In March and April, a pupil exchange took place under the Erasmus Plus programme between the Johannes-Brenz-Gemeinschaftsschule and the partner school in Lappeenranta. The focus was on intercultural exchange as well as on raising awareness of sustainability.
The pupils from both countries had the opportunity to exchange ideas about their respective cultures and learn from one another. Alongside the cultural exchange, the topic of sustainability was also at the heart of the programme. The young people looked at the challenges of climate change and considered how they could contribute to environmental protection themselves.
During the exchange, various workshops and activities on the topic of sustainability were offered. For example, a workshop in Finland on building seal-friendly fish traps took place, and the pupils went on a joint hike across the frozen Lake Saimaa.
In Schwäbisch Hall, they then visited the Experimenta in Heilbronn and the open-air museum in Wackershofen. In this way, the pupils were able to broaden their knowledge and gain practical experience in the field of sustainability. The young people now return to Schwäbisch Hall and Lappeenranta with new insights and experiences in environmental protection and sustainability.
New friendships were made and experiences shared.„The pupil exchange was a great success and helped to strengthen awareness of the importance of sustainability and also to bring Europe closer together,“ explains Natalie Brümmer, the accompanying teacher from Schwäbisch Hall. How successful the pupil exchange was could also be seen from the question asked by some of the pupils, the teacher said. To the question „Can we do an exchange like this every year?“, the pupils answered „Definitely!“
