CSO: Hungarian Biological Society (MBT)
Area: sustainable consumption and food production, landscape, soil and water management, as well as the issue of green settlements and households.
Location: Central Hungary

Type of project

Healthy soil plays key role in sustainable agriculture, thereby establishing sustainable food production, and it plays an important role in nature’s fight against climate change. The project uniquely combines scientifically based, credible information with experience-based pedagogy, thereby increasing the interest and awareness of non-committed social actors, especially among young people and women. We implement a wide range of innovative activities: awareness-raising events – such as the ‘Soil Organism of the Year’ voting and series of programs – interactive digital materials, playful workshops, and online platforms aimed at activating the community and increasing knowledge. The groups of organisms involved may be off-putting and/or frightening to the public, but obtaining the right knowledge fundamentally improves people’s attitudes. An important aspect of the project is strengthening the role of women and involving non-committed families and school communities. The results include the improvement of social environmental awareness, the emphasis on sustainable values, as well as the broad communication of scientific results. Through the project, long-term commitment to nature conservation will be strengthened, the protection of ecosystems will increase, and it will contribute to more effective action against climate change. Thus, this initiative could become one of the important cornerstones of sustainability movements in Europe and Hungary.

Target (Disengaged)

One of the main goals of our project is to shape the attitudes of our non-committed target groups, to develop and strengthen their commitment, and to create active communities with their leadership. For this, science-based knowledge transfer is not enough; personal connection is also necessary. Connection not only with the project implementers, but also with the soil life that forms the backbone of our topic. After the connection is established, it is necessary to strengthen this connection, to instill it in a way, and to further support it, so that real attitude formation, commitment, and active contribution are achieved.

Science – Based

Presentation of soil research, results, and information by researchers in an authentic, yet informative, accessible language. The connection of research results with our everyday lives and food security is an important part of the project. The possibility of independent use of scientific results, e.g. using the soil science quiz or the illustrated key, also increases trust in the scientific community. The president of MBT is also a soil zoologist, and there is also a number of other expert help in the Departments. The sessions and other materials are compiled by highly qualified scientific experts of MBT, combined with the educational potential of MBT.

Gender

The importance of women’s roles and opportunities. Our activities targeting women are widely targeted at young and older people: girls, young women at university, mothers, grandmothers, female teachers. With our programs tailored to their age and circumstances, we want to introduce them to the importance of soil and soil life, and to ideas for soil protection.

In addition, during the programs, we also want to draw their attention to the importance of their female role, opportunities, and impact, encouraging them to stand up and exploit their female power. The interesting thing about the project is that it is expected that women will participate predominantly in its implementation, so they can make the message they want to convey even more credible by sharing their own female experiences.

Planned activities

Our non-committed target groups targeted during the project:

1. at the institutional level, kindergartens and schools that have not yet been awarded the eco-kindergarten and/or eco-school title, or those that already have this title but have not committed to protecting the soil; community spaces that are the locations of other activities of our target groups (e.g. libraries, baby-mother circles, retirement homes, community centers).
2. at the individual level, our goal is to reach kindergarteners and schoolchildren who are not yet committed due to their youth, whose values ​​and priorities are still being formed and have an impact on the adults who raise and care for them; our further goal is to involve the young adult generation, since they have options for action, although they may not be aware of them
3. our priority goal is to reach young women, mothers and grandmothers, who may feel that their options are limited, but the burdens affecting them are greater than those of their male counterparts. Women, as the shapers, managers, and organizers of the values ​​of their children and families, can have a long-term, significant impact, which is worth emphasizing in all areas. In our country, the vast majority of teachers who raise our children are women, so their achievements and commitment have even greater future-shaping power.

T1/1 – Organizing a series of events for the “Soil Dweller of the Year” with a tradition-building nature, T1/2 – Avar walk , T1/3 – Installing a compost vivarium, T1/4 – Eco-hero self-page, T1/5 – Mentor program: interactive group on social media, T2/1 – Developing a curriculum-based lesson-type educational activity that can be integrated into NAT, T2/2 – Developing an educational stand-type activity for different age groups, T2/3 – Creating self-developed printed materials for the planned activities: – identification sheet to help with the field identification and monitoring of soil-dwelling organisms, – illustrated soil-dwelling-little ones, T2/4 – Self-developed online materials on our website: quizzes, – story cube, T3/1 – Transferring knowledge in baby-mother circles, T3/2 – Appearing at family events, T3/3 – Building relationships and transferring knowledge to teachers at kindergarten and school sessions, T3/4 – Dissemination of knowledge in teacher and kindergarten teacher training, T3/5 – Workshop, discussion evening.