BackgroundHumans have always been searching for better living conditions and they have been forced to immigrate to countries offering a higher income and better everyday living conditions. In recent years however, humanity has experienced massive relocations of populations moving from Mediterranean war zones to northern countries where refugees –not immigrants- have sought not so much for better financial conditions but mostly for decent survival conditions away from war zones. This has been a constant source of conflict not only among host countries but also among the citizens of each country. The main features of arguments were discrimination, social seclusion and isolation, disagreements, protests, embarrassment and scaremongering. ObjectivesThis project aims at helping students to:- identify their own attitudes, feelings and behaviour towards what is different and learn to recognize unfair practices such as prejudice and discrimination stereotypes- recognize similarities and differences among human beings- comprehend on the one hand the means which facilitate the development of stereotypes andprejudices and on the other hand their consequences- learn how to get in someone else’s shoes and develop empathy- learn to recognize the negative consequences of stereotypes and react to them- learn and recognize other people’s point of view- adopt and use what they have learned and experienced about equal treatment and respect in their everyday contact with different individualsProfile of participants / Context of the projectAll that is mentioned in the background and objectives sections above has acted as motivation for us- the 4 Balkan, Mediterranean countries all facing the pressing reality of integrating refugees and eliminating discrimination among sensitive groups, to participate in this Erasmus+ Project.The project will be intended to be extended to every minority or “weak” group which experiences rejection and social seclusion. Such groups include, apart from immigrants and refugees, religious minorities, people with special needs, Roma and the sexes (male, female).Activities/Methodology:Activities will be carried out using a number of methodological tools based on the following guidelines:- active involvement of all participants in the process of realizing the differences of minorities as well as the pressing need of incorporating them in the community- decreasing and/or eliminating minorities’ sense of inferiority and help them feel accepted- getting acquainted with the Roma people’s fears, intentions, expectations Tools that can be implemented to assess outcomes using both direct and indirect methods of assessment such as: research/survey (indirect method of assessment), questionnaires, case-studies- established accreditation criteria/standards when developing the assessment plan.

"Schools from 7 different countries (Germany, Iceland, Poland, Spain, Turkey) initiate a multilateral partnership and carry out their project idea ""Water - a European task in a global context"". Due to geographical, Social and cultural aspects, each country contributes individually and particularly to the project. Inda-Gymnasium Aachen is the coordinating partner. Water is the origin of life and affects mankind on the whole world. Therefore, we want to deal with the manifold aspects of water and its importance for our daily lives in the context of an international exchange. The participating partners have a different view on the availability of water, providing the students with the experience and the awareness of access to drinking water and a thoughtful reflexion of their own water consumption. Topics covered within the three-year project activities are:- Water conditioning, chemical and physical properties of water - Water treatment and drinking water abstraction- Distribution of water in the geological, geographical and political context- Water and agriculture - Water as a threat: flood and flood control- Infrastructure: economical an ecological issues- water power, geothermics- water as economic factor, tourism, wellness- the intercultural dimension of water:water in Art, music, literatureThe international dimension of the project refers to the UNESCO topics ""water"" as well as ""World Heritage Earth"" as different concepts of life and different perspectives on the dependence of water are being examined from economical, ecological and cultural points of view. Water is part of different curricula in all countries, therefore the project provides the chance to benefit from its results and products to a large extent.Aims of the project are the awareness of the various forms of using water, the exemplification of the international relevance in various contexts and the developement of solitions for problems related to the topic of water. Our students are going to analyse their own water consumption in the light of sustainability in order to realize the European and the global importance of private and public use of water. In this context we also deal with the problematic distribution of water. On the one hand, the aim of agriculture in arid environments is the international market thanks to irrigation, on the other hand politicians discuss the privatisation of drinking water supply. The latter would mean that water becomes a trading good instead of common property. We want to discuss the access to drinking water as a human right. Besides, we intend to work on the economical dimension of water as energy ressource, infrastructure and its importance for tourism, taking the ecological repercussions into consideration, too. The basic aim of the project is the awareness of the cross-border, interdisciplinary importance of water and the resulting consequences and challenges, also for our daily routines. This aim cumulates in a charta on European water protection, comprising a comparision of the national implementations of the corresponding EU directives. According to Europe 2020, the project focuses on the future and on sustainable growth. Our students aquire and extend their presentation and research skills. They learn how to plan, carry out and analyse surveys and other data collection methods. They gain an insight in social science and academic research. They improve their foreign language and intercultural skills.The activities, which mainly take place in the course of the transnational meetings, comprise for example visits to water treatment plants and power stations, analysis of water consumption and the presentation and documentation of working results. Students participate both in a cognitive and holistic way, for instance by cooperating with ""Engineers without Borders"" and by developing filter systems for water treatment. As a long-term result, the students increase their appreciation for the precious resource of water as a basis for a sustainable and social life."

