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Μαθαίνουμε, Δρούμε, Αλλά-ΖΟΥΜΕ
Start date: Jun 1, 2015, End date: May 31, 2017 PROJECT  FINISHED 

The title we chose to give our project is: "We Learn, We Act, We Change – Live Better" We believe that the "opening" of the school to its community, will strengthen a "change", if it relies on the collective responsibility of the social forces involved in its operation. Teachers, students and parents have the first word, while the local authorities and the wider community are involved and show interest in school activities. The objective of this project is that the school of yesterday and today of the community of Mammari, in a very interesting area in terms of biodiversity, to develop dynamically and to shape the sustainable school of tomorrow. Namely to incorporate the idea of sustainability into every aspect of its operation, meaning the administration, the learning process, the management of buildings, the transportation from and to the school, school relations with the educational authorities and the wider local community. We felt that, in order to achieve this, we need to aim at two levels: At the level of environmental protection and the level of culture and tradition. After we study and appreciate the local history, the tradition and outline our cultural identity, we have to visualize the school's evolvement/progress in its surroundings. All activities aim at the preservation and enhancement of the area/environment, while developing environmental awareness and bonding with it. It is the area/environment in which we live and create, others lived and created before us and this is the one that we will deliver to our children... The strengthening of our action with the expertise and know-how of other European countries and experts, will both strengthen its perspective in the future, and will also integrate it into the general context of the effort of the republic of Cyprus for sustainable development. To achieve this, we propose to train/educate our school teachers about the relevant issues/topics in order to act as “knowledge and experience diffusion-cores” (of all they they’ll learn/experience from the educational programs we are asking for funding). The profile of the four teachers that will be selected must have three characteristics: relative previous knowledge of the topic, particular interest for the topic and the will to take advantage of this experience to help the school and the community to move towards its goals. So, using environmental education as a tool of investigating the space/area and the study of tradition-culture as time investigative tools, we hope to be able to educate ourselves and contribute to redefining the vision, the values and the goals of our school. Our hope is that this change will function as a tool for enhancing the quality of life in the wider community Mammari. This knowledge is enhanced by the careful selection of the educational programs we request to participate. These programs vary considerably between them in order to give the maximum benefit to the school. For example, one of them addressed to the administrative/management staff of the school (“Outdoor leadership- Outdoor learning”), the second is addressed to people who are interested in the use of technology (“Digital Dynamic Cultural Dialogue”), the third is dedicated to the exploitation of nature and the surrounding environment (“Hidden in the Open Space”) and the 4th targets to enrich the learning process with formal and non-formal education amongst others (“Outdoor Environmental Education - Experiential Approach to Learning”). We hope that the outcome will be, beyond the substantial self-improvement of individuals and groups, the creation of two experiential programs that we will share with neighboring communities and schools. One will concern the nature trail (that begins from Mammari) and the other the emergence/promotion of the Folk-Art museum that exists in the community but is acting poorly. In order all of the above to become a reality, people’s education is required, which will turn them to cores of diffusion of knowledge for the wider student and school community. The small Educational Conference that we plan to organize after the trainings will contribute greatly to this direction. The conference is expected to influence and activate others, e.g. teachers from other schools or institutions, other active bodies of the community and the Cyprus Ministry of Culture and Education. Our long-term goal is the conversion of the school to a learning community, its effective integration to the well-being of the community, to be able to influence and not only to get influenced.
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