About a thousand students and over fifty teachers from ten secondary schools from all over the country took part in the pilot educational program '3W Idea for secondary schools'. Experts from the 3W Interdisciplinary Innovation Centre shared their knowledge about water, hydrogen and carbon with young people and explained the strategic importance of these resources for Poland.
The first stage of the 'Idea 3W for secondary schools' program started in October last year and lasted until February 2024. Experts from universities belonging to the 3W Interdisciplinary Innovation Centre went on a tour around the country with interesting presentations and films, as well as quizzes that tested knowledge about water, hydrogen and carbon. They visited secondary schools in Lublin, Katowice, Tarnów, Warsaw, Kowale (Pomeranian Voivodeship), and institutions in Greater Poland: Wągrowiec, Swarzędz and Gołańcz.
- It makes me happy that all four secondary schools from the Wągrowiec district took part in the pilot educational program '3W Idea for secondary schools'. The lectures and meetings held were very popular and had a very positive impact on students and teachers. I believe that the educational program related to the spread of the 3W Idea should be further promoted and developed to reach the widest possible audience - says Tomasz Kranc, Starosta of Wągrowiec.
About 3W specifically and to the point
The meetings with students were workshop-like. Scientists told young people about technologies and solutions in the field of water that enable water retention, desalination and purification and that will help avoid a water crisis in the future. They presented the water electrolysis process, which produces emission-free green hydrogen, which is clean and safe energy, and finally gave examples of how coal can be used to produce lighter and more durable materials of the future.
- We are impressed by the involvement of young people in presentations on solutions in the area of water, hydrogen and coal. They were active during the meetings and asked questions, which is a good sign because they will be the ones who will create technologies based on these three resources in the future. Both students and teachers are a key group for us, because we see them as natural ambassadors of the 3W Idea - says Dr. Sylwia Arasiewicz-Dulnik, Expert on cooperation with universities at the 3W Innovation Office.
According to research conducted in 2023, 'Attitudes of Generation Z representatives towards climate challenges in the context of the Planetary Limits Model', most Polish high school students (62%) are interested in the issues of climate change, but all of them assessed that they knew little or only a little about the challenges, that are associated with them. Most often, they obtain information on this subject from the Internet and social media, where it is difficult for young people to verify the credibility of the data. They talk about climate challenges much less often at school, which confirms the characterization of the generation as the Internet generation. The more valuable are the workshops conducted by experts from the 3W Interdisciplinary Innovation Centre, who presented reliable information on water, hydrogen and carbon resources, also in the context of climate change.
3W - a chance for young people
According to Ph.D. Ryszard Naskrętki, director of the Ecotech – Complex Center at the Maria Curie-Skłodowska University in Lublin, the generation of young people understands perfectly well that our civilization cannot develop at the expense of future generations and the natural environment.
- Developing comprehensive solutions that will support Poland's sustainable socio-economic development requires broad social involvement, and in particular the involvement of those who will live in a world of enormous civilizational challenges. Innovative solutions in the area of water, hydrogen and coal are, above all, a chance for a better tomorrow for today's youth - school and university students - says Prof. Ph.D. Ryszard Naskrętki.
Łukasz Klapiszewski Dr. engineer from Poznań University of Technology, Leader of the Interdisciplinary 3W Innovation Centre, thinks similarly. He estimates that the main educational goal of the program has been fully achieved, also in the context of building students' awareness of the strategic importance of 3D resources for the development of Poland and the world.
- Our presence in all schools gave a very positive impulse from young people, related to their willingness to acquire new knowledge and expand their horizons. Certainly, the educational goal carried out within the 3W Idea has been very well received, and therefore it still needs to be intensively developed by taking and developing new initiatives - he adds.
Time for teachers
The next stage of the pilot program 'Idea 3W for secondary schools' will include online training in the 'train the trainer' model, in which approximately 150 secondary school teachers will participate. The organizers are planning three separate modules dedicated to each of the 3W resources. The aim of the virtual workshops will be to increase teachers' knowledge and equip them with materials that will enable them to conduct interesting lessons on 3W in their schools.
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