Green realities on their way! Kompetenzentwicklung für inklusiv und sozial gerechten Natur- und Biodiversitätsschutz für Jugendliche und ihre Fachkräfte in der (politischen) Jugend(sozial)bildung

<< Background >>Access to a healthy environment and nature is not a given for many young people in Europe. Socio-economically disadvantaged young people and young people with disabilities in particular often have limited opportunities to experience nature and actively participate in environmental and nature conservation. This inequality is exacerbated by increasing socio-economic polarization and underlines the need to link environmental and socio-political challenges more closely.Current environmental education programs are often designed for educated middle-class target groups and take little account of the realities of disadvantaged groups. Studies show that it is not the content of such programs that is the biggest obstacle, but rather the way in which they are taught and the places where they take place. For socially disadvantaged and disabled people in particular, these formats often have an exclusionary effect.Our project addresses precisely this problem and pursues a participatory, milieu-sensitive and inclusive approach.<< Objectives >>The overarching aim of the project was to promote environmental justice in line with Youth Goal 10 and to further develop youth work in this area in an innovative way. Specifically, the aim was to strengthen the nature and environmental awareness of young people (16-25 years) - especially young people from low-income backgrounds and from institutions for the disabled (Youth Goal 3 & 5). At the same time, their equal participation in environmental education and nature education programs should be promoted. Another central element of the project was to anchor the topics of nature conservation and biodiversity in training courses for (political) youth (social) work. This approach, which is transferable throughout Europe, enables professionals to incorporate the preservation of biodiversity and nature conservation into their daily work with young people in a targeted manner. In the long term, this should provide new impetus for sustainable and environmentally friendly youth work.<< Implementation >>As part of the project, a three-part training series was carried out for youth workers to teach them practical methods of environmental education and nature education. To accompany this, a digital learning course was developed that enables flexible and accessible further training and can also be used beyond the project. In addition to working with professionals, the focus was also on the young people themselves. In two green camps, they dealt intensively with the topic of environmental justice and developed content for a digital campaign that was distributed via Facebook and Instagram to raise public awareness of nature conservation and biodiversity. Two transnational partner meetings were also held to coordinate and strategically develop the project, which served to exchange ideas, ensure quality and coordinate the next steps. These measures enabled the project to successfully achieve its objectives and have a lasting impact on youth work and environmental education.<< Results >>The project led to lasting changes in youth work and the perception of environmental and biodiversity issues. Two Green Camps and the qualification series enabled an intensive exchange, skills development and nature experiences, resulting in a stronger emotional connection to these topics. A film was produced to provide insight into the project and to reinforce this effect. In addition, a handout and the self-learning course provide a comprehensible basis with concrete methods and ideas for integrating environmental issues into youth work. These materials give other organizations access to tried and tested approaches.