Can the forest serve as a full complement to the traditional classroom? All the participants of the “Schools Growing together with Forests” project from Sweden, Latvia and Norway, which in 2023-2025, are convinced of this. financed by Nordplus Horizontal. The project has resulted in a new guide for outdoor education based on the shared experiences of the project partners. “Forest Education Guide” invites both schools and foresters to explore why the forest as a classroom is a sustainable learning place and go to study in the forest in the Nordic and Baltic region.
The Forest and Wood Products Research and Development Institute (MeKA) was one of the cooperation partners of the project, which helped to provide continuing education programs for educators, in which both MeKA experts and project cooperation partners from Norway and Sweden participated, with the aim of creating innovative forest education materials and programs. Within the framework of the project, events were held for both adults and young people: foresters, nature guides, teachers and students, providing opportunities for formal and informal practical exchange of experience on forests and climate change.
During the project, interdisciplinary education programs for forest camps in all three project countries were jointly developed and approved, and a new Forest Education Guide on sustainable forest education in the region was digitally published in English, Latvian, Norwegian and Swedish. The established forest education network serves as a platform for future projects to promote cooperation and growth in the Baltics and Scandinavia.
Forest education guide in Latvian – free download
The project has another additional result – in honor of the successful cooperation of Nordplus, the project partner – JSC “Latvijas valsts meži” (LVM) together with MeKA and education experts from the Nordic and Baltic regions invited pedagogues to participate in the first international teacher forum “NATURE”. It took place on August 14 and 15 in the Latvian State Forest Nature Park in Tērvete, and more than 120 teachers participated. During two days, they got to know the topics published in the “Forest Education Guide”, participated in practical workshops, listened to expert discussions, went hiking, experienced overnight stays in the forest and much more.
Video overview – Latvian teachers’ forum “NATURE”
In the final discussion of the forum, the head of LVM environmental education, Līga Abizare, admitted that the most important benefit from learning in nature is not only better academic success and health, but also a higher sense of security in the current geopolitical situation. It is an opportunity for students to learn skills that are important for survival in nature to strengthen individual and national security. It is also a way to get to know the natural wealth of forests, forming a sense of belonging to both the Baltic and Nordic communities. Additional information on Nordic and Baltic cooperation: www.nordplusonline.org.