“I want to convince people in my environment that there are many different forms of living and that we can learn from them. We are not without power; we can change something in every situation.”
Junior High School student, 15 years
What is the exchange about?
The ENSA program operates in context with the UN Decade on Education for Sustainable Development encouraging people to contribute to the future and shape of the World Society and help actively and responsibly in their countries. In the same way ENSA encourages all students and teachers in the south and north to promote developmental issues and to stand up for the realisation of a sustainable future all over the world.
All participants are required to act in the spirit of social citizenship and spread their knowledge and abilities back in their environment and respective home countries. All educational exchanges through ENSA are required to follow these objectives and hence are aimed at investigating matters of social justice, environmental compatibility and economic performance of future generations. This “triangle of sustainability” provides a variety of topics and main focuses: whether it is a debate on how to strengthen action and decision-making on a political level or a joint theatre performance by all partaking students.
At all times the dimension of development policy, dependencies and interceptions among the North and the South remain the main focus of global learning in the international circle. The German UNESCO Commission (DUK) has published a list of all topics essential to the UN Decade “Education on Sustainable Development”. It can be downloaded from their website.
Partnership
We attach great importance to the fact that the exchange takes place between partners. We expect students and teachers of both schools to work together as one on the content and activities of the project. On an equal footing and in mutual understanding all parties should investigate the topics of discussion and create a positive environment for training.
In order to maintain a high level of exchange and communication between North and South both groups are required to be similar in size, terms of age and form of school. ENSA emphasizes the sustainable nature of the program which asks for a long-term partnership and a topic that potentially covers an equally long period of time. A return encounter of the partner group should be an objective. All students should be trained and encouraged to act as multipliers in education on development policy.