"CONTEXT/BACKGROUND OF THE PROJECT:According to the generally accepted definition, sustainable development is defined as development that ""meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs” According to the report published by the World Environment and Development Commission, sustainable development has been expressed as “the process of change where consumption of resources, investment decisions, technological development, and institutional change take place in harmony, and the potential of meeting human needs and desires now and in the future”.Sustainability and sustainable development concepts are among the most discussed topics of the last few decades in our world where environmental degradation is increasing. The issue of sustainability is at the very center of the energy, economy and environmental triangle, so it is discussed in a wide range from social scientists and naturalists to politicians, environmental organizations, as well as governments.Providing sustainability means creating a balance between nature and people. It is in our hands to create this balance. So how do we achieve this? There is only one answer to this; we will direct our choices correctly. We will get to know our technology, our climate, our environment, our energies, our natural resources, analyze them and make long-term plans and guide them in a planned way. In other words, we will perceive sustainability as a whole and will be aware of non-renewable energy sources, instead, we will focus on the use of renewable resources.OBJECTIVES OF THE PROJECT:In this project, we will focus on environmental sustainability, which is one of the branches of sustainable development goals that can be examined in a broad framework. Therefore, our main focus and objectives will be on combating climate change, conscious use of natural resources and preventing pollution. The main objective that we will try to acquire for our students throughout the process is to raise individuals who focus on the quality and quantity of the natural environment, which provides the necessary life support for the survival of human life, which is the precondition for the existence of an economy. Another objective is to create an environment that promotes multilingualism. Pupils will use English in a natural context outside the classroom and will improve their communication skills in general, along with their language skills. Throughout the project, activities will be organized to enable students to express themselves in English and they will be encouraged by their teachers to remove their psychological barriers to speaking the language. In addition, teachers will participate in activities that contribute to their teaching skills and improve themselves by examining the different practices of the teaching profession in Europe.NUMBER AND PROFILE OF PARTICIPANTS:All of the schools in our project consist of secondary schools with pupils of the same age level. The partnership formed by six different schools from six different countries includes Germany as the coordinator; Turkey, Italy, Croatia, Spain, and Belgium as the participating partners. 125 students will participate in the exchanges, and their age range is 14-17. DESCRIPTION OF ACTIVITIES:Throughout our project, there will be a mobility hosted by each participating partner. These mobilities will start with the Joint Staff Training activity to be held in Turkey. This activity will be a teacher training in which 12 teachers will attend, two teachers from each school. All remaining activities will be short term exchanges of groups of pupils, which will involve students, and will take place with the participation of 5 students and 2 teachers from each school.METHODOLOGY:Since the primary goal of our project is to create positive behavioral change in pupils, all activities planned throughout the process will be pupil-centered. Therefore, the basis of student activities will be on “learning by doing”. They will prepare the presentations and discussions with teachers’ guidance. They will work in transnational groups to create an environment to communicate and solve the problems. RESULTS AND IMPACT:The pupils will understand and appreciate the value of today, and take action to protect tomorrow and future generations. They will learn about their daily mistakes In terms of sustainability principles and correct them. They will be encouraged by their teachers, administrators, and counselors to be active in problem-solving. LONG TERM BENEFITS:The long term benefits can be examined under two main aspects: individuals and institutions. Individuals (pupils, parents, teachers, school staff, etc.) will reform their life according to sustainability principles. The participating institutions will also have a more visible profile both in their cities and in the European dimension. They will also add to their project management skills."

