSP, is the North-West-Region (St. Petersburg, Kaliningrad, Pskov, Murmansk, and Karelen)

25 schools are active with the BSP for example with birds, air quality, water quality, sustainable tourism and environmental history.

In Russia they have good support from the cities and the region.

Mr. Stanislav Babitch

St. Petersburg University of Economics

st. Sadovaya 21

R-191023 St. Petersburg

Tel.: +7 812 310 47 29

Fax: +7 812 327 66 80

priv Tel.: +7 812 156 7282

e-mail: stanislavbabitch@mail.ru

Estonia

BSP COMMON PROGRAMS

Coastwatch

Aseri Secondary School

Järve Gymnasium

Kolga Gymnasium

Kunda Secondary School

Lillekyla Gymnasium

Palade Basic School

Saaremaa Secondary School

Toila Gymnasium

Uulu Basic School

Birdwatch

Kannuka Secondary School

Lihula Gymnasium

Lillekyla Gymnasium

Uulu Basic School

Phenological Studies

C:R: Jacobson Gymnasium – concluded the studies during 1995-2000

Järve Gymnaium

Kolga Gymnasium

Kunda Secondary School

Palade Basic School

Pine Needle Program

Kivikinna Gymnasium

Lillkyla Gymnasium

Toila Gymnasium

Environmental History

Tartu Nature House

Tamme Gymnasium

Järve Gymnasium

Water Quality

Lihula Gymnasium

ACTIVITIES IN THE SCHOOLS

Students´ research work

Water quality (lake, watch, rivers etc.)

 Viljandi C:R: Jacobson Gymnasium

Kolga Secondary School

Kadrina Secondary School

Kannuka Secondary School

Tamme Gymnasium

Tartu Nature House

Lillekyla Gymnasium – The influence of human activities on the coastline of Kopli bay

Kivilinna Gymnasium – awarded a competition mediated by Stockholm Environmental

Institute in Tallin

Sustainable development in the schools

Viljandi C:R: Jacobson Gymnasium (energy, waste)

Toila (energy, waste)

Järve Gymnasium – collected 8 tons of reusable paper

Kadrina Secondary School

Tamme Gymnasium

Tartu Kivilina Gymnasium – waste

Tartu Nature House

School and local community – Kolga Secondary School, Haljala Secondary School

„Ökokratt“ (energy problems) - Kolga Secondary School

„Prygikoll“ (waste problems) - Haljala Secondary School

Working on their School agenda - Haljala Secondary School, Viljandi C:R: Jacobson Gymnasium

3 + 3 project – Toila Sec.School, Haljala Secondary School,  Järve Gymnasium

Forest

Haljala Secondary School

Kadrina Secondary School

Tartu Nature House

Other

Students´studies on geology – Toila Secondary School, Tartu Nature House

Air quality in Tartu - Tartu Nature House

Students´practical studies on Kessulaid – Lihula Secondary School

Participating in a competition „Europé in School“ – Tartu Kivilinna Gymnasium

A special program about the Baltic Sea for the students - Tartu Nature House

Exkursions, meetings etc. – Students´Environmental Club „Scarabeus“ (Kivilinna Gymnasium)

„Ah-haa ! day - Haljala Secondary School

2.                                                            Clean-up actions

Haljala Secondary School (roads)

Järve Gymnasium (coast)

Kannuka Secondary School (coast)

3.                                                            Conferences

The Earth Day Conference in Lillekyla Gymnasium

The Baltic Sea event in Tartu Nature House

Conference on biological diversity in Uulu Basic School

Conference on seminatural landscapes in Lihula Secondary School

International conference in Tartu Kivilinna Gymnasium

„Our Environment“ - Tartu Nature House

INTERNATIONAL EVENTS AND CONTACTS

Drawing contest „Children across the Baltic“

19 schools participated, winner class from Denmark was hosted by Lihula Secondary School

Finnish Gulf 2000

Lillekyla Gymnasium

Järve Gymnasium

AGENDA 21 - ACT NOW!

