ASPnet Newsletter - CONNECT (Issue 15)
15. februar 2021
Dear ASPnet community,
Dear National Coordinators,
Dear teachers, students and parents,
What better way to start the New Year 2021 than with good news and a burst of enthusiasm! Despite the many difficulties of 2020, which have had real consequences for teachers and students all over the world, the ASPnet community remains a source of energy and engagement as proven by the huge success of the webinar held on 29 January 2021 to launch the Trash Hack campaign in collaboration with the section for Education for Sustainable Development and a UNESCO partner Foundation for Environmental Education. The webinar, which exists in English, French and Spanish, brought together students, teachers, youth leaders and people from all over the world keen to know more about how they could Trash Hack their lives and has, so far, been watched more than 4,000 times. Among the good practices shared at the webinar, I was deeply moved by the talent of the students of ASPnet school in Indonesia who composed and wrote the song "Let's Change for the World" (see photo).
And that's why in this issue of the newsletter we take an in-depth look at the Trash Hack campaign, and the UNESCO guide, Trash Hack: Action learning for sustainable development, which makes reducing global waste easy for teachers and students both in the classroom and at home. The great thing about Trash Hacking is that everyone can do it everywhere every day in their own style. For instance, I bring my own lunch box with reusable chopsticks to reduce throwing away containers and utensils.
So, share with us how you do your trash hacking. If we all put in place one small change by the end of today, the planet's annual waste mountain will be reduced, and we all move closer to achieving the ambitious aims of the Sustainable Development Goals. UNESCO will play its part by taking forward the ideas and Trash Hacks shared to the World Conference on Education and Development (ESD) to be held in May. In this regard, I am happy to receive a special message from Mr Alexander Leicht, the Section Chief of Education for Sustainable Development.
We also have great news on the two competitions in which ASPnet was mobilized for the first time. In the "Conversation with the Little Prince" writing competition, awarded during the celebration of International Education Day on January 25, 2021, 18 students were among the 60 finalists. For the Week of Sound competition, a school from Portugal for the children with special needs received a special mention.
Note: Our Online Tool for Associated Schools (OTA) is currently offline for maintenance and technical upgrades and temporarily unavailable. We are sorry for the inconvenience and are working to restore it as quickly as possible. We will keep you posted.
Stay safe. Stay CONNECTed!