RCE Greater Burlington - 2023

Cultivating Pathways to Sustainability : Youth & Adults creating positive change in their communities
Basic Information
Title of project : 
Cultivating Pathways to Sustainability : Youth & Adults creating positive change in their communities
Submitting RCE: 
RCE Greater Burlington
Contributing organization(s) : 
Shelburne Farms and UP for Learning
Focal point(s) and affiliation(s)
Name: 
Jennifer Cirillo
Organizational Affiliation: 
Shelburne Farms Institute for Sustainable Schools
E-mail: 
jcirillo@shelburnefarms.org
Format of project: 
google slides/powerpoint
Language of project: 
English
Date of submission:
Wednesday, August 23, 2023
Web link: 
https://shelburnefarms.org/educators/partnership-projects/cultivating-pathways-sustainability
Does this project link to any education and/or sustainable development policy or policies?: 
Yes
Youth Participatory Action Research
At what level is the policy operating?: 
Local
Geographical & Education Information
Region: 
Americas
Country: 
United States
Location(s): 
VT
Address of focal point institution for project: 
1611 Harbor Rd, Shelburne VT 05482,USA
Ecosystem(s):
Agricultural, Forest, Urban/Peri-urban
Target Audience:
Community, Secondary, Teacher Ed., Youth (Informal)
Socioeconomic and environmental characteristics of the area : 
This project serves a diverse group of youth and adults both within our RCE region as well as national and international youth teams from Nepal to Mississippi USA
Description of sustainable development challenge(s) in the area the project addresses: 
Youth identify the issues they'd like to address in their community and as such they often explore all of the SDGs and then go in-depth on issues. In recent years youth have addressed issues such as gender equality, clean water and sanitation, responsible consumption and production and so much more!
Contents
Status: 
Ongoing
Objectives: 
To transform our communities through active engaged youth-adult partnerships
Activities and/or practices employed: 
The year long project engages youth with an annual kick off event where youth and adults explore the SDGs and begin to create an action plan for the year. Then through virtual coaching and facilitated sessions youth and adult teams build relationships with community partners, collect data, and design projects to address their focus SDGs. We utilize a place-based and project-based pedagogy and youth participatory action research process.
Results: 
Since 2015, Cultivating Pathways to Sustainability has engaged 1000s of youth who are transforming their communities in line with the SDGs. Youth and adults together are taking action to make their communities more healthy and just through engaging in deep place-based relationships, collecting data, and designing projects that address each communities' most pressing challenges. Youth have contributed to the well-being of their places including designing courses on sustainability, creating policy and protocols for schools to make them more equitable and tangible projects such as solar chicken coops and nature trails.
Key messages: 
In 2018 Cultivating Pathways to Sustainability was recognized by United Nations University as an Innovative Project in Education for Sustainable Development. Our goal is to engage youth and adults together to transform their communities using the SDGs as inspiration and a youth participatory action research process that engages both in designing projects that serve learning and community goals.
Relationship to other RCE activities: 
There is not a formal relationship between Greater Burlington RCE and other RCEs at this time for this project but we hope that by sharing this case study that there may be collaborations across teachers and youth on SDG projects.
Funding: 
NA
UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
(https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sdgs) and other themes of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD)
SDG 1 - End poverty in all its forms everywhere 
Indirect
SDG 2 - End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition, and promote sustainable agriculture 
Indirect
SDG 3 - Ensure healthy lives and promote wellbeing for all at all ages 
Indirect
SDG 4 - Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all 
Direct
SDG 5 - Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls 
Indirect
SDG 6 - Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all 
Indirect
SDG 7 - Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all 
Indirect
SDG 8 - Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment, and decent work for all 
Indirect
SDG 9 - Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialisation, and foster innovation 
Indirect
SDG 10 - Reduce inequality within and among countries 
Indirect
SDG 11 - Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable 
Direct
SDG 12 - Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns 
Indirect
SDG 13 - Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts 
Indirect
SDG 14 - Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development 
Indirect
SDG 15 - Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification and halt and reverse land degradation, and halt biodiversity loss 
Indirect
SDG 16 - Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels 
Indirect
SDG 17 - Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalise the global partnership for sustainable development 
Direct
Theme
Disaster Risk Reduction 
Indirect
Traditional Knowledge  
Indirect
Agriculture 
Indirect
Arts 
Indirect
Curriculum Development 
Direct
Ecotourism 
Indirect
Forests/Trees 
Indirect
Plants & Animals 
Indirect
Waste 
Indirect
ESD for 2030-Priority Action Areas
Priority Action Area 1 - Advancing policy 
state: 
Indirect
Priority Action Area 2 - Transforming learning and training environments 
state: 
Direct
Priority Action Area 3 - Developing capacities of educators and trainers 
state: 
Direct
Priority Action Area 4 - Mobilizing youth 
state: 
Direct
Priority Action Area 5 - Accelerating sustainable solutions at local level 
state: 
Direct
Update: 
No
I acknowledge the above: 
Yes