Zoekresultaten

Collective learning in schools described: building collective learning capacity

Processes of collective learning are expected to increase the professionalism of teachers and school leaders. Little is known about the processes of collective learning which take place in schools and about the way in which those processes may be improved. This paper describes a research into processes of collective learning at three primary schools. Processes of collective learning are described which took place in small teams in these schools. It is also pointed out which attempts can be made in order to reinforce these processes in the schools mentioned.

Erasmus+ capacity building project SUSWELL continuous development courses

Erasmus+ capacity building project SUSWELL: 4 questions for Paul Beenen

Erasmus Plus project SUSWELL aims to improve Health and Well-being in Kosovo and other Eastern European countries. We asked projectleader Paul Beenen from Hanzehogeschool Groningen / Hanze University of Applied Sciences Groningen 4 main questions about his drive and motivation for SUSWELL.

Final conference Erasmus+ capacity building project SUSWELL (7-9 November 2023 Kosovo)

Climate Adaptation in the Northern Netherlands

The Northern Netherlands is like many delta’s prone to a wide range of climate change effects. Given the region its long history with floods and adaptation, there are numerous initiatives to be found that tried to battle these effects. As part of the Climate Adaptation Week Groningen, an inventory was made of these initiatives. The most inspiring ones were coined ‘best practices’, and analysed in order to learn lessons. A distinction was made between 4 regional landscape types. The first consists of the coastline itself, where the effects of the rising sea level begin to show. The second covers the farmlands near the coastlines, where challenges such as salinisation and the loss of biodiversity prevail. A third landscape covers the historically compact cities, which have to deal with rising temperatures and heavy rainfall in increasingly limited spaces. The fourth and final landscape comprises the wetlands surrounding the cities, where the natural capacity to retain and store rainwater is undermined by its agriculture usage. Most of these challenges form a risk for maintaining a liveable region. The best practices that were collected show a diverse set of innovations and experiments, both on small and large scales. Three main characteristics could be distinguished that illustrate trends in climate adaptation practices. First, many best practices were aimed at restoring and embracing the natural capacity of the different landscapes, giving more and more room for the building with nature concept as part of building resilience. Second, climate adaptation is seldomly focussed on as the sole function of a spatial intervention, and is almost always part of integrated plans in which biodiversity, agriculture, recreation or other themes are prolonged with it. A third and last characteristic shows that many projects embed a strong focus on the historical context of places as a source of inspiration and cultural identity. The best practices show how different ways of adapting are emerging and can inspire planners across the world.

How effective capacity building allows monitoring and evaluation to improve the delivery of sustainable urban mobility projects: Experience and lessons from the EU Metamorphosis project. (Paper was accepted, conference was cancelled due to COVID-19)

Sustainable urban mobility is an established target of policy making and planning in Europe. It is associated with, among others, better air quality, less noise disturbance, increased safety and quality of public space. In this regard, one of the EU Commission’s main tools to achieve sustainable urban mobility, through Sustainable Urban Mobility Plans (SUMP), require the explicit integration of Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E). Yet, European cities face common barriers when it comes to materialising M&E in practice. To avoid or overcome these barriers, this paper argues for integrating Capacity Building (CB). We draw this conclusion based on experiences made during the M&E and CB of the Horizon 2020 Project ‘Metamorphosis’. We report our experiences, rating different monitoring indicators used for the evaluation of measures transforming car-oriented neighbourhoods into children-friendly neighbourhoods in seven European cities. We then give advice on how to design and integrate CB for a feasible M&E scheme.