Exploring Key Takeaways from the April 2021 Webinar

International School Grounds Alliance webinars showcase a variety of programmes and practices that enhance the way school grounds are used, designed and managed.

Nature Connections in School Grounds:

Case studies from the Mediterranean and South America

Our April Webinar featured two members of our ISGA Leadership Council - Josefina Prieto, e-spiral Chile and Sarah Brady, Birdlife Malta.

Let’s weave education with nature for children’s and nature’s sake | Josefina Prieto, e-spiral, Chile

Josefina will share her deep conviction that outdoor spaces at any educational center (early childhood, school, college, or university) can become an oasis of diverse plants, that will attract a variety of birds and insects; and that people and communities can be restored by nature in these spaces - and that through developing these space, nature can be restored by people.

Her deep belief is that eventually, these educational oases will ripple outwards, thanks to students being agents of change at their homes and neighbourhoods, that over time will overlap and interconnect, becoming future green corridors.

Drawn from her many years of experience as a landscape architect and advocate for outdoor learning, Josefina will share real examples and down to earth advice on how to interweave outdoor spaces with native plants, insects, birds and other wildlife - to realise the benefits for both people and the environment.

About Josefina: With qualifications in Agricultural Engineering and Landscape Architecture, internships at the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew and Sticky Wicket Dorset, Josefina has developed a deep understanding of, and passion for, our connection with the natural environment. This passion has driven her professional career towards projects and collaborations that allow her to continue to learn and share this passion - and most importantly, put this knowledge into practice.

Josefina is an active member of the ISGA Leadership Council; she leads the Outdoor Classroom Day initiative in Chile and Cono Sur; co-founded the NGO, Fundacion Ilumina and its program Naturalizar -the first Outdoor Learning Early Childhood Program established in Chile; and runs her consultancy, e-spiral, which aims to interweave education with nature in school and university settings.

Wildlife in School Grounds | Sarah Jane Brady, Birdlife Malta

Sarah will share two fantastic programmes currently operating in schools in Malta. Natural Nations is a citizen science project supporting schools to survey their grounds for pollinators and birds. And, Dinja Wahda+, a comprehensive suite of resources, lesson plans and training which provide everything teachers might need to start the cultural shift required to take lessons from the classroom into the outdoors. Sarah will also give us a snapshot of the range of student-focused programmes operating around the globe in the Birdlife International community.

About Sarah: Sarah is a passionate and international award-winning advocate of environmental education, who leads a BirdLife Malta team of 12 staff to deliver engagement programmes; and is the principal co-ordinator of a global network of environmental educators.

For free access some of the other webinars click here