Contacts

-           Järve Gymnasium – cooperation with a school from Norrköping (Sweden)

-           Kadrina Gymnasium – 10 years of the common lake watch together Järfälla gymnasium (Sweden) and Haukivuori Secondary School (Finland)

-           Tamme Gymnasium – cooperation with Amtgymnasium (Denmark): common exkursion, workshops and practical studies

-           Kivilinna Gymnasium participated in an environmental camp organized by Meri-Pori Environmental School (Finland)

-           TELO/ Nature House hosted an environmental class from Haraldsbogymnasium (Sweden)

EVENTS IN ESTONIA, ORGANISED BY TELO/ NATURE HOUSE

Infoday for the Estonian teachers

Environmental camp in Jäneda

-           workshop on sustainable development action plans in the school and

-           participating in „Agenda 21 – act now! „

Excursion and national BSP meeting in Toila

Mediating the drawing contest „Children across the Baltic“ in Estonia.

Anne Kivinukk

National BSP and Phenological Studies programme co-ordinator

REC Estonia, Rävala Str. 8-B414

10143 Tallinn, Estonia

Tel/Fax: +372-6 461 423

e-mail: Anne.Kivinukk@recestonia.ee

Latvia

One new school joined BSP in 2000, so 25 Latvian schools are involved into BSP today.

Most of the BSP schools continued their observations in the BSP programmes as „Rivers“, „Phenological studies“, Air Quality“. Some schools are involved in the programmes „Water quality“ and „Environmental history“

This year we are organising competition „co-operation with local self-government in the are of the environmental protection“ for the Latvian BSP schools. We are planning to organise the conference in December where students will tell about their track records.

There was one BSP teacher seminar in May 20, where we have share our experiences about different outdoor activities and possibilities to involve students to study environment.

Some examples:

1.                        Co-operation with local environmental protection boards or local municipally to organise different joint work.

2.                        Local projects: Investigation of the legislation of the environmental protection; hazardous waste;

3.                        Special events as „Birds day“.

4.                        Competitions, conferences.

Our schools have one special week in the school year – project week. In the BSP schools this week is devoted to different environmental projects: sustainable fishery, sustainable development, wholesome food and others.

Students from some BSP schools: Riga secondary school NR 49, Ilguciema secondary school, Vecpiebalga Region Country gymnasium, Talsu gymnasium, Valmiera gymnasium, Skriveru secondary school took part in the National Environmental Project Olympiad.

Many of Latvian BSP schools are UNESCO Associated schools and are taking part in events organised by Latvian UNESCO National Commission. For example in the drawing competition „My good purpose to my environment, to my city“ devoted to the Riga 800 anniversary. There will be exhibition in the Kipsala exhibition hall where students from Staicele basic school will perform play „Blue dragon“.

The student summer camp will take place in August and this year the hosts will be Ogresgala basic school. We are planning to work with Learners Guide No. 4 and one workshop will be devoted to the environmental history

We have evaluated the situation about EE and ESD in Latvian schools for Agenda 21 for Education for sustainable development in the Baltic Sea Region. We have made special questionnaire and many BSP schools also took part in this evaluation and the conclusions were that many BSP schools are a pilot schools for environmental education in Latvia.

Velga Kakse

Latvia

Ministry of Education and Science

Centre for Curriculum Development and Examination

Valnu 2, Riga, LV 1050, Latvia

Phone: 371-781 43 54

Fax: 371-722 38 01

e-mail: velgak@latnet.lv

Lithuania

„ First of all I like to introduce myself. My name is Martynas Janulaitis and I am the new National BSP co-ordinator in Lithuania. With BSP I have been working just for six months. I’m studying Biology at the University of Vilnius and at the same time I work in Lithuania Young Naturalist Centre as a methodologist and BSP co-ordinator.“

Here is the written report.

This year we had not special seminars for BSP teachers and students. The schools in Lithuania worked independently. Most schools worked on Phenological studies, River investigation, and estimation of air quality by bioindicators and Bird ecology (midwinter, waterbird counts). Schools didn’t limited just on BSP programmes. Students with the school celebrated Earth day. On September 9`Th mentioned Baltic Sea’s day.

