The Program

Our new program for high schools in Metropolitan Melbourne offers a range of sustainability workshops for year 7-10 students. Our workshops use experiential education techniques to encourage critical thinking and active learning. They are designed to be engaging and fun with a range of activities to cater for different learning styles. They have a links to the curriculum with a range of interdisciplinary learning benefits can complement a range of humanities subjects as well as some English, arts and science subjects.

School bookings are filling up quickly! So if you would be interested in find out more information or booking a presentation please fill out an expression of interest form.

Workshop Topics

We are currently offering four workshops relating to different environmental and social justice topics which means teachers can choose a topics that is relevant to what their students are studying.

• Consumerism Workshop - This workshop will encourage students to consider how advertising and the media influence their consumption choices. It looks at the impacts of over consumption on our society and the environment. Students will examine the lifecycle of a plastic water bottle in depth and look at its impacts at each stage. The workshop also includes ad-busting exercises to encourage students to critically analyse advertising and reflect on how it influences their perceptions of needs and wants. Students will gain a greater understanding of the social and environmental costs of consumption and a greater awareness of our power as consumers. They will also develop the ability to critically analyse advertising and marketing strategies and reflect upon the influence of commercials on society.
• Climate Change Workshop - This workshop looks at the causes and consequences of climate change and aims to improve students understanding of how different forms of energy use contribute to climate change. Students will have a greater understanding of the contribution of carbon dioxide from different sectors and an increased awareness of how energy is used in the home. They will also explore solutions to climate change at different scales, from the international down to the local level. The workshop aims to encourage and empower students to reduce their personal energy use and get involved in the climate movement.
• Fair Trade Workshop - This workshop looks at world trade systems and how they affect farmers in developing countries. It explores the fairness of chocolate and coffee industries and the living and working conditions of farmers in these industries. It will introduce the concept of fair trade and encourage students to consider the global impacts of their consumption habits. Students will gain an understanding of the relationship between trade and poverty and a greater awareness of the fair trade movement including the Fairtrade certification system and its benefits.
• Food Workshop - This workshop uses a game show with real life examples as means to explore 5 important themes relating to food sustainability - food miles and energy, fair trade, organic food, seafood and meat production and food waste. Along the way students will learn how they can make more ethical and environmentally friendly food choices. Students will gain an appreciation of the importance of food in reducing our impact on the environment, a basic understanding of the life-cycle of food products, greater awareness of their power as consumers and knowledge of practical ways they can reduce the environmental and social impact of their food.