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Implementing Sustainable Development Through Environmental Camps: The Case of Skyros Project

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Universities and Sustainable Communities: Meeting the Goals of the Agenda 2030

Abstract

Today’s utmost concern about the sustainability of our planet has made environmental education an even more imperative tool for changing our behavior to an optimal one. Environmental summer camps could help children to become acquainted with natural environment and to develop environmental ethics. Environmental summer camps are considered to increase participants’ consciousness by promoting environmental conservation and sustainability skills. The current research was conducted in summer of 2017 at a northern Greece mountainous region with rich natural heritage, known as Nestorio. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of promoting sustainable development through a weeklong environmental summer camp known as “Skyros Project”.

The specific project is an educational and communicational program, implemented by the University of the Aegean in collaboration with the Skyros Port Authority, aiming to increase the environmental awareness of local communities towards sustainable development. An administered survey provided results in order to assess knowledge and environmental awareness, prior to and after completion of this summer camp, using face-to-face interviews with participants. Recommendations on the effectiveness of Skyros Project were the outcome of the trial of this summer camp at Nestorio area.

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Correspondence to Aristea Kounani .

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Skanavis, C. et al. (2020). Implementing Sustainable Development Through Environmental Camps: The Case of Skyros Project. In: Leal Filho, W., Tortato, U., Frankenberger, F. (eds) Universities and Sustainable Communities: Meeting the Goals of the Agenda 2030. World Sustainability Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-30306-8_9

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