Many schools take part in other projects: International project Forestwach, National projects, Agenda 21, „Nature Near us“ („Gamta salia musu“). Thanks to the latter project and its co-ordinator and methodologist of Lithuania Young Naturalist Centre A. Kulbis, students not only from BSP-schools but from all the country are involved in the BSP programmes such as Phenological studies and River investigation.

Martynas Janulaitis

Young Naturalist Centre of Lithuania

Tel.: +370 98 85170

Fax: +370 2 67483

e-mail: bsp@centras.lt

LJGC@nkm.lt

Poland

I have no report from Poland so this is from my memory.

Jolanta Mol is the new national co-ordinator since November 2000.

She is not satisfied with her achievement yet. 25 schools are BSP schools in Poland but when Jolanta tried to make an evaluation only 10 of them answered the questions and out of these 10 only 6 were active with BSP. Now she had to get some contacts with the other schools but there are some problems with that.

In September she is thinking of having a BSP meeting for Polish teachers if she can get any money for that meeting. She said that there is a big problem with money for the BSP-project and she will contact UNESCO and see if they can support the project.

She also asked how many schools should be in the project?

The most common answer to that was

1.       It is up to the co-ordinator to decide

2.       Money

Another problem Jolanta was talking about was that students are good in English but the teachers are not. But that problem is common in all countries. We all have to work with our English and when we are in a project as BSP hopefully we get inspiration to learn more English.

Jolanta Mol

II Upper Secondary Konopnicka School

Glowackiego 6

40-052 Katowice

Tel./Fax: +48 32 206 15 81

e-mail: jola.mol@pronet.onet.pl

Germany

In Schleswig-Holstein there are 8-10 UNESCO-schools and 6 BSP schools.

10./11.05  they had a national conference in parts together with the unesco-project-schools in Schleswig-Holstein. They elected Ute Grönwoldt for the new national BSP-co-ordinator of Germany.

The next summer-school shall take place 26.08.- 30.08.2002 in Rostock/Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.

They had one Agenda 21 conference and an International Internet Conference „AGENDA 21 - NOW“ at Anna-Schmidt-Schule in Frankfurt/Main.

On the Internet conference there were a lot of participants from all over the world and also more students from Africa than they have expected. Next year if Martin Jarrath get financial support again he will have the Internet conference organised by his new school together with his old school. He has also plans to do it together with Birthe Zimmerman.

A group of students and her teacher, Mrs. Gerhild Westphal, of a new BSP-school in Schleswig-Holstein, the Auenwaldschule in Böklund, participated in the environmental conference in St. Petersburg/Russia 6.06. - 10.06.2001.

The next exchange of BSP-schools in Germany and Russia will start at the end of September. The „Waldorfschule in Ostholstein“- a new, very high interested BSP-school too - will stay in St. Petersburg for the environmental Olympiade 2001.

Gisela Knipper (former national BSP-co-ordinator of Germany) and Volker Stihl published their Performance Art for Environment Project „Oikosophy“ on CD-rom.

We can ask Ute for a copy.

Ute Grönwoldt

Ministry for Education, Science, Research and Culture / Schleswig-Holstein

Brunswiker Strasse 16-22

24105 Kiel

Tel.: +49 431 988 2473

Fax: +49 431 988 2480

e-mail: BSP@kumi.landsh.de

1.       Water Quality of the Baltic Sea

Knud Johnsen, Rungsted Gymnasium, has been the programme co.ordinator of „Water Quality of the Baltic Sea“ since the programme was adopted as the first joint programme,       and also responsible for updating all data to „WaQua“, the database with all reports and       photos from the investigated beaches in the region.

Unfortunately Rungsted Gymnasium has had to leave the project, and a replacement       for Knud is necessary.

Thanks to Knud for his tremendous effort!

