On 29 October 2024, the final Transnational Partner Meeting (TPM) for the Upcycling Education project took place in Reus, Spain. Hosted by Open Europe at Espai Boule, the gathering marked a celebratory conclusion to this impactful Erasmus+ initiative, which brought together partners from across Europe, including GeoCamp Iceland. The project aimed to promote sustainable education and practical learning, developing tools that foster eco-awareness and creativity for educators, students, and families.

The meeting provided an opportunity to review the project’s most significant outcomes and deliverables. Among the key achievements was the development of educational resources and course materials on sustainable education, soon to be available as interactive flipbooks. NEFINIA, a key project partner, introduced plans to transition all resources—including the conceptual framework and blended course—into this accessible, user-friendly format. The digital flipbooks will provide streamlined, cohesive content for educators, making the materials easy to integrate into diverse learning environments.

The project also delivered a series of engaging webinars and promotional videos, now available on YouTube, with subtitles in multiple languages. These videos offer a dynamic introduction to upcycling and sustainability concepts. Each partner committed to contributing national webinar reports to document the project’s impact, allowing for a comprehensive record of engagement across partner countries.

The Recommendations Guide, developed to support educators and families, is another highlight of the project. Complete with national podcasts discussing practical approaches to upcycling, the guide provides an engaging platform for sustainable education. The guide’s flipbook format will feature the podcasts and insights, creating an interactive, visually engaging resource for educators and families.

As the project’s final step, the project partners will compile a comprehensive report detailing all deliverables and the overall impact on sustainable education. This report will provide a lasting record of the project’s achievements and open doors for future funding opportunities. We look forward to sharing the information and project outcomes with you within the next few weeks.

The meeting closed with reflections on the project’s successes and discussions on future applications of its resources, followed by a celebratory dinner. GeoCamp Iceland is proud to have been part of the project and looks forward to seeing how the Upcycling Education resources will inspire sustainable learning in Iceland and beyond. Stay tuned for updates on how GeoCamp Iceland will continue to incorporate these valuable tools into its educational programmes.

For more information please visit www.upcyclingeducation.eu

Reykjanes UNESCO Global Geopark and GeoCamp Iceland had the pleasure of hosting the fourth Transnational Partner Meeting for the Erasmus+ Upcycling Project, held in the breathtaking setting of the Reykjanes Peninsula from 11-12 July 2024. Partners from across Europe gathered to discuss progress, share insights, and plan the next phases of our shared mission to promote creative education through upcycling.

The first day of the meeting took place at the Reykjanes UNESCO Global Geopark, where partners reviewed the project’s progress and delved into upcoming deliverables, focusing on how upcycling initiatives can be integrated into education systems.

During the second day the partners participated in a study tour of the Reykjanes Peninsula, a region defined by its extraordinary geology and geothermal energy. Participants explored key landmarks, including the Garðskagi Lighthouse, and learned about the region’s ongoing efforts to integrate sustainability into both education and tourism. The study tour offered a hands-on opportunity to see how Iceland’s natural resources are being preserved and showcased.

The meeting concluded with a strategic discussion about the next steps in the project. As we move forward, the Upcycling team remains dedicated to fostering creative solutions and sustainable practices in education.

The fourth transnational partner meeting in the Erasmus+ funded project Upcycling, took place in Cori (Italy) 16 - 17 November 2023.

About the project

Climate change measures are not being implemented with the speed that the urgency of the situation demands. One of the most urgent measures to combat climate change is waste reduction. Preventing products and materials from becoming waste for as long as possible and turning waste that cannot be avoided into a resource are the most important steps toward a greener, circular economy.

It is important that children are aware of the idea of reusing waste to produce new things in creative and attractive ways. Upcycling helps develop a range of other skills and abilities such as creativity, innovation, collaboration and respect for the environment. The project aims to support teachers, principals, and other educators in their professional development and give them the tools and resources they need to understand the possibilities of upcycling for cross-curricular and project-based instruction and to provide them with practical ideas.

The project is led by Reykjanes UNESCO Global Geopark and aims to create educational material on how to generate less waste and create value-added products in a creative way. Arnbjörn Ólafsson and Magdalena Maria Poslednik took part in the meeting in Cori on behalf of GeoCamp Iceland.

The third TPM in the Erasmus+ funded project Upcycling, took place in Rotterdam 24 - 25 April 2023.

​The project is led by Reykjanes UNESCO Global Geopark and aims to create educational material on how to generate less waste and create value-added products in a creative way. Arnbjörn Ólafsson and Magdalena Maria Poslednik took part in the meeting on behalf of GeoCamp Iceland.

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​GeoCamp Iceland participates in the Erasmus+ funded project "UPCYCLING as a way to generate less waste and create value-added products in a creative way". Here you can read our second upCycling newsletter in English [PDF] or Icelandic [PDF].

The second Transnational Project Meeting in the UPCYCLING project was held in Setúbal, Portugal on 19 - 20 September 2022. The project - which centres on ways to generate less waste and create value-added products in a creative way - is supported by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Commission and brings together eight cross-sector institutions from seven culturally diverse countries (Iceland, Spain, Italy, Portugal, The Netherlands, Cyprus and Poland).

The meeting focused on project updates on development of the conceptual background and the framework for the blended course for school educators about the importance of upcycling with practical ideas on how to implement this in the classroom.
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The project team enjoyed the hospitality of the host partner in Setúbal and look forwards to the next steps in the project which will focus primarily on training workshops and webinars for teachers interested in introducing upcylcing in their classrooms. to edit.

GeoCamp Iceland participates in the Erasmus+ funded project "UPCYCLING as a way to generate less waste and create value-added products in a creative way". The first project meeting was held in Reus, Spain in February 2022.

Here you can read the first upCycling newsletter in English [PDF] or Icelandic [PDF].

The Icelandic Erasmus+ National Agency awarded in total fourteen project grants on 14 October 2021, including a €320.000 grant to the UPCYCLING project led by Reykjanes UNESCO Global Geopark and partnered by amongst others GeoCamp Iceland. These are the first projects to receive grants after the new Erasmus+ programme launched which will bring over €26.2 billion to support mobility and cooperation in the years 2021-2027.
 
The UPCYCLING project - which officially starts in February 2022 and runs for 30 months - will focus on ways to generate less waste and create value-added products in a creative way. The objectives will be to develop and disseminate educational material on climate change and recycling for primary schools. This is the first Erasmus+ project to be led by Reykjanes UNESCO Global Geopark and the first time GeoCamp Iceland participates in an Erasmus+ partnership.
 
"With the project we are strengthening further our cooperation with Reykjanes UNESCO Global Geopark with focus on educational development in the area" says Arnbjorn Olafsson, Managing Director of GeoCamp Iceland. "We've previously been working with Sudurnes Science and Learning Center on developing international Science Camps in Reykjanes, and we are currently working with Keilir Academy in Iceland as well as the Technical University of Liberec and Geopark Ralsko in the Czech Republic on developing educational and training material for geo-teachers. Along with this first Erasmus+ project we participate in we hope to be able to generate increased interest in earth science and climate change, as well as encourage young people to actively take part in understanding the World they live in and the Earth they live on."
 
Along with the two Icelandic partners, other partners in the UPCYCLING project include Polygonal in Italy, Nefinia in the Netherlands, Open Europe in Spain, Agrupamento de Escolas do Barreiro in Portugal and Szkola Podstawowa in Poland.