Creating a Learning Environment to Promote Food Sustainability Issues in Primary Schools? Staff Perceptions of Implementing the Food for Life Partnership Programme

Abstract

Abstract:There is increasing interest in the role that schools can play in promoting education for sustainable development (ESD), and evidence is emerging that schools can be influential in the emerging agenda around the ecological, ethical and social aspects of food, diet and nutrition. With regard to such food sustainability issues, this paper analyses the role of the Food for Life Partnership national programme in supporting garden and farm-based learning activities in 55 primary schools in England, UK. Using a mixed methods approach, the study examined the programme's implementation through staff perceptions and a range of school change indicators. The study found that the programme delivery was associated with widespread institutional reforms. According to staff, implementation of the programme provided a range of opportunities for pupils to learn about food production and sustainability, but addressing these issues was challenging for teachers and raised a number of questions concerned with effective, equitable and on-going implementation. At a pedagogical level, teachers also reflected on conceptually challenging aspects of food sustainability as a topic for primary school education. The study identified ways that ESD programmes could support schools to think about and implement learning opportunities as well as identifying significant barriers related to resourcing such programmes. OPEN ACCESSSustainability 2013, 5 1129

The nexus between traditional foraging and its sustainability: a qualitative assessment among a few selected Eurasian case studies

“…In this critical situation, solid narratives are needed to define sustainable foraging practices (Pontius, 2020 ), which might be possible after having undertaken an in-depth analysis of the foraging practices among groups under different socio-political contexts, and to discuss the nature of challenges that are constantly threatening and affecting sustainable foraging. However, environmental education alone in the context of foraging would not match the ambitious Agenda 2030 objectives, without (re)considering the link between environment and foodways and therefore promoting not only local food educational platforms in the schools (Weitkamp et al, 2013 ), but integrative approaches linking both the ecological and food dimension.…”

Food Chain Evaluator, a tool for analyzing the impacts and designing scenarios for the institutional catering in Lombardy (Italy)

“…The aims of these analyses could be the comparison between the overall impacts of different food chains, as well as the comparison between single phases. Different researches have been investigated in this regard (Beccali et al, 2010;Blengini and Busto, 2009;Bocchi et al, 2009;Bosco et al, 2013;Carlsson-Kanyama and Faist, 2001;Cellura et al, 2012;Dalgaard et al, 2008;Desjardins et al, 2012;De Vries and De Boer, 2010;Kim et al, 2013;Leat et al, 2013;Mani et al, 2013;Pulkkinen et al, 2015;Reckmann et al, 2012;Ridoutt et al, 2011), in addition to those about public food procurement (Cerruti et al, 2016;Goggins and Rau, 2015;Smith et al, 2016;Stefani et al, 2015;Weitkamp et al, 2013;), as it will better explained in section 1.1. The tool, called Food Chain Evaluator (FCE), was developed by Excel (Microsoft Office's application ©).…”

Farm-based Education: A Comparative Study of Romania and Ukraine

“…[27] To get a general view, the questionnaire should also by applied to educational "actors" (pre-service and in-service teachers) to find out their opinions and availability to get involved in farm-based educational activities. [30] As for the results in the variant 3.1, we need to mention the interest of future specialists to transfer towards the young generation knowledge on the preparation of animal feed to understand the way in which feeding animals has an effect on animal food. Variant 3.2 explains the positive effects of the environment on children and youth as shown by numerous studies [4], [31].…”