To address complex societal challenges such as waste management and energy needs, we need both new partnerships and new ideas. June Avfall och Miljö, Upptech, and Jönköping University invited elementary and high schools in Jönköping County to participate in a recycling center safari and a solar car race.
Through a “safari” at recycling centers, children and teens can search for “the big five”—five types of waste that are particularly dangerous and difficult to manage.
Marlene Svensson is an environmental and waste education specialist at June Avfall & Miljö. She leads the recycling center tour.
“We want to show children and young people how source separation, recycling, waste, and the circular economy can improve our environment. A visit to the sorting facility increases understanding of the enormous amounts of waste we handle every day. We show that we have a good waste management system—when waste ends up in the right place,” she says.
When Marlene Svensson meets with the children, she emphasizes three things they should keep in mind: minimize consumption, never litter in nature, and be careful with metal.
The Sortergård Safari is one of four subprojects within the EU project MOST, which stands for Meaningful Open Schooling Connects Schools to Communities, in which the School of Education and Communication (HLK) at Jönköping University participated alongside June Avfall och Miljö and Upptech.
“The goal was for students, companies, organizations, and citizens to collaborate scientifically on the topics of waste and energy to develop regionally feasible solutions. We wanted to solve societal problems while also building knowledge,” says Jesper Boesen, Director of Collaboration and Research Environment Leader at HLK.
Another MOST project launched in 2020 aimed to reduce littering in schoolyards; through an annual film festival, high school students are given the opportunity to produce their own films about waste management. The solar car race is also an annual event where high school students build their own cars, no more than 15 cm wide, powered by batteries charged by solar cells.
– Teachers report that many students have blossomed and demonstrated knowledge and abilities they never had the opportunity to show before. The students show commitment and take pride in solutions to various problems, which is very inspiring,” says Jesper Boesen.
The MOST project has now concluded, but many of its activities continue.
“There are many benefits to collaboration between different organizations and sectors; primarily, it enhances our ability to achieve goals that a single actor cannot achieve on its own, but we can also shed light on complex issues from multiple perspectives,” says Jesper Boesen.
– “Collaboration with Jönköping University has helped us spread the idea of the sorting yard safari, which has now become a popular concept,” says Marlene Svensson.
Researchers at Jönköping University have tracked the participants’ progress and conducted extensive survey studies as well as a number of case studies.
“What we’re seeing is that interest in STEM subjects* has increased among the participating students,” says Jesper Boesen. “We also clearly see that by working together with external partners, both students’ and teachers’ engagement increases—both in current topics and in broader societal challenges.”
*The STEM subjects combine science, technology, engineering, and mathematics with dance, drama, music, and visual arts. They are used for interdisciplinary learning, which fosters the innovative thinking needed to solve societal problems.
Read more about the research here.
Contact HLK and Jesper Boesen here.
Text: Sofie Rotstedt
Photoof Jesper Boesen: Patrik Svedberg