Ecological intelligence for sustainable development

<< Background >>The THEMIS project was designed to explore innovative approaches to increase the involvement of teachers and pupils in environmental education.Our project is based on the concept of Ecological Intelligence (EI), defined as the ability to understand the environmental consequences of our everyday choices and to act in ways that reduce our ecological impact. Daniel Goleman (2009) defines environmental education as a lifelong learning process through which individuals and communities become aware of their environment and acquire the knowledge, values, skills, experience and determination to act individually and collectively to solve current and future environmental problems.THEMIS aimed to meet the following needs:- Develop ecological intelligence (EI) and young people's understanding of the ecological consequences of their everyday choices, as a necessity in the light of climate change.- To improve teacher training in order to equip them with new methods of environmental education to make pupils aware of their responsibility towards the environment.<< Objectives >>The THEMIS project aims to promote ecological intelligence among young people, focusing on raising awareness among teachers and secondary school pupils. The main objective is to guide young people towards environmentally-friendly lifestyles, promote sustainable consumption patterns and raise their awareness of environmental issues.The specific objectives linked to this main objective are :- to disseminate the concept of ecological intelligence - to understand the impact of actions on the environment, - a change of attitude among pupils, - the acquisition of social values and a concern for the environment, - promoting active participation in environmental protection. The project seeks to develop cognitive and affective environmental skills through quality education using innovative methods to train a new generation committed to protecting nature and adopting sustainable behaviour to preserve our planet.<< Implementation >>The project has been divided into two main work packages: 1. Project Results (PR)2. Management and Implementation work packages.The 3 work packages under Management and Implementation were:1. Management and administration: documentation, communication and meetings, progress reports, budget control and financial reports, time management, risk management. Pistes Solidaires was responsible for general project management activities.2. Quality assurance and evaluation: Quality Assurance Plan, establishment of qualitative and quantitative indicators, quality audits and evaluation of the quality of the PR. Evaluation of the project other than the PR: quality of management, communication, evaluation of meetings and promotional activities, final evaluation of the project's success. The Slovenian partner DRPDNM was responsible for quality assurance and evaluation.3. Promotion: Dissemination plan with indicators, visualisation of the project: logotype, document templates, coordination of promotion in the partners' social networks (FB, LinkedIn, YouTube), newsletters, project infographics. DRPDNM was responsible for promoting the project.<< Results >>The THEMIS project has produced three main tangible results (PR - Project Results):PR1 SMART&GREEN TEACHERS: A training curriculum in the form of a manual in English and 4 other languages, comprising 20 modules for secondary school teachers, based on the eco-intelligence model proposed by Daniel Goleman, to develop in pupils attitudes and skills for more sustainable and environmentally friendly consumption.PR2 THE ECO-SMART GENERATION: a toolkit containing 24 educational resources and activities to develop eco-intelligence in secondary school pupils (aged 12-16), in the form of a set of challenges and a guide for teachers, available in 5 languages.PR3 ECO INTELLIGENT CASE STUDIES: a series of 20 case studies in the form of videos, subtitled in English, relating to the practice of responsible and sustainable consumption, which can be used as teaching resources focusing on raising awareness and commitment to eco-citizenship.In addition to the RPs, other results were achieved during the project, in the form of management, evaluation and promotion deliverables.