When sustainability begins in the classroom
- Editorial Team SDG4
- 7 minutes ago
- 3 min read
Published on 28 June 2026 at 03:34 GMT
By Editorial Team SDG4
The Global Society Institute (GSI) has delivered two educational workshops at CEIP Virgen del Sol in Tarifa, helping primary school pupils explore how their own school can become a more sustainable environment.
The workshops were prepared and led by Sabrina Förster and Manuela Thiele, who are part of GSI’s work in Intercultural Dialogue and Education. This area of the Institute promotes non-formal education, intercultural learning, knowledge exchange between civil society and educational settings, and the integration of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) into meaningful learning experiences.
The sessions brought together two groups of pupils: 25 students from third grade and 25 students from fourth grade. Each workshop lasted between 70 and 90 minutes and was designed as an interactive learning experience, encouraging children to participate actively, ask questions and connect global sustainability issues with their daily lives at school, at home and in the wider community.
The workshops began with an introduction to the Global Society Institute and the Sustainable Development Goals. The SDGs were presented to the pupils as shared goals for creating a better world for everyone. From this starting point, the sessions connected sustainability with the school environment, everyday behaviour and the role that each person can play within their community.
A central part of the programme focused on the idea that “the world is changing”. Pupils reflected on some of today’s major environmental challenges, including plastic pollution, the impact of waste on marine life and birds, air pollution, wildfires and flooding. The aim was not only to explain environmental problems, but also to raise awareness and help pupils understand that global challenges can also be connected to places close to them.
The educational content also introduced basic concepts linked to climate change, including the carbon cycle, the greenhouse effect and the water cycle. These themes were presented in a visual and accessible way, helping pupils understand the relationship between human activity, natural systems and environmental change.
Alongside the environmental content, the workshops included a simple introduction to project management. Pupils were guided through four basic steps: selecting a project and defining its objectives, planning how it could be carried out, implementing the transformation, and evaluating and reflecting on the results. This approach helped present sustainability not only as an idea, but as something that can be organised, put into practice and reviewed together.
The most participatory part of the workshop came when pupils worked in smaller groups to explore possible solutions for making their school more sustainable. Among the ideas discussed were cycling to school, organising campaigns to raise awareness about waste, collecting rubbish, planting watermelons, encouraging more sport and active lifestyles, helping family members and older people, and promoting respectful treatment between classmates and friends.
These ideas showed that, from the perspective of the pupils, sustainability is not limited to the environment. It also includes health, care for others, respect, cooperation and shared responsibility. In this sense, the workshops linked environmental education with the social values that shape everyday life in a school community.
The next step is for each class to select at least one of the ideas discussed during the workshop and develop it as a project in the classroom or within the school, with the support of teachers. The Global Society Institute may also accompany this process, strengthening the connection between education, local action and commitment to the Sustainable Development Goals.
The initiative reflects GSI’s approach to Intercultural Dialogue and Education: creating spaces where learning is practical, participatory and connected to the real world. At CEIP Virgen del Sol, this approach was built around a simple question for the pupils: what can you contribute to your school?
By bringing the SDGs into the classroom in an interactive way, Sabrina Förster and Manuela Thiele helped turn large global challenges into small, concrete and achievable projects. The workshops show how sustainability education can begin with a classroom conversation and continue through real action within the school community.
Further information: Global Society Institute — Intercultural Dialogue and Education