eTwinning project 'Common Heritage Areas' which we completed made us realize the fact that students aren't aware what World Heritage is, what world heritage areas are and why they are important for the mankind. Their interest and curiosity increased as they started to read about them, learnt about them and visited some of them in their countries. The virtual exchanges on Twinspace made a great difference in recognition of heritage areas in different parts of the world. In this respect, we wanted to deal with the same topic with the same partners with different activities with physical mobility.The main aim of this project is to raise awareness to the importance and preservation of cultural and natural heritage areas.In this project, the students will have the chance to participate in different activities by cooperating with students from different nationalities. This collaboration will enable them to improve their language skills and to show respect and tolerance to other cultures and their values. The students will involve in various activities which require wide use of IT tools such as applications, ipads, computers, cameras, smart phones etc. As students will produce their own materials and products with different perspectives in different contexts, they will become more responsible and self-confident individuals.The partner schools are our eTwinning partners, Italy and Romania. The key teachers have worked together on eTwinning project and have mutual trust and respect for each other.The students are 15-18 years old. 4 students and 2 teachers from each country will join international visits. The students will be chosen by the election team in each school in accordance with evaluation criteria for a fair selection.Students will visit cultural or natural heritage areas in Romania, Italy and Turkey; Amphitheatre of Capua and Royal palace of Caserta in Italy, Salt Lake, Capadoccia and The Kızılırmak Delta in Turkey, Wooden Churches of Maramures and Dacian Fortresses of the Orastie Mountains in Romania. Students are expected to prepare a documentary film 'Hand in Hand for Culture' in Italy, prepare a 'Quiz Show' in Romania and organize a Cycling Event 'Hand in Hand for Nature' with their own designed t-shirts in Turkey. All activities are based on observation, interaction, active involvement and production.The cycling event will help students to direct their attention to environmental values by observing the bird species in their own habitat and learn how important is to show concern for nature. The local media will be invited to attract public attention. In addition, Students will sing their partners' folk songs in Italy with an aim to enrich cultural diversity in a positive environment. Experiencing other cultures will let students learn to show respect, tolerance and sensitivity toward other cultures. Students will learn through experience with students from different culture and background. All activities will contribute a lot to their cognitive, social, emotional and intellectual development.During the visits, students will take photos, videos and make interviews to produce their own authentic visual materials for the activities in each visit and for the booklet. In addition, technology is an indispensable tool in each stage of the project since students will make use of various IT tools for all activities in each visit.After the visits, in each partner school students will prepare a booklet about cultural and natural heritage areas they have been with their authentic visuals taken during their visits.The booklet in printed version will be distributed to partner schools, local authorities and organizations, local press.The online booklet will be shown on project webpage, school website and project's Youtube channel. As a part of dissemination activities, a seminar will be held in each school and in a different high school by each partner in their own countries to share the project activities and results with other students. On national educational websites, on school magazine and on school's webpage all project activities will be displayed. Students will broadcast youtube channel and publish a project webpage by which different groups of people can be informed about our project.With the help of Kahoot Application for the 'quiz-show' in Romania, the questions prepared by the participants will remain on the application and open to everyone. Anyone in the world can join the Kahoot and try to answer the questions anytime. The quiz show questions won't address only to participants or the students in Romania but also to anyone in the world who is interested in World Heritage Areas.The project activities will be avaible on national and international level.

<< Objectives >>The new digital materials, competences, skills and experiences based on web tools will empower teachers from each partner network so that the students will have digitally enhanced, engaging and meaningful lessons which will contribute positively to their academic and social success. Schools will improve inclusiveness, education quality and capacity to answer the changing trends and needs in education of the generation Z.<< Implementation >>*With a virtual meeting we will provide an overviewed of the project for teachers for partner schools and sets criteria for choosing teachers and students*training mobility in Italy to equip teachers with knowledge and skills into digital tools so that they can digitally transform their lessons*mobility in Turkey to test digital knowledge and skills into practice on a smaller scale*mobility in Portugal to test on a wider scale the good practice achieved during the project<< Results >>The project will be innovative for all the partners and sorrounding schools because it supplies materials, skills and competences to help during this challenging period of education. Expected results:- increased quality of teaching activities- digitally enhanced content, improved motivation in teachers and students, academic success and lower dropouts, improved autonomy of students, language and project managements skills a better EU dimension of schools.