Circular Economy -a tool for change in higher education
Call me an accidental educator, but when I re-entered a classroom September 2012 in Bangkok I was shocked that nothing had changed. Students were still sitting on chairs, notebooks on their desks and ready to listen what the Teacher/ professor had to say.
I have to add, I grew up in Communist Germany and sitting on chairs for learning was part of my life, but we also had lots of hands on workshops such as repairing things, cooking, composting, growing food, fermenting organising events, as well as gaining experience in local factories. After the Fall of the Berlin Wall, I moved to the US and decided to study there. Classes were a bit of a mix of theory, but also very practical from professional cooking classes, to in-company visits.
For the past 25 years I have been traveling and working around the globe in very active roles as a Luxury Wedding planer, Marketing Associate, Corporate Event Organizer (America’s Cup, Formula 1), and Destination Management Planer. After a serious burn-out and depression, it was time to rethink my next steps and I was offered a Lecturer Position coupled with organising an international Hospitality summit involving my students.
It’s been 7 years now in Higher Education and most of the classrooms, which I enter have similar settings: Chairs, Tables, Whiteboard…..
My question here is “How can we change the current situation, if education remains in the dark ages?”
Schools and higher education play an important role in teaching theoretical knowledge of Circular Economy principles, but cultivating a sustainability and eco-responsible citizenship outside the classroom is ever more essential.
We need a “Bottom-up” change through experiential learning! Industry and technological innovation alone cannot drive systemic changes needed to achieve a true transformation of the current economic model. Viable changes presuppose a paradigm shift from individual behaviours to collective/ cultural adoption of Circular economy principles. It should therefore become a substantial part of education, to instil new visions for our society and economy with respect to sustainability and eco-friendly growth.
So here are some of the methods I have been using in my seminars:
Students collect and analyse their waste during one week and discuss challenges they encountered living in Barcelona vs to their respective home countries. Our classroom tends to be quite international: Colombia, Ecuador, Chile, Italy, Iran, Germany, France, Malaysia, Maldives, UK, Mexico, and Spain. The reflections were the key in moving forward with the seminar. Understanding the waste we produce is important, while trying to understand the environment we live in and how this waste is handled moving forward. As this is the Master of Sustainable Tourism Program, how can we involve tourists more in reducing their impact on destinations? Should it be their responsibility or that of the destination? Lots of questions to discuss and get shared with friends, families and stakeholders.
One of my favourite activities to get Students thinking about the complexity of Systems thinking is “How to make toast” https://www.drawtoast.com/, something I can recommend to anyone. If we want to change something in a system (e.g. introducing reusable bottles), we need to clearly understand how systems work. While in Barcelona its quite easy to refill your bottles, in Bangkok people face challenges. During a survey 71% of people didn’t know where to refill their bottle! How can we change a system, which is selling reusable bottles, but doesn’t provide the infrastructure?
Additional Methods: reflections, discussions, analysis and last but not least a visit to 2 urban community gardens one applying Permaculture principles and the other traditional methods.
In order to re-engage effectively with biological systems we need to completely rethink how we make and grow things. We need to consider how we are going to re-purpose materials after they have performed their job in their current form. Here are some guidelines as to how we might do it:
- Ensure that biological products are optimised through energy and material cascades.
- Use the biological cycle as a model for developing technical cycles that feed on technical nutrients.
- Design products that allow for the easy separation of biological and technical nutrients.
- Prevent distortions of the carbon cycle by using solar energy.
- Encourage diverse agricultural practices that retain biological nutrients and build natural capital.
If we want to succeed in changing people’s mindsets, we need to start in education. Applying to all levels of education, any effective reform of curricula regarding Circular Economy should be accompanied by the respective investment in teachers training. It is essential that policy makers support and train these professionals, so to understand the key role they play in building a circular and sustainable society, and to develop the necessary skills to perform effectively, using contemporary pedagogical methods. Facilitating a process of reflection as preparation of action for personal and social change. This may include the encouragement of students to rethink social structures, the alteration of classroom dynamics (placing students as creators of learning), and also the connection of theoretical knowledge to action.
I am very grateful that this life’s journey has brought me to meet so many inspirational change makers! Planting the seeds through education is key for a better world!
