The 4th Local Stakeholder Workshop in Szombathely

The 4th Local Stakeholder Workshop of the Szombathely CiPeL was held in the Dési Primary School on 12 June 2024. It counted with the participation of 15 students from the 3rd grade to the 7th grade, and two teachers.

The main topic covered in the workshop was the maintenance of the project's nature-based solution, reinforcing the idea of a Nature-building Community (NbC). The activities were carried out using the tools and exercises learned during the 5th JUSTNature project meeting: among them, the Serious Games. Through this methodology, which was adjusted to the schoolchildren’s age and capacities, participants went through the experience of behaving and interacting in the NbC from the perspective of diverse actors affected by the implementation of the CiPeL's NbS.

The workshop was very successful, with growing creativity and cooperation, specially after the students understood that this wasn't a usual frontal teaching situation that they needed to follow, but rather a free space to express their thoughts and ideas.

First, our team guided the children through the courtyard and explained the planned NbS development elements. Back in the class, our colleague Viktor Bukovszki gave a warming-up and explained the first task: to think about how they can / will use elements of the intervention, what they feel close to. The second round was a task on inclusivity, focusing on the animals living in the courtyard. This was without a doubt the highlight of the event for the children: they enjoyed trying to imagine what interests a hedgehog, a swallow or a cockchafer may have. The third round focused on the organisation of the maintenance of NbS – how infringements can be offset, how rules can/need to be set up.

Altogether, this was one of the most effective and enjoyable workshops in the CiPeL until now. The cooperation between the two project partners coordinating the activity (Szombathely and ABUD) also worked perfectly, with notetakers and moderators working collaboratively together and relying on each other.