The project aims to create a modern ecological education tool that will be integrated with the smart city concept. By using this method of non-formal education, game participants will become acquainted with a new vision of smart cities based on ecology and new information and communication technologies. Moreover, as a final result, we strive to increase the activity of young people in public life and civic activity, and to introduce smart city elements in their own places of residence.
The era of digitalization, which currently dominates, mobilizes us to take action in this direction. The response to the identified direction will be the SMART CITY game, whose task is to promote ecological activities, develop an innovative tool for non-formal education in the field of ecology and activate local communities to take actions in this direction. The initiative is aimed at increasing the quality of life, work and recreation of residents. We know well that ecology education in schools is, for a large part of young people, something uninteresting and inappropriate to their situation. The thesis is confirmed by research that was carried out among them during the implementation of initiatives such as the Silesian Academy of Ecological Competences, Green Jobs or Let’s design the city green. In total, we obtained the opinion of 300 young people. As part of the project, the game created will respond to the needs identified during the evaluation among young people, including:
– Acquiring ecological competencies,
– Increasing young people’s awareness of the environment and ecology,
– Using new technologies as an educational source,
– Increasing young people’s knowledge about green jobs
– Showing the impact of technological innovations on environmental protection.
Referring to the research conducted, it should be noted that young people found materials created in the context of the use of new technologies and digitalization to be an attractive form of education. Therefore, in order to reach a wide group of young people, we will implement new technologies as a key component in the implementation of the project, which will result in the development of the SMART CITY board game, which will be available in a PDF version and in a virtual version on the website, and then making it available to entities acting for young people. This action will allow us to increase our audience activity and create an educational element that fits the “European Year of Skills 2023” initiativeThanks to the implementation of the project, the reality during and after the energy transformation will not be scary for young people but interesting and full of prospects for the future. Additionally, as part of the initiative, we want to show that technological innovations have the potential to reduce the negative impact of humans on the environment, which makes them important in the fight against global warming and other ecological problems. Our game directly refers to the European initiative called “New European Bauhaus”.
Partner Organizations
4COMMUNITY, Poland (Coordinator)
The main activity of 4COMMUNITY focuses on activities encouraging civic activism. Thanks to many informal educational forms, we convince young people that seemingly boring activities can turn out to be extremely interesting and presented in an attractive form. Many of the projects they carried out were a response to the need to develop young people’s knowledge in the field of ecology, environmental protection, new technologies and positive aspects related to social activism.
Youth For Equality, Slovakia (Partner)
Youth for Equality is an organization founded in Slovakia in 2016 on the initiative of local youth. The main area of the organization’s activity is the development of activities activating young people at the local and international level. Young people also receive support in the process of creating and implementing individual design ideas.
“The Project funded by the European Union”