A new programme co-ordinator was suggested from Latvia: Ms. Liesma Abolina. It    was decided that Velka Kakse is to ask her and Ute Grönwoldt establishes contact and       organises a meeting for Knud Johnsen and the new programme co-ordinator. to enable the       job to be transferred and continued.

2.       Bird Ecology:

      Lind Metsaorg, Estonia, in 2000 asked to be replaced by 2001.

Thanks to Linda for her enourmous work with the birds!

A suggestion for replacement was Ms. Kaja Lotman, Matsalu, Estonia.

Applause from everyone who memorized Lind Metsaorg’s and Ms. K. Lotman’s organisation of the Bird Ecology course in Estonia, May 1999!

3.    Coastwatch:

In the BSP Coastwatch project 5 countries – Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Poland – and 20 schools participated in autumn 2000. In all 51 questionnaires were filled in during the survey. One questionnaire is for 500 m of coastline.

Most of surveyed areas had natural look and were relatively clean.

Latvian students from Limbaži saw during their trip 10 living seals, one dead seal was found by Estonian students from Uulu. Together 10 dead birds were found.

Number of plastic items has grown fast. On 38 units from 51 plastic items were

counted. Maximum number of plastic drinks containers per unit was 46 and plastic shopping bags per unit was 56, both counted in Estonia. All 10 tar/oil findings were small.

Students wrote also that more trash pins are needed to keep our coasts clean. Many groups reported on coast clean-up actions after the survey.

This autumn the survey will be 17.-30.September.

Reet Kristian

Program coordinator

Estonian Youth Work Center

Uuslinna 10

11415 Tallinn

Estonia

e-mail: loodus@entk.ee

Ideal of environmental history studies by students

Students working with environmental history starts from environmental problems of today

-           They don’t study the past independent from the present.

Students working with environmental history have a perspective of the future

-           they are not satisfied only with a better understanding of the present situation but wants to create action competence for the future

Students working with environmental history can accomplish practical results

-           they don’t use their results only inside the school but present them to the community in order to change the situation

Students working with environmental history use the chronology as an important tool both in explanations and in narratives

-           therefore they avoid to look at questions as „eternal“

Students working with environmental history starts from conflicts about the environment

-           thereby they avoid both a one-sided natural science as well as a moralistic, perspective

Students working with environmental history looks at people as active actors in history

-           therefore they are not satisfied with structural explanations but seek the causes in peoples actions

Students working with environmental history starts with studies of the local environment in order to draw conclusions about others areas from their results

-           they don’t start with the great trends in world history in order to illustrate this on a local scale

Per Eliasson said that we don’t need a history or a geography book. We need something new.

2 teachers/ country working with the book.

Germany – 2 fantastic schools working with environmental history

-           Ahrensburg

-           Gelsenkirchen – Ruhrgebit ( coal and art)

Denmark – A lot of good schools working with the subject.

Sweden – a lot of project.

-           from north Sweden, more a biological project

-           from south Sweden, a factory history work

-           from Stockholm, a city planning work

Finland – a lot of projects

-           Why doesn’t the pearlmussel reproduce?

-           Old Viking boats and ways

Russia – a lot of projects, it is a popular topic in St. Petersburg.

-           one about Nueva River

-           When the city is grooving how does the nature change?

-           „dam“

-           a geological excursion trough the city, Marble from Italy, stones from Sweden, Finland etc.

Estonia – something from Tartu gymnasium

Latvia – one school is interested

Lithuania – one school is working with environmental history

Poland – one school in the mountain and one in Katowice (coal, power plant)

The financing has to be solved before the work can start even if the people are working for free with this book. The printing costs are high. The last book had a cost of 30 000 $ for 3000 copies.

Printing costs for Learners’ Guide 5 „Environmental History“:

It is advisable to expect a cost of app. 14 USD per copy (3000 copies) based on the costs of the most recent edition (LG4).

Further the editorial group needs to meet internationally, so finances for their travel (expectedly two or three meetings) makes Birthe Zimmermann suggests 50.000 USD as a reasonable budget.

