Working on / Forestry education

 

What is the Edufores Foundation

The Edufores Foundation was founded as a non-profit making entity in 2005 with the open encouragement of the Spanish pulp & paper industry in order to contribute to environmental and forestry education and to foster a new culture of appreciation and respect for forest eco-systems and forest-based products..

HistorY

The Edufores Foundation was born from a pioneering collaboration project between the Ministries of Education and of the Environment and ASPAPEL, launched in 2003, who joined their strengths to instil a concept of the forest and a methodology for developing activities and materials to support environmental and forest education.

This environmental education program is one of the founding objectives of the Edufores Foundation, which in 2003 set up its first project "The Forest in the Classroom" by distributing 2,000 copies of the Edufores Forest Education Briefcase and in which nearly all autonomous regions in Spain have participated. The implementation of the experiment would not have been possible without the collaboration from the outset of the Autonomous Regions, who hold responsibilities for education and environmental management. Such strong support from government agencies responsible for Education and Environmental Affairs made it possible to start up Edufores-Asturias, Edufores-Navarra, Edufores-Aragón, Edufores-Extremadura, Edufores-Cantabria and Edufores-Galicia.

The Edufores Foundation maintains an extensive program of events for school-children to enable them to increase their knowledge about the environment, in close cooperation with all authorities who have responsibility for education, environmental affairs and forestry: the Ministries of the Environment, of Education, and the relevant Departments in the Autonomous Regional Governments, in both the assessment of the materials required to support forestry education and its development.

Philosophy behind the Edufores Programme

This environmental education program for schoolchildren is the first step in a much larger Training and Awareness-Building Plan about Sustainable Forest Management, which intends to reach all sectors of society in various stages in order to create a new forest culture and responsible awareness about the Environment.

The Edufores Foundation takes a pro-active role in this program by organizing and co-ordinating various training activities open to participation by teachers, instructors and professionals in the environmental sector as an important part of setting the framework and of developing the contents and information to be taught.

Lines of Action

EducaTiOn

This covers all actions at school level – the development of support materials for teachers and students ("The Educational Forest Briefcase and other publications) as well as holding competitions ("Paint Green 2009", "Forest Gymkhana 2010", etc.).

Objective: To bring the forest into the classroom to promote greater knowledge about the forest and its products..

Examples: playing cards, cut-outs, graphics, comics, brochures, "Learn with EDUFORES" notebooks, www.edufores.com
 

GAMES

These serve to reinforce the knowledge gained from the teaching materials published by Edufores. They combine learning and fun for the pupil.

Objective: to learn using innovative technologies. Pupils learn while also having fun..

Examples: on-line games, Crossing through the Forest, board games, etc.

 

TRAINING

On-line courses, seminars, workshops, counselling, network of professionals, etc.
Aimed at adults interested in improving their skills in forestry and environmental affairs and in promoting the implementation of new initiatives and projects in the field of forestry education.

Objective: To improve skills in forestry issues and promote personal initiative

Examples: Janus Program, Edufores Channel, etc.
 

Communications

To inform about the activities of the Foundation. To attract adherence to the program and promote knowledge about the forest according to the guidelines of the Spanish Forest Strategy, national and regional legislation, and International Forums in which Spain participates: participates MCPFE, FAO / ECE, EU...

Objective: to circulate the new forest culture that Edufores promotes

Examples: Press room at www.edufores.com, Blog

Documentos adjuntos: 

+5 years bringing forest to classroom (in Spanish) Download