Sustainability and Circular Economy: Practical Approach to Wicked Problems
In a world facing climate change, biodiversity loss, and global resource scarcity, education holds the key to change. This inspiring Erasmus course empowers you to take practical steps towards a more sustainable future. You will gain essential skills like creativity, critical thinking, communication, and collaboration—future-proof competencies that help you and your students tackle the complex “wicked problems” of our time. Rooted in the globally admired Finnish education model, this course transforms urgent environmental challenges into opportunities for learning and leadership.
What You’ll Learn:
You will explore how global trends like urbanization and globalization contribute to environmental crises, and how innovative approaches like the circular economy offer hope. Through a hands-on, practical methodology, you will gain tools to inspire active citizenship and sustainable action among your students and colleagues. You will also develop projects and teaching strategies that bring sustainability to life in your school community.
- Understand the causes and impacts of the climate crisis and biodiversity loss
- Analyze the environmental consequences of the linear economy
- Explore circular economy models and practices
- Develop strategies to foster active citizenship and student leadership
- Create practical classroom activities for sustainable thinking
Course Highlights:
- Practical, hands-on learning with interactive workshops
- Focus on future skills: creativity, collaboration, and critical thinking
- Real-world applications directly transferable to your school environment
- Expert insights from sustainability leaders and educators
- Projects and materials ready to implement in your curriculum
- Free access to Finnish Education Online Courses: Learn more about Finnish education before your visit.
This course offers a dynamic balance of theory, case studies, and active workshops, ensuring you leave with ready-to-use strategies for fostering sustainability and circular thinking in education.
Upcoming courses
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Tickets
All tickets includes:
- Event materials
- Certificate of attendance
- Admission to all sessions
Standard price
For standard registrations
Group price
Discounted price for groups of 5 or more
Catering package
Lunches and refreshments, entrance fees (on the planned excursions)
This is a provisional programme, the finalized program will be shared with participants prior to the course.
Day 1, Sunday
15.00-18.00 Welcome and get to know the surroundings and timetables and practices
- presenting the program briefly
- setting the course objectives and outcomes
- getting to know each other and your personal story
Day 2, Monday
Wicked problems are connected to each other
objectives: connections between wicked problems (climate change, biodiversity loss, pandemics), importance of creativity in future thinking
outcomes: how to handle wicked problems with different games, getting to know basics of futures sciences, learning to make utopias and dystopias
10.00-13.00 A new approach to the wicked problems (climate change, biodiversity loss, pandemics),
- Futures sciences, what is it?
- Megatrends: game with the megatrend-cards, workshop
13.00–14.00 lunch
Creativity and future images
Day 3, Tuesday
Sustainability and circular economy are the best-known practical solutions to wicked problems
Objectives: understanding sustainable development, understanding the importance of stopping overconsumption based on all thinking, understanding the unavoidability of circular economy thinking, understanding the link between circular economy and biodiversity, to know the most effective ways in circular economy.
learning outcomes: practical exercises for schools to learn about the circular economy, testing your lifestyle.
9.00-13.00 Sustainability and Agenda 2030, introduction, and discussion, moving from the linear to the circular economy.
13.00–14.00 lunch
14.00-15.30 Nature walk and exercises
Day 4, Wednesday
Be a sustainable student in the school
objectives: getting to know sustainability education in Finnish school system, learn ideas how to make a school sustainable, learn activating learning methods, sustainable school yard
learning outcomes: learning by doing
9.00-13.00 Workshops: home economics, technology, handcrafts
13.00-14.00 Lunch
14.00-15.00 Workshops continue
15.00-15.30 Sustainable school yard
Day 5, Thursday
Biodiversity day
objectives: understanding the importance of nature resources to biodiversity loss, knowing the importance of the nature, get aware of the means to avoid people’s effect in the the nature, the importance of art in thinking about the future.
learning outcomes: learn to observe nature and changes in it, learn to use digital apps in identification of species, notice the impact of climate change in nature.
9.00-13.00 Nature-hike and AI-identification of species, observing biodiversity
13.00-14.00 Lunch
14.00-15.00 Exercises in the nature
Day 6, Friday
Where everything starts
objectives: understand how a Green Flag daycare integrates sustainability, experience the kota as a wellbeing and community space.
learning outcomes: Explain key elements of sustainability and forest pedagogy, identify practical methods for nature-based learning, reflect on how to apply these practices in their own context.
9.00-12.00 Nature Art Workshop at the Kota (including lunch)
12-15.00 workshop in Fyyri-library: declining future faith between young people
Day 7, Saturday
Challenges now and in the future
objectives: gain the courage to face different kinds of problems, the importance of networking and feedback, practicing negotiation skills, busting myths
learning outcomes: creating functional networks using social media, giving feedback to the course trainer and administrator
10.00-12.00 How to solve the problems, participants’ outputs and thoughts during the week, identification of common project topics, the formation of cooperation networks, feedback
12.00-13.00 light lunch and certificates
After completing the course, you will have the tools and confidence to bring sustainability into your teaching practice. You will leave ready to inspire your students to become thoughtful, proactive changemakers.
- Apply circular economy principles in teaching and school projects
- Foster critical thinking about global challenges
- Empower students to take action on sustainability issues
- Integrate hands-on sustainability practices into curricula
- Build a school culture of responsibility and innovation
This course is ideal for Erasmus coordinators, educators, school leaders, and education professionals who want to bring sustainability, creativity, and active citizenship into their classrooms and communities.
The course is organized and led by an experienced, former Finnish high school teacher and principal with deep expertise in sustainability, circular economy, and innovative teaching practices, drawing from Finland’s world-leading educational strengths. Tuovi is currently studying futures studies at the University of Turku and works as a future coach. With experience as a biology and geography teacher, she has coordinated Comenius and Erasmus+ projects in various schools and served as the network coordinator for the Baltic Sea Project under the National Board of Education. As a Project Ambassador for the European School Heads Association (ESHA), she has been actively involved in ecological projects nationally and internationally, focusing on future education and equipping students with skills to address complex challenges like climate change.