Activiteit/evenement

Our Secondary Outdoor Education Coordinator trains students in middle school to use a compass, read maps, set tents, hike and cook food outdoors. From time to time these expeditions and excursions are also open to families in our community with children in Primary who also love and can enjoy the Outdoors. The older students then help training the younger ones.

• Welke tips wil je andere Eco-teams geven bij het organiseren van een activiteit/evenement?: Not all schools can afford an Outdoor Education Coordinator position but perhaps among teachers or staff there are people willing to train students who could then join hikes with their families several times per year.
• Onderwijstype: Voortgezet onderwijs
• Waarom zijn jullie hier trots op?: These different opportunities promote the enjoyment and protection of Nature and the Outdoors and bond the community together. We get to know our surroundings.
• School: United World College Maastricht

A 3 month long design-thinking course which this year included the training to all DP1 students in January (delivered by a team of staff members and alumni) but also the implementation of their projects in April, in collaboration with local organisations. Students pre-registered into 10 themes, including Planet&Climate, Equity & Inclusion, Anti-Racism&Diversity or Building Resilient Communities, to name a few. The themes provide the framework for the methodology used: user research, SDGs, etc

• Welke tips wil je andere Eco-teams geven bij het organiseren van een activiteit/evenement?: It is important to provide opportunities for students to learn to identify challenges or problems in their own school or community and allow creative thought for them to come up with solutions that they can develop and improve over time.
• Onderwijstype: Voortgezet onderwijs
• Waarom zijn jullie hier trots op?: For the last 7 years this program has equipped our graduating students with the skill-set and tools to intentionally bring about positive change in their communities, taking Maastricht as our initial/experimental hub. Great projects have come out of this program. This year's top Community Panel awards were for 2 projects in the Equity & Inclusion theme group, promoting second hand clothing and rethinking beauty through inclusive fashion and in the Planet & Climate theme group with the project Kinowa, promoting plant-based diets and raising awareness about their health benefits and climate action.
• School: United World College Maastricht

Three upper Secondary School students and our Eco-School Program Coordinator have established a service this year to monitor and produce annual Carbon Footprints of our school's activity. The aim is to establish an annual report that can be shared with our community but also across other UWC schools, all of which have signed a Climate Commitments pledge. The team meets weekly and has planned and sent out surveys, made presentations to all year groups and interviewed key roles within the school.

• Welke tips wil je andere Eco-teams geven bij het organiseren van een activiteit/evenement?: The team needs to be very meticulous and passionate about the topic as the many sessions just analyzing data can be long and tedious. It is also important to identify how some of the data can be collected via existing mechanisms already in place. Also important to book in advance assembly slots or other per year group and with teachers and parents so we can reach everyone in the school.
• Onderwijstype: Voortgezet onderwijs
• Waarom zijn jullie hier trots op?: The establishment of this service for our students ensures that -in line with the UWC Climate Commitments signed by our Head of School in May 2021- our school will report our own climate impact, as a basis to inform our solution-based efforts, and enable cooperation among the UWC schools and colleges in implementing individual climate strategies. This annual report will help us share data that will illustrate where and why we need to take climate action.
• School: United World College Maastricht

This is a conference founded by students back in 2015, which has continued to date, always led by a team of students. The students select a theme each year and develop and curate the content by themselves or also inviting guest speakers/collaborators. The event can take the form of presentations, workshops, a hike or other. A staff member supervises all student-led initiatives and provides strategic support but the team of students is responsible for all the logistics, promotion, etc.

• Welke tips wil je andere Eco-teams geven bij het organiseren van een activiteit/evenement?: It makes sense to connect to the Eco-School themes your school is working on for such an event and have dates agreed perhaps from the previous school year so you can promote it and invite other schools with enough time. The team must meet weekly to plan every step of the way and it is useful for them to ask staff members, parents or alumni for contacts they might have with experts or organisations working in that theme.
• Onderwijstype: Voortgezet onderwijs
• Waarom zijn jullie hier trots op?: It is a 7 year old student-led initiative that provides a fresh take on Environmental Sustainability every year. It allows our school to connect with outside experts as well as other schools. This year's theme of the conference, which took place in February, was 'Beyond'. As students described it: "In the era of fake news and hollow political promises, it's often disheartening to think about climate change, and think that the battle is lost." Through the conference, the students wanted to show that change is real, and anybody can become part of the solution. The lectures and workshops that took place allowed for thorough discussions and inspired action.
• School: United World College Maastricht