Planting Our Future

"<< Background >>With this project we wanted to try a practical approach to combatting climate change and, more importantly, empower young people to take the initiative and gain the confidence that they can do something against climate change. The main idea was to do a reforestation project in order to contribute to affecting the climate in a local environment.Although the forest area in the EU has increased over the past 30 years, the condition of forests is deteriorating. At the same time, sustainable forest management was key to protecting biodiversity and mitigating the consequences of climate change in forests. Especially considering the frustration of young people who felt their efforts against the climate crisis had been relatively ineffective, this project aimed to provide positive and constructive experiences of their own effectiveness—in short, youth empowerment. Additionally, PlantingOurFuture supported the EU's self-imposed goal of promoting afforestation. (New EU Forest Strategy for 2030, 2021, p.3: ""Other priorities of the strategy are sustainable afforestation and reforestation. The strategy is also accompanied by a roadmap for the planting of at least 3 billion new trees in the EU by 2030.”)<< Objectives >>In addition to the overarching goal of intercultural exchange, the project had three main objectives:Learning about environmental protection and sustainability.Organizing and implementing a reforestation campaign.Imparting relevant professional skills, especially for disadvantaged and remote locations within the EU.The project achieved its objectives by teaching its participants the principles of sustainability and environmental protection while allowing them to experience their own effectiveness. In short, the participants carried out a sustainable reforestation campaign on the Maltese island of Gozo, supported by an online course that had previously provided them with the necessary knowledge and enabled them to organize the event together.With the hands-on reforestation event we also wanted to give the young participants the opportunity to gain international experience, connect with each other and explore EU values, as is normal with international youth exchanges. Although we had a focus on environmental protection, we also encouraged discussions and exchanges on such topics as education, culture, democracy and human rights. << Implementation >>Planting Our Future consisted of two activities. In an online course, the young participants developed the foundations for a successful reforestation campaign by learning the basics of biology and geography, particularly in relation to environmental and climate protection, as well as sustainability. The course covered networking, teamwork, the use of modern communication tools, scientific and results-focused work, work presentations, public relations, and sponsorship — equipping participants with professional skills they could later apply in valuable ways.Between the online lectures the youth participants worked in small international groups on preparing the planting event and completed all the necessary preparations for the reforestation.The second practical activity included a professional reforestation campaign, covering everything from organizing and managing the logistics of the seedlings to creating a planting plan, carrying out the actual planting, providing aftercare, and handling media support and distribution. In working on these tasks, the project strengthened their willingness to take initiative, fostered entrepreneurship, and supported the fight against climate change and environmental degradation.<< Results >>Planting Our Future conveyed to its participants relevant professional and personal qualifications, facilitated networking among participants and beyond, promoted intercultural exchange, improved English language skills, encouraged initiative and teamwork, and hope in the face of multiple ongoing crises. In addition, trees were planted on the island of Gozo, generating further positive effects for the local community.The project gave the participating partners the opportunity to gain the experience of running such a project and giving young people the practical experience of combatting climate change through creative activities such as reforestation. The experience along with the developed materials will be used in future learning activities.We have recorded some of the online lectures and they can be found here:https://www.youtube.com/@PlantingOurFuture"