What is “makingAchange”?

makingAchange is a cooperation project between science and school. The CCCA – Climate Change Centre Austria, jointly with the Federal Ministry of Education, Science and Research, invites all secondary schools to participate in the project on “Climate Change and Sustainability” in Austria.

It is the aim to contribute to the transformation of society and to integrate and perceive the topics of climate protection and sustainability as a matter of course, both in the school environment and in everyday life. The students participating in the project are called upon to deal with the topic independently and to find solutions, not only within the school, but also in everyday life. Experts and, in the course of time, the students themselves, who have been trained as peers, provide assistance with questions about the topic.

By communicating the latest findings from the field of climate change research by experts, the aim is to acquire skills on the subject of climate protection, to think ahead and to deal responsibly with one’s environment. The motivation here is to strengthen the willingness, both personally and collectively, to perceive climate-friendly action as a self-evident fact and to see the implementation of knowledge gained outside the school environment, in everyday family life, as a matter of course. The central purpose of “makingAchange” is the implementation and observation of different projects by the students themselves, as well as the stabilization in the area of climate protection among the participants, and the subsequent dissemination and use of the knowledge gained in their environment.

Educational and research institutions can provide necessary impulses for social changes. In order to equip graduates with the necessary competences to cope with the Global Grand Challenges, a paradigm shift with new ways of thinking and working, commitment and attitudes is needed to make sustainable development possible.

The funding serves to develop and test innovative methods for the establishment of research-education-cooperations on the topics of climate change and sustainability in Austria. It is carried out under the project name makingAchange by the Climate Change Centre Austria (CCCA) together with its members and network partners.

Who is the project aimed at?

All secondary schools in Austria that want to take long-term steps towards climate protection and would like to start with a project.

Applications

Applications for the school year 2021/22 and the Peer Summer Week are no longer possible!

We are looking forward to the numerous participation!

Eligible to participate are schools from all over Austria of all types from “Sekundarstufe I” onwards. Both schools that already have projects running on this topic area, also with a view to expanding them, and schools that are just beginning to address the topic can apply. It is welcomed if schools participate in several activities, but it is also possible to choose only one. The joint application of several schools, e.g. if they share a site, is also possible.

What are the commitments of the cooperation partners?

The participating schools assure ideational and practical support by the management and the teaching staff for the project and the involved pedagogues, or the students involved in the peer-to-peer education, including the necessary time off from teaching (extent depending on the specifically chosen project, to be specified in the application).

The schools agree to participate in surveys on effectiveness, also beyond the project duration, and if necessary to include non-participating classes in these surveys in order to determine comparative values.

The schools will endeavor to continue successful projects beyond the project period in the same or different ways, but always with the aim of contributing to the sustainable development of the students, the school, or the community.

The selection of the funded projects is made by a jury consisting of people from the makingAchange project team and the BMBWF, as well as the educational directorates. In the selection process, attention is paid to a balanced geographical distribution and the involvement of as many different types of schools as possible. Applications with clear concepts for the continuation of the activities beyond the project period will be given priority.

A first run of the projects is planned for the school year 2020/21, with the first CO2 balancing scheduled for the fall semester 2020.

mAc reports

In the mAc-interim-reports you will find information about the progress and current status of the project. (Only available in German)

mAc-Zwischenbericht März 2021 (Long version)

mAc-Zwischenbericht März 2021 (Short version)

mAc-Zwischenbericht September 2020