Last Friday October 7th we launched Una Europa Micro-Credential in Sustainability, in collaboration with Una Europa European Universities alliance, Climate University and Biodiversity education Network Finland.
Una Europa Micro-Credential in Sustainability is a 10-cr module on sustainability, aimed for continuous learners. However, also higher education students can take it as part of their degree. Credits are awarded by the University of Helsinki, on behalf of the Una Europa alliance.
The 10-cr micro-credential consists of five Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs): Introduction to sustainability, 3 cr (built on Climate University course Sustainable.now), Climate.now, 2 cr (built on CU course), Biodiversity.now, 2 cr (the new Climate University course!), Political Economy of Sustainability, 2 cr (provided by Jagellonian University, Poland) and Sustainability and the Arts, 1 cr (provided by the University of Bologna, Italy).
The Biodiversity.now course is developed in collaboration between the Biodiversity education network, Climate University and Una Europa. The production of the course was funded by the Ministry of Education and Culture, Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra Una Europa and Nordplus. The 2 ECTS Biodiversity.now course offers an easy way for students to learn more about the ongoing biodiversity crisis and solutions for it. The intention of the course is to appeal for a wide variety of learners, regardless of their field of study, and therefore the course does not require previous knowledge on biodiversity or biology. The course consists of six modules: Basic knowledge, Biodiversity crisis, Threats and consequences, Biodiversity conservation, Biodiversity here, now and in the future and Reflection.
The learning goals of the course are for the students to be able to recognize reasons for the ongoing biodiversity crisis and its consequences for the human society and for their personal life, to explore their own connection to nature and the values they assign to it, to recognize a variety of approaches and tools for protecting of biodiversity, increasing of biodiversity and promoting the sustainable use of biodiversity. The last learning goal ensures that students are able to apply the issues to their own field of studies or work and learn how to be part of the solution.
The overreaching aim is to make students familiar with the biodiversity crisis, its drivers and consequences, and recognize their own leverage points when it comes to halting the biodiversity crisis.
Please find the Una Europa Micro-Credential in Sustainability, as well as registration info – also to Biodiversity.now course, here: https://microcredential-sustainability.una-europa.eu/
Here you can find a recording of the streaming event: https://youtu.be/mFiJHB4dMCQ
Here you can also read some of Laura’s thoughts on how can education collaboration be a substantial part of the sustainability transformation in our societies: https://blogs.helsinki.fi/una-europa-uh/2022/10/07/laura-riuttanen-is-working-for-the-sustainability-transformation-in-una-europa-and-beyond/
PS. Remember to sign in for the Climate University meeting 2.-3.11.!
Laura Riuttanen and Sini Bäckström, University of Helsinki