{"id":13711,"date":"2017-11-08T13:26:36","date_gmt":"2017-11-08T17:26:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/tiie.w3.uvm.edu\/blog\/?p=13711"},"modified":"2021-04-05T08:45:55","modified_gmt":"2021-04-05T12:45:55","slug":"global-goals-in-vermont","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tiie.w3.uvm.edu\/blog\/global-goals-in-vermont\/","title":{"rendered":"4 ways students are tackling the UN’s Global Goals in Vermont"},"content":{"rendered":"

The United Nations has kicked off a movement for the future. They’ve identified 17 goals for sustainability world-wide, and they’ve given those goals to students around the world.<\/p>\n

Here in Vermont, a cadre of passionate educators are scaffolding project-based learning around those goals. And #vted students are hard at work, changing the world, one community at a time.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

What are “Global Goals”?<\/h4>\n

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals<\/a>, launched in 2015, aim to achieve three extraordinary things by 2030: end extreme poverty, fight inequality and injustice, and tackle climate change. Each of the 17 goals focuses on a different aspect of making the world a more sustainable and just place for all who inhabit it. If the Goals are met, the UN believes this will ensure the health, safety, and future of the planet for everyone on it.<\/p>\n

\"Global<\/a>
The United Nations’ 17 Sustainability Goals. Reproduced via CC 3.0 from globalgoals.org.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

“Cultivating Pathways to Sustainability”<\/h4>\n

Vermont educators Kate Toland and Lindsey Halman collaborated with Shelburne Farms and the Bay and Paul Foundations to create “Cultivating Pathways to Sustainability”. Held in September and May, this event helps scaffold students in taking on meaningful project-based learning based on the Global Goals. Toland and Halman, who are both are deeply committed to engaging their students and communities in addressing local and global sustainability, hope the event helps rewrite the somber narratives around many issues that middle and high school students will face, such as climate change, poverty, and gender inequalities.<\/p>\n

Their vision was to connect the promising efforts of Vermont\u2019s Act 77<\/a>\u00a0to global outcomes.\u00a0They wanted to link what is going on inside classrooms to larger statewide efforts making a difference in our world.<\/p>\n

4 ways students are tackling the UN’s Global Goals in Vermont<\/h4>\n

The students who attended last year\u2019s inaugural gathering initiated projects in their own communities to work toward the sustainable development goals. \u00a0In Morristown VT, students at Peoples Academy engaged in a variety of projects:<\/p>\n

1. Lamoille River Stories<\/h4>\n

Students worked to understand the importance of the Lamoille River in their community. They gathered stories about the river and shared them in audio pieces<\/a> using QR Codes placed at a kiosk along a recreational trail by the river. Visitors to the river can hear students explain the importance of the findings of their research.<\/p>\n

\"Global<\/a><\/p>\n

The goal was to recognize the importance of our river to life on land and to life below the sea (Global Goals 14 and 15). Studying the importance of keeping the river clean while still using it as a source of recreation allowed students to work on understanding what goes into goals focused on clean water and sanitation (Goal 6) and sustainable communities (Goal 11).<\/p>\n

2. “Who We Are”<\/h4>\n

Students worked together to create a documentary that explored the community and they shared it at an open house for the Morrisville community<\/a>. This project helped students work towards Goal 11, becoming engaged and active citizens in their own communities. The students also partnered with the Vermont Folklife Center on learning the art of video production.<\/p>\n