Hamburg forest education project connects young people across continents
Published on 14 September 2026 at 00:35 GMT
By Editorial Team SDG4
A forest education project in Hamburg is linking pupils’ experiences of local woodland with young people’s perspectives from Brazil, Cameroon and Indonesia. Wälder ohne Grenzen, meaning ‘Forests Without Borders’, combines outdoor learning, filmmaking and workshops. Following its pilot, the programme has moved into a new phase, according to SDW Hamburg, the forest conservation organisation behind it.
The approach brings environmental education into woodland that pupils can explore directly, while films and teaching materials from partner countries extend the discussion beyond Hamburg. Participants present their own experiences of forests through images and share them with other young people.
From the pilot to shared films
The 2025 pilot was designed for 50 Hamburg pupils aged 12 to 16, with six modules introducing local forest knowledge and perspectives from partner regions. The figure was a planned cohort size, rather than a reported final attendance total. Natural objects, seeds and handmade items formed part of the teaching approach, alongside the development of a youth film.
In its account published on 26 January 2026, SDW Hamburg reported that the pilot’s closing event took place at the Wälderhaus on 16 January 2026. Hamburg participants screened films made in the Volksdorfer Wald and Niendorfer Gehege and watched contributions from their partners in Cameroon, Brazil and Indonesia.
The organiser’s account describes young people presenting their relationships with forests through self-produced films. Local woodland visits supplied the setting for the Hamburg contributions, while the international videos introduced other experiences of forests and their protection. The films are identifiable project outputs. They do not, on their own, establish how far participants’ environmental knowledge or behaviour changed after the activities ended.
Learning through materials and exchange
Practical work includes papermaking at the Wälderhaus, where pupils use dried water hyacinths as an alternative raw material to wood. SDW Hamburg describes the paper as sustainable, but its project page provides no comparative environmental assessment to substantiate that description.
The pilot design placed these workshops after introductory classroom activities and a forest visit. Pupils first developed exercises with natural materials and a concept for their video, then filmed in the woodland before presenting their work at the closing event.
The international links draw on the International Sustainability Academy (ISA), initiated by SDW Hamburg. Its institutional account describes a nine-month scholarship programme that supported sustainability practitioners from the Global South in developing projects. It records public funding from 2019 to 2024 and describes the alumni network, online workshops and voluntary activities as ways in which connections continue after that funding ended.
That distinction clarifies the relationship with the forest project. The continuing contribution comes through former participants and their networks; the academy’s earlier residential programme and its ongoing alumni activity are not identical. In Wälder ohne Grenzen, alumni supply forest videos and teaching materials from their regions, connecting their environmental work with learning in Hamburg classrooms.
Expansion and educational aims
On 19 May 2026, SDW Hamburg announced an expanded phase following the pilot with two Hamburg schools. Its update described new biodiversity excursions, birdwatching activities and simulation-based learning in cooperation with HafenCity University Hamburg, alongside broader international exchange. These are elements of the announced programme development, not a confirmed tally of sessions completed or additional pupils reached.
The same update said the organiser was pursuing further partnerships and funding to bring the programme to more Hamburg schools. It also identified Engagement Global as a new funding partner, using funds from Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). The announcement gave no final total of participating schools or detailed timetable for the additional activities.
The educational focus relates to SDG 4 (quality education). Target 4.7 of the United Nations framework addresses knowledge and skills for sustainable development, including global citizenship and appreciation of cultural diversity. Forest learning and the exchange of young people’s perspectives fit within that subject area, although the cited project accounts do not measure progress against the target.
The published record shows a completed pilot event, youth films and an announced next phase. SDW Hamburg identifies stronger forest knowledge, media skills and environmental engagement as aims. As the programme develops, those aims remain distinct from demonstrated results: the activities are documented, while their lasting effects on participants are not quantified in the cited project accounts.
Written by a human author, edited with AI assistance.
Further information:
SDW Hamburg, Wälder ohne Grenzen project page. Describes the pilot design, learning materials, filmmaking, papermaking and alumni contributions.
SDW Hamburg, pilot closing event report, 26 January 2026. Documents the 16 January event, Hamburg forest filming locations and international screenings.
SDW Hamburg, programme expansion announcement, 19 May 2026. Supports the next-phase activities and continuing work on partnerships and funding.
https://www.sdw-hamburg.de/presse/pressemeldung/das-sdw-projekt-waelder-ohne-grenzen-waechst-weiter/
SDW Hamburg, International Sustainability Academy overview. Explains the scholarship programme’s history, funding period and continuing alumni activity.
United Nations Statistics Division, SDG indicator metadata repository. Provides the wording of goal 4, target 4.7 and its indicator on education for sustainable development and global citizenship.
