Hamburg pupils discover urban forests through outdoor learning and TREEPOLY
Published on 23 September 2026 at 01:04 GMT
By Editorial Team SDG11
A Hamburg school project is bringing together outdoor experiences and a board game about greener cities. Mein Stadtwald, organised by SDW Hamburg, offers 20 secondary school classes a tailored day in nature, followed by a classroom session. The forest visit provides a starting point for discussing urban trees, environmental change and everyday decisions. This approach places an abstract topic in settings pupils can observe and discuss firsthand.
The programme addresses a broader question in environmental education: how can teaching about climate and biodiversity relate to places young people already know? Urban forests offer a local example. Trees and other vegetation can provide shade, reduce heat, support wildlife and help limit certain forms of pollution. These benefits differ between locations and depend on how green spaces are planned, maintained and made accessible. The European Environment Agency has also documented unequal access to urban green and blue spaces across Europe.
For Mein Stadtwald, SDW Hamburg says it chooses games and teaching methods to suit each group’s age and the principles of Education for Sustainable Development. A relay race can demonstrate photosynthesis, while another activity involves making a forest perfume. These exercises encourage pupils to notice natural processes and sensory details before considering broader questions. The organisation presents the programme as a tailored nature day for lower or upper secondary classes, rather than a fixed series of identical activities.
A separate classroom meeting follows the forest visit. Pupils reflect on their experiences and play TREEPOLY, a board game in which they take on the role of “Green Heroes”. Players are asked to turn a fictional city into a greener “Green City”. Their main task is to create an urban forest by planting trees and consider how a city could respond to heat, air pollution and species loss. The board connects this challenge with consumption, transport and energy use.
A climate quiz is the main learning element. According to the game’s description, it addresses forests, climate adaptation, urban greenery and sustainable lifestyles. Players answer accessible questions about relationships that can otherwise be hard to visualise, such as trees’ cooling effects and their function as habitats. The game combines quiz questions, chance and strategy, with unexpected weather events also influencing play. TREEPOLY specifies two to four players, or teams of up to eight, and a typical playing time of around 30 to 60 minutes.
The board game presents a city’s environmental choices as a series of moves. This is a teaching tool, rather than a measure of what a specific policy or individual action would accomplish in Hamburg. The European Environment Agency describes urban green spaces as areas that can reduce temperatures during hot periods and support biodiversity, while also highlighting unequal access. The extent to which a particular tree-planting scheme alters exposure to heat or pollution depends on its location, species, canopy, surrounding surfaces and long-term care.
SDW Hamburg names Birgit Siemssen as TREEPOLY’s voluntary developer and states that the game has been available since late 2025. It describes the game as particularly intended for educators and environmental initiatives working with young people aged 12 and over. The organisation says that sales proceeds are used exclusively for charitable purposes. The game’s website is more specific, stating that surpluses from sales support nature conservation projects. These accounts of the game and its funding come from the organisations involved.
On 20 July 2026, TREEPOLY was one of 31 initiatives recognised in Stuttgart with the National Distinction for Education for Sustainable Development. The German UNESCO Commission includes “TREEPOLY – Baumgold” in its list of recipients. This recognition is distinct from the National Prize for Education for Sustainable Development, which the Commission says is awarded every two years.
Education for Sustainable Development seeks to help learners examine how decisions affect society, the environment and future generations. The German UNESCO Commission describes it as a means of developing the ability to assess the consequences of individual and collective action. In Mein Stadtwald, moving from outdoor activities to classroom reflection provides pupils with a shared experience on which to draw when discussing these issues. The project’s stated aim is to link knowledge of nearby nature with ideas for action.
The programme’s public description outlines its methods and the number of classes offered a place, but includes no independent evaluation of changes in pupils’ knowledge or behaviour. Its educational effects therefore cannot be established from the game’s distinction alone. The documented structure consists of a tailored outdoor day, a subsequent discussion and a board game that translates urban environmental pressures into questions and choices. Together, these elements situate the urban forest within pupils’ own city, rather than presenting it solely as a distant conservation issue.
The project connects directly with SDG 11 (sustainable cities and communities), which encompasses urban environmental conditions and access to green public spaces. Mein Stadtwald engages with these themes through education rather than a measured change in tree cover. It focuses on how young people understand a city’s green spaces, why those spaces are important and which decisions shape their future.
Written by a human author, edited with AI assistance.
Further information
SDW Hamburg, Mein Stadtwald project page. Documents the programme, its offer for 20 classes, teaching activities, use of TREEPOLY and the game’s development.
TREEPOLY, The Game. Describes the quiz, gameplay, age range, playing time and use of sales surpluses.
German UNESCO Commission, announcement of 20 July 2026. Its list of recipients confirms TREEPOLY’s National Distinction in Stuttgart.
German UNESCO Commission, Education for Sustainable Development FAQ. Explains the difference between the National Distinction and the separate National Prize.
European Environment Agency, Who benefits from nature in cities? Provides context on the benefits of urban greenery and inequalities in access.
