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Albanian Biologists Educating for the Future
Region: Albania, Balkans, Central and Eastern Europe
Author: Biologists Association of Albania
Consortium Member: REC-Albania
Status: Needs Funding
Budget: $1837
Collected: $0
Needs: $1837
Goal: To raise the level of environmental education in Albania by providing training for teachers, and increased public access to information on environmental issues.
Comment: An Albanian biologists' organization plans public outreach efforts, to raise environmental knowledge and awareness.
Project Need
Albania is facing problems inherited from history, and also new ones appearing during our transition period.
There was a total lack of information about the environment during the time of the former regime (the Communist regime in power for over 50 years - ed.) During that time, everything was painted in a rosy pink color - we were told we had the best conditions and the best solutions also for the environment; a lot of
problems were hidden. Now we are trying to face our situation directly.
Albania today still has a lot of untouched nature,
but it is seriously under threat from logging and from industrial and tourist developments. Another issue is sustainability of all the new and old economic activities, such as
mining, heavy metal industry and agriculture.
Albanian environmental
education is still undeveloped and the teaching program content is
insufficient. Teachers especially should have more
training in order to be able to introduce recent knowledge and ideas to their students. The information provided by the government
on environmental issues is very small and does not cover all the
problems existing in Albania. Access to
information is still very difficult and bureaucratic.
The Albanian Biological Association has been active in this field since
the beginning, in 1991. Environmental education is one of our main
objectives, and the limited time and resources has not stopped us from
promoting seminars and special courses for biological teachers on this
issue.
At the moment there are more than fifteen environmental NGOs in Albania, most of
them based in the capital, Tirana. Their experience is still very low,
because the tradition of civil groups has little heritage in Albania.
Therefore most of the environmental NGOs are also struggling to
organize themselves internally. Additional problems they generally
face are: little attention and support from governmental side; lack of
sufficient funding and meeting space, and slow internal democratization.
Some NGOs have started some training their members about
different issues of environmental education in order to raise their
awareness of its importance. The Association of Biologists of
Albania is trying to extend this activity out of the society working
with teachers and pupils. The aim is to fill that emptiness in the
education and to prepare a new generation able to undertake and
solve the problems which will appear in the future.
Goal and Objectives
This project is a continuation of some similar training programs for
teachers seminars organized and supported partly by
Regional Environmental Center (Tirana Office) and WWF International.
This is an experience which helps to improve the environmental
education level within the community.
The immediate objectives of the project are:
- Inform teachers and specialists of education know about
literature and methods of environmental education of different ages.
- Introduce them in the new teaching programs or outdoor activities.
- Promote cooperation among governmental institutions of education,
NGOs and schools.
The overall long term in this project to raise the level of
environmental education among the community teachers, and, after that,
at the new generations in a larger scale, in order to fill the gap inherited from the past and to provide updated
information about possibilities and new developments.
Methods of Implementation
Two seminars will be organized in the main prefectures, which cover two
of the main polluted regions of Albania. Approximately 30 community
teachers and local specialists of education will be invited to each
seminar.
Budget
|
Booklet publication (80 copies x 50 pages)
|
$430
|
|
Travel expenses for 3 seminar organizers
|
$240
|
|
Implementation of two seminars
|
$1000
|
|
VF Administrative Cost
|
$167
|
|
Total
|
$1837
|
Note: Previously received NGO donations will cover the following costs: $200 for Preparation of the report after the seminars (100 copies), $30 for Preparation of Final Summary Report, and $30 for Telecommunication costs.