Previous practise has been that all BSP schools and co-ordinators get one copy for free, and the rest is bought by schools and people of interest.

The first editorial meeting is planned without obligation in Denmark, 11.-14. April 2002.

Every contributions for the book should be written and sent in before April 2002

If you have any question or additions about environmental history, please contact

Per Eliasson

e-mail: eliasson.per@telia.com

A problem for some other programme co-ordinators is that people don’t send in their results to the program co-ordinators, for example River Quality. Is it too difficult to fill in the protocol?

Here are some points from the discussion:

-           It is very difficult with evaluation

-           You have to clearly define the goals

-     Are BSP-schools living up to the goals?

-           Compare BSP-schools with „normal“ schools

-           Quality or quantity? Most of us preferred quality

-           We need an evaluation so that we can get money to the project

Report on „The Baltic Sea Project, Newsletter No. 1, 2001

This Newsletter is a first product of taking over the German co-ordination of the BSP. It had a circulation of 3.800 and was distributed in 500 schools and teacher training institutes as well as in 20 other interested European states, and in Africa, Asia and Latin America. 200 copies were put at the disposal of the UNESCO (Paris).

Many favourable responses to this Newsletter had been received by July 2001 and it has therefore been recognised as a successful instrument of communication.

The interim report reads as follows:

n    The Newsletter is a good means of reporting current projects used by all bordering states for teacher training.

n    It promotes the project concept thereby adding further schools as co-operation partners.

n    Better than any other UNESCO media it not only shows one prolect as a form of general objectives but focuses on current project work.

n    It offers links for projects in other regions and is therefore instrumental for global contacts including a selection of subjects in the Internet.

n    It is a proof of the effectiveness of the BSP.

n    It is exemplary for regional communication in other UNESCO projects for which this newsletter could serve as inspiration.

According to the central office for co-ordination of the UNESCO school project (world-wide) at the UNESCO (Paris) the newsletter is presented and appreciated in Paris as well as in many other regional offices of the UNESCO as an exemplary way of subregional school co-operation.

It will also find its use at thematic exhibitions during international conferences (Conference of Ministries of Education - world-wide - Sep. 2001, Geneva; UNESCO General Conference Oct. 2001 in Paris; Rio+10-subsequent conference of the United Nations in Johannesburg, Sept. 2002 and conferences of experts in Europe and other regions.)

With the Newsletter 1/2001 Germany does justice to the high standards which Finland, Sweden and Denmark as co-ordinators of the BSP of the UNESCO schools have set in the previous years.

There is money for publishing the next newspaper.

Press deadline for the Newsletter 2/2001: October 15th 2001 Please write in (correct!) English.

Calendar

      Environmental Olypiade in St. Petersburg/Russia, September 2001

      KOTKA River course for Finland, Estonia and Russia, October 2001

      Environmental history meeting in Denmark 11-14/4 – 2002

·          Agenda 21 IT-conference 25/4-2002

·          Environmental history meeting in ??  October 2002

·          14th international Conference for the national co-ordinators in                                Estonia 31/1 – 3/2 –2002  (alt. 2/2 - 6/2--2002).

2003      :       50 years celebration of ASP-net.

-           Martin wants to have a mailing list from all BSP schools so that it would bee easier to reach each other with information and to get quick answers to questions.

-           Birthe thinks that personal meetings are important as teacher training courses and so do I.

-           A new webmaster from Kiel. He has opinions about the homepage. He will come with a new suggestion and all co-ordinators will be asked for their suggestions.

-           Ute wants a new and a correct mailinglist from all BSP schools latest at the end of September containing contact person and other information. It is very important with correct phone numbers, fax numbers and e-mail addresses.

-           At the end of the year there will be a new International version at the home-page about the „Catalogue of active BSP-Schools“.

Susanne Mellvig                                                 Fassung vom 24.08.01

e-mail: mellvig.susanne@telia.com

Copyright 1996-2001 © Baltic Sea Project

Comments or problems with BSP site content or design, please contact BSP webmaster: Lutz Friemann