A week with Environmental Educators on Skyros

In researching sustainable public policy in Mediterranean communities it is impossible not to come across the work of Dr. Constantina Skanavis. Over three decades of advocacy and research on the interconnection between public health and the environment, Dr. Skanavis has built a reputation as an expert on sustainable solutions in practice. She is the dean of Public Health at the University of West Attica, and one of the co-founders of the The Skyros Project. 

The Skyros Project is a collaboration between a port on the island of Skyros, and the University of West Attica. The port itself has adopted sustainable public policy, earning it the distinction as a "blue port." and the Best Port in Greece! In addition, Dr. Skanavis runs a summer Environmental Education Academy as part of a Masters Program. The participants are mostly educators and health professionals from across Greece who are interested in including environmental education in their day jobs. This is where I come in. To my great fortune, Dr. Skanavis was interested in helping me with my Fulbright project, agreed to be my advisor, and invited me to be a part of this year's Academy on Skyros.

Despite the fact that this was outside the timeline of my Fulbright award, this was an incredible opportunity to learn about environmental education in Greece from expert presenters gathered by Dr. Skanavis, and also to network with people across the country. And, did I mention Greek island?

I spent the first week in July this summer on Skyros as part of the Academy. It was an incredible experience, and the contacts I made will help me jump start my research. I met some incredible professionals thinking about new energy like hydrogen, building environmental programing in elementary, and secondary schools, and helping to transition cities as part of EU initiatives. 

Among the most interesting conversations I had was with the elected head of the award winning port on Skyros, who said that while climate change may or may not be happening, sustainable policies make sense because it's what customers want. The status of his port as a Blue Port is good for business, and good for the island economy of Skyros, dependent on tourism. These are the kinds of market based solutions that I think are valuable.

Thank you to Dr. Skanavis, and all the dedicated educators and health professionals I had the opportunity to meet. I'm looking forward to meeting you all again next year!

Thank You, Fulbright, for the Distinguished Awards in Teaching Fellowship!

Great news! I was awarded a Fulbright Distinguished Awards in Teaching Fellowship, which will bring me and my family to Greece for six months during my sabbatical year, 23-24. I'll use this blog to document the experience, and this site will host the final product of my research. 

For this research project, I'm interested in how we communicate climate change challenges and solutions to secondary students. I have lived and taught here in coal country for over a decade. The impacts of our changing climate in my region are direct, and subtle. Our storms are getting bigger, with so-called 100 year storms happening several times a decade. 

As chair of our small town's Public Works Committee (an elected, volunteer position) I see this in rising costs of flood prevention, and overall stormwater management. This means increased taxes for improved infrastructure. It should also mean changes to buildings codes, and public policy dealing with stormwater runoff. Think rain gardens, permeable pavers and rain barrels. It also means education about how to protect our watershed.

A more subtle, yet damaging impact of climate change is the dramatic reduction of coal as a means to produce electricity. Southwest PA is coal country, and as the use of coal has crashed, so has the local economy. We're feeling these impacts in real time; last month (June 2023) one of the largest coal fired generating plants in the country, and one of three in our county, turned off for good. One hundred twenty nine jobs lost directly, hundreds more in the supporting businesses, like truckers and restaurants. Many students at my school have family who had a job at the end of the year, but won't in the fall. 

Transition economies require new thinking, new inspiration, and new skills. Our community is in transition and has an opportunity to build a new sustainable economy. Our students today inherit economic challenges their families were able to weather thanks to strong demand for fossil fuels, and strong unions.

My project is looking outside of Indiana, PA to other communities facing immediate challenges, not just to the physical landscape around them, but to their economic livelihoods. To that end, I researched coastal communities facing sea level rise and other challenges to economic drivers like tourism. In regions dependent on pristine beaches and coast lines, sustainable, "eco" solutions make a lot of sense.

To my great fortune, I came across a great Eco-model at a deep water port on one of the many Grecian islands, called Skyros. The Skyros Project is an award winning collaboration between public health researchers at the University of West. Attica and the deep water port on Skyros Island. 

I've managed to team up with the incredible folks behind this project, and they've already proved to be an incredible resource to connect with educators across Greece who are leading the way in preparing students to face the challenges to come. I'm looking forward to being able to use that project as a jumping off point for my research. More on that in the next post.