Connecting Sustainability Citizenship and Challenge Based Learning

The Synapses Teacher Academy is based on the concept of Sustainability Citizenship (SC). Teaching for SC motivates students to balance environmental, social and economic priorities in making informed decisions that bring about a positive change. In this workshop, we will introduce the Synapses portal of open educational resources alongside a Challenge Based Learning (CBL) approach which encourages students to tackle real-world issues.

During the workshop, participants will learn how to implement the three phases of CBL: Engage, Investigate, and Act. Engage is about changing an abstract idea into an actionable challenge. Investigate involves researching issues and coming up with possible solutions. Act includes developing and implementing evidence-based solutions and evaluating them with stakeholders.

Complementing the CBL approach are the open educational resources on the Synapses Portal. The resources are embedded with active-learning methodologies to develop the knowledge, competencies, and values necessary for Sustainability Citizenship. The workshop will include:

• Exploration: Participants will explore the Synapses Portal to design lessons on climate action and scientific inquiry.
• Lesson Planning: Participants will create lesson plans in both subject-specific and cross-curricular groups.
• Assessment Strategies: Discussions on evaluating student learning and sustainability competencies.

Leading for Sustainability Citizenship

As a school leader, you are at the forefront of a critical transition. Across Europe, embedding sustainability into education is no longer just a classroom initiative - it is a strategic leadership mandate. But how do you drive this change effectively while balancing the diverse environmental, social, and economic priorities of your school?

In this interactive workshop designed specifically for school heads and educational leaders, we will explore what it truly means to champion Sustainability Citizenship. We will move beyond isolated projects to focus on the whole-school ecosystem, equipping you with the tools to build collective efficacy, align your strategic vision, and foster the conditions for lasting, meaningful change.

While most professional development targets classroom teachers, the SYNAPSES Academy recognises that systemic transition requires empowered leadership. Participants will discover the dedicated leadership tracks within the portal (https://portal.synapses-academies.eu/), exploring high-impact resources such as Leading Change Processes, Stimulating Collective Self-Efficacy, and the inspiring Schools as Living Labs framework.

Join us to connect with fellow forward-thinking leaders. Together, we will examine proven strategies for engaging your entire community - teachers, students, families, and local partners - ensuring that Sustainability Citizenship becomes deeply rooted in your school’s culture, vision, and daily practice.

Sustainable Food Systems

We are pleased to invite you to a 2-hour teacher training workshop focused on the design of educational activities related to healthy and sustainable food systems.

During the workshop, you will:

• Be introduced to open schooling and the whole-school approach
• Explore how schools can act as living labs for food system transformation
• Learn how to integrate the topics that the online “CLEVERFOOD for everyone” Exhibition into your teaching practice
• Share and co-create hands-on learning activities to use before and after a (virtual or in-person) visit to the exhibition with your students.

This workshop is organised as part of the CLEVERFOOD project and Futurefoods Partnership. Its aim is to bridge formal and informal education and foster synergies among educators and stakeholders in primary and secondary food education. Participants will have the opportunity to co-create educational activities linked to the Exhibition and have access to already developed such resources.

Bridging the Knowledge-Action Gap: The Sustainability Citizenship Competence Model

The knowledge-action gap is a persistent problem in which students’ knowledge and positive attitudes regarding the environment and climate change don't translate into consistent pro-environmental behavior. Sustainability Citizenship has the potential to bridge this gap, transforming sustainability from a cognitive concept into a lived practice supported by culture, community, infrastructure, and self-concept.

How, therefore, can we create an effective learning continuum towards sustainability? How can we design and implement interventions that will transform our school into a living lab of sustainability and an “accelerator” of pro-environmental behavior? How will we measure the impact of our actions?

During the workshop, the participants will explore and work on:

• The key features of the Sustainability Citizenship Competence Model, and how it is operationalised through the Whole School Approach.
• Specific examples of interventions in a school as a living lab of sustainability, embedded in a wider Green Learning Ecology.
• The Sustainability Citizenship Competence assessment process followed in the BRIDGES project.