The initiative of this application is part of a broader international movement, which seeks to provide guidance and operationalize strategic actions capable of protecting the oceans. The United Nations Organization (UN), in its 2030 agenda, defined 17 objectives for sustainable development of the planet, among which is the objective 14 “Protect marine life”. For the development of this objective, UNESCO's work was also associated with the definition of 7 principles that promote ocean literacy. It is our intention to operationalize the following principles from UNESCO: Principle 2. The Ocean and marine life have a strong action on the Earth dynamics; Principle 5.The Ocean supports an immense diversity of life and ecosystems; Principle 6.The Ocean and humanity are strongly interconnected.For the teaching of ocean literacy, schools must develop activities linked to the curriculum, aligning them with the programmatic content of each subject area. We intend to contribute to the development of critical and reflective students, capable of dealing with the challenges of today's society. Our priority issue is: “What trash do we find on the beaches near us? What are the consequences of this waste on marine ecosystems and on humans? ”. The specific objectives are:- Promote sustainable actions for the conservation and preservation of the oceans in conjunction with the curriculum of various disciplines in different teaching cycles;- Develop ocean literacy by presenting solutions;- Combining ocean literacy with STEAM;- Collect natural and unnatural material on visited beaches, in order to proceed to the observation / analysis / classification / comparison / establishment of conclusions about the material collected;- Streamline laboratory activities based on elements collected from field trips, proceeding with data processing;- Streamline artistic activities, transforming the garbage into art;- Participate in environmental activism actions;- Develop awareness raising actions to local community promoting the oceans protection;- Work on reading as a transversal domain of the curriculum, combining it with other forms of expression;- Produce support materials;- Disseminate the work creating training actions for teachers.The pedagogical teams of each partner school, since they integrate teachers from different levels of education and from different subjects, will create a set of activities that aim to promote ocean literacy in a holistic way and with different levels of deepening. The principles of the ocean to be worked on will be articulated from different perspectives: environmental, civic, artistic, literary, cultural, biological, chemical / physical and mathematical. Our activities are organized around 5 large clusters:- Experimental activities with and without field trips;- Environmental activism activities (“Ecological Brigades”);- Innovative artistic activities (artistic objects from the garbage collected);- Awareness-raising activities;- Training (teacher training to disseminate good practices).To take students to action, we intend to carry out field work, using laboratory and other experiments. These, based on the STEAM and Project Based Learning methodology, will allow students to carry out “in loco” collection of data and materials that allow a comparative analysis.The results expected are:- Formation of pedagogical teams, promoting the vertical and holistic articulation of the curriculum;- Design and development of training actions;- Development of a common program, applicable in the future, including a resource base;- Promotion of multiliteracy using different digital tools and producing by-products;- Creation of a collective e-book translated into all languages of the partners;- Realization of 1 workshop, in all partner schools, for transforming garbage into art;- Participation in environmental activism activities: 1 collection of marine litter + 1 awareness campaign with the local community.The school’s long-term benefit from this project will be an extended curriculum about ocean literacy. Active methodologies are also promoted and work is being done in conjunction with the objectives of the UN and UNESCO for the decade about the sustainability of the oceans. Throughout the project we use tools (Google Earth and Marine LitterWatch - a project developed by the EEA - European Environment Agency), that contribute to the international sharing of data.The activities foreseen in this project will continue to be operated mainly in science and mathematics, as they address contents that are part of the curriculum. We intend to share these lesson plans and examples of their implementation with the educational community, with a view to replicating them.The work networks established with stakeholders (Universities, specialists in the area, Institutes and Associations), throughout the project, are extremely important, and the continuity of this collaborative work is expected.

"The project ""Energy for Europe"" is dedicated to the topics of energy production and consumption and is realised in cooperation of four schools (special schools and secondary schools) from Greece, Bulgaria, the Netherlands and Germany (as the coordinating school). The idea developed from the topicality and social relevance of the respective topics, which is demonstrated by worldwide activities such as ""Fridays for Future"" or numerous climate conferences. Despite the urgency of change, actual changes are establishing themselves only slowly. The project aims to educate, sensitize and empower people to act responsibly. The participating students are 13-17 years old and are thus at an age when they are increasingly able to make decisions on their own initiative and take responsibility for society. They form and shape the generations that are even more significantly affected by the effects of our actions on the environment and climate. The project also empowers people to participate in public discourse through intensive debate. It enables self-efficacy experiences, an intercultural exchange on global issues and the experience of cultural and social diversity in Europe.The central themes are developed in workshops. The workshop contents as well as the overarching tasks are developed in the schools in fixed working groups. The planned European meetings will be attended by two representatives students from each of the schools' working groups. On the one hand, this is due to the fact that the students of the Carl-Ruß-Schule all have a special need for emotional and social development and can therefore contribute more easily in small groups in a secure and profitable way. The manageable group size also allows for intensive work and a high degree of interaction. The workshop contents are dedicated to the following topics:1. Energy passport of the countries: Energy production and consumption today2. In the course of time: Energy production and consumption yesterday - in the time of my grandparents 3. Rethinking energy: The need and possibility of renewable energies4. Your own footprint: What/how do I consume energy? What can I change?The workshop contents will be presented in digital form and published on the internet via eTwinning. During the individual mobilities, the students get to know the respective school, jointly develop a logo for the ""Energy for Europe"" project, visit different sites of energy production as well as local and cultural sights. They work out possibilities for action for a more responsible use of energy. As a joint project, a calendar will be created in which each school will design three calendar sheets on which old and new ways of generating energy as well as energy-saving tips will be presented.We expect the realisation of the project ""Energy for Europe"" to reduce prejudices in the long term through positive international and intercultural encounters and to make a small contribution to European international understanding, to strengthen the self-esteem of the schools and to have a positive effect on their language skills. The topic-specific increase in knowledge raises awareness of the responsible use of energy and opens up opportunities for action from which both students and the schools as a whole will benefit."