How to use Sustain.no

The activities in Sustain.no are varied and address a number of topics, and many can be used for teaching in several subjects. Individual activities or an assortment of activities are also suitable as a basis for project work. The activities are not ready-made teaching material, but rather ideas for teaching, which must be adapted to the individual schools and student bodies. Before starting, teachers and students must agree on what they aim to achieve and how they plan to realize their goals.

The first phase of planning must involve analysis of the students' aptitude level, available teaching resources and the learning arena to be used. In this phase we are looking for the activities in Sustain.no, which can provide guidelines for the intended training.

Information on most activities includes advice as to whether local resource personnel should be contacted and/or whether an outdoor area should be adopted as a learning arena. The local contacts can help clarify appropriate collaborative tasks. Many of the activities are designed so that the students' work will be of use to local administrators.

Specific forms for have been designed for each activity and these should be used when gathering information and data for the various activities. One should go through the forms and decide what the focus of the study should be, keeping in mind that it is the standardised format which makes it possible to compare data between schools and from year to year. Additional information can be obtained through separate forms, interviews, maps, photographs, etc. It can be helpful to discuss with the local partners what kind of information they require.

The implementation phase of the project will most often comprise a number of activities that use various methods for collecting and processing information. The guidelines and background material for the various activities in Sustain.no will provide a basis for reflection on the questions that naturally arise when working with the subject.

The results of the project can be anything from an analysis of water measurements to a status report on old mill houses in the municipality or planning proposals for the school neighbourhood. The end product of the class's work can be presented through e.g. school exhibitions, newspaper articles or the Internet.

Work sequence when carrying out a project

The work sequence in a project can be expressed schematically as follows.

1. Choose the theme for the project based on one or more of the activities in Sustain.no
2. Contact potential partners (government departments at local authority or county level, NGOs, resource personnel. etc.) to discuss relevant issues, gather information and work out possible collaborative tasks.
3. Chose a reference area (if fieldwork is involved). Choose an area that is suitable to investigate the problems at hand and get permission from the landowner to use the area.
4. Draw up a plan for the project: what is to be done, what kind of equipment is required and how it is to be obtained, and how to organize the work (formation of groups, division of labour, reporting, evaluation, follow-up). Carry out the activities, for example:
   • orientation, experiences, discoveries
   • survey and inventory
   • practical upkeep, management
   • participate in planning processes
   • survey energy use in a building.
5. Discuss the problem setting with the students. Has the work any relevance to sustainable development?
6. Produce an end product, for example:
   • a survey of biodiversity in the reference area
   • proposal for a conservation plan for a "Hundred Acre Woods" in the neighbourhood
   • map of water quality and pollution sources
   • submit results to the database
   • write a report to Sustain.no
7. Present the final results/product, for example in the following ways (dissemination):
• create an exhibition
• set up information placards along a nature/culture route
• get coverage in the local press, radio, TV
• write an article to the network newsletter
• write reports to the local authority