MIO-ECSDE / MEdIES Secretariat with the support of UNESCO Venice Office and in cooperation with the University of Athens / UNESCO Chair & Network on Education and Management in the Mediterranean, the Greek UNESCO MAB Comitee, the Centre of Environmental Education, Lavrion and the Centre of Environmental Education, Amfissa organized the Grundtvig Seminar entitled:“Creating Bridges - Education for Sustainable Development ESD in Designated Areas” on 30 March – 5 April in Athens (MIO premises), Lavrion (Centre of Emvironmental Education) and Amfissa (Centre of Emvironmental Education), Greece.

The workshop offered capacity building to personnel of UNESCO/MAB Biosphere Reserves  (BRs)  or other form of Designated Areas (DAs on the added value of integrating Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) in the activities designed for visitors to their Reserves or Parks (i.e. Schools, adult groups, free visitors, etc.)

The seminar was attended by 37 participants from 17 countries: Austria, Belarus, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Cyprus, France, Greece, Italy, Malta, Moldova, Portugal, Romania, Scotland, Slovenia, Spain, and Turkey.

Briefly, the Workshop included:

- Theoretical sessions on the history, principles and philosophy of ESD in any DA giving emphasis to the role of Biosphere Reserves as Learning Sites - “Laboratories” of ESD.

- Sessions that provided the opportunity for participants to exchange experiences and practices regarding the ESD in their DAs.

- Sessions that highlighted the fundamental conditions for the development of Sustainable Development (SD) in any DA and particularly, for the implementation of ESD activities through fieldwork (in the Parnassus Protected Areas and Lavrion), discussion sessions, group work and the use of ICTs.

- Roundtable that explored the possibilities of sustaining the communication and creating networks between the partner institutions from neighboring Mediterranean countries with similar ecosystems and environmental threats at local, national and regional level.

Additionally, the participants were introduced to the new UNESCO publication / training material on “ESD in MAB BRs and other Designated Areas in SE Europe and the Mediterranean that may be a flexible tool within their work.

Snapshots from the 3 day long training