enSI: Environment and School Initiatives (I.n.p.a./ivzw)

25 years of networking for EE and ESD

Who and what is enSI?

Environment and School Initiatives

ENSI is a decentralised international network, set up in 1986 under the auspices of OECD's Centre for Educational Research & Innovation (CERI).

Who and what is enSI

ENSI is an international government-based network that places emphasis on school development in the field of Education for Sustainable Development.

Who and what is enSI?

For 25 years, enSI has supported educational developments such as active approaches to teaching and learning, and citizenship education through research, policy development and the international exchange of experiences and knowledge.

Partners and Members

enSI’s main partners:

Governments committed to improving education for sustainable development

Pilot schools with teachers and students Researchers and experts Teacher educators and their students

Member countries and partners involved in enSI

Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Japan, Korea, Luxembourg, New Zealand, The Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, UK

Associate members of enSI

Associate members of ENSI: CEE India AAEE Australia (Australian Association for

Environmental Education) EEA (European Environment Agency) University of Bordeaux, UNESCO chair for

ESD University of Cheongju, Korea

Individual members of enSI

Individual members of ENSI: Autonomous University of Barcleona (Prof.

Dr. M. Espinet) Sains University, Malaysia (Dr. Norizan binti

Esa)

enSI works in cooperation with

UNESCO (Decade on ESD) UNECE (Steering Committee on ESD) UNEP / Carpathian Convention OECD/CERI, Project ILE (Innovative

Learning Environments) and CELE (Centre of Effective Learning Environments)

Aims of enSI

To promote and facilitate the development of an ecologically sustainable society and related actions within educational systems on a high quality level.

Aims of enSI

To create innovative research networks which link the practical reality in schools and communities with academic educational research and institutional decision making.

Aims of enSI

To foster the democratic participation of students as active citizens in shaping the environmental conditions of their life and work

Strengths of enSI

ENSI´s strength lies in the combined work of policy makers, researchers, teacher educators and their students and pilot schools with teachers and students.

Activities of enSI

ENSI influences policy decisions at the international level by combining international processes of quality development and pedagogical improvement and formulating guidelines and criteria such as the UNECE process on ESD.

Activities of enSI

ENSI organises and affects the exchange of expertise in the field of research education on sustainable development by offering a platform for senior experts, as well as for young innovative researchers.

Activities of enSI

ENSI is analyzing curricula for ESD and reflects case studies on innovative learning environments, carries out research on these with cross analysis studies, and develops trends and guidelines for future-orientated education.

Activities of enSI

ENSI supports schools by offering tools for their own development, and promotes international exchange by influencing and initiating networks across Europe (currently COMENIUS multilateral projects and networks) and other regions of the world.

Junior Researchers - an enSI Project

ENSI gathers a group of 20 junior researchers from the field of ESD. They meet annually and have an exchange on current relevant research questions, learn from each other, have the chance to hear senior researchers and get mentoring for their research work.

CoDeS - an enSI initiated COMENIUS multilateral network

Collaboration of Schools and Communities for Sustainable Development

Status: Submitted, February 2011; Selection Summer 2011

Aims of CoDeS

Pedagogical approaches to ESD and

Science learning

Collaboration School-Community:

Conditions, structure Common interests Learning arenas Sustainability of projects Collaborative knowledge

building Systems thinking

Life-long learning: Mutual learning, exchange

Patterns / shared interests for collaboration

Inclusive design of learning arenas Isolated communities

Social media Social learning

experience

20

The role of Junior Researchers

Reflective group of critical friends Follow-up on process Feed-back on drafts and piloting Attending partner meetings and conferences Preparing a series of report (own publication)

on lessons learnt

21

ENSI’s work is intercultural exchange

ENSI respects and takes to account the differences between nations and cultures, its added value is the result of the exchanges that international networking can stimulate.