Location: Győr, Hungary
City population: 130,308
Project duration: 2013 - ongoing
Project cost: Less than 50 000 EUR
Financing source(s): Crowd-sourcing

School Garden of the Széchenyi István University, Apáczai Csere János Faculty

The School Garden of Széchenyi István University, Apáczai Csere János Faculty in downtown Győr was reestablished by the Vice Dean of Apáczai in 2013. Apáczai’s new school garden trains university students on properly organizing and maintaining the school garden with ecological methods in the format of an optional credit course at the university. Although earlier school gardens fell victim to neglect in the 20th century, the modern school garden movement is rapidly growing since 2013 due to its recognized value in current pedagogical movements, and role in education for sustainability. [1]
Weblink: http://uni.sze.hu/welcome-to-our-website-

Urban setting

  • Grey infrastructure with green features
    • Green playground/ school grounds
  • Allotments and community gardens
    • Community gardens

Key challenges

  • Green space, habitats and biodiversity (SDG 15)
  • Health and well-being (SDG 3)
  • Sustainable consumption and production (SDG 12)

Main beneficiaries

  • Public sector institution (e.g. school or hospital)
  • Researchers/University
  • Citizens or community groups
  • Other
Project objectives
Goals of the NBS intervention include [1]: - cost-effective way to incorporate sustainability into formal schooling - trains university students on properly organizing and maintaining the school garden as an optional credit course at the university - pedagogical goals: teaching cooperation in a group environment, focusing, taking responsibility, planning, scheduling and patience. - unite schools, professional actors and companies (e.g. garden furniture, agricultural businesses), spread best practices, organize meetings and conferences, run workshops and trainings, offer free guidance, and build a network with free membership.
Implementation activities
Apáczai’s new school garden trains university students on properly organizing and maintaining the school garden with ecological methods in the format of an optional credit course at the university. The university’s students, when graduated, will be primary and secondary school teachers in Hungary, and can carry on with the good practice of school gardening. The garden also frequently hosts the eco study groups of the nearby Öveges Kálmán Elementary School, Bisinger József Kindergarten, as well as international exchange student groups. The educational Vice Dean of Apáczai also co-founded the Foundation for Hungarian School Gardens (Iskolakertekért Alapítvány). The Foundation aims to unite schools, professional actors and companies (e.g. garden furniture, agricultural businesses), spread best practices, organize meetings and conferences, run workshops and trainings, offer free guidance, and build a network with free membership. [1]

Type of initiating organisation

  • Public sector institution (e.g. school or hospital)
  • Researchers / University

Management set-up

Led by non-government actors

Participatory approaches/ community involvement

  • Crowd-sourcing/Crowd-funding/Participatory bdget
  • Dissemination of information and education
  • Consultation (e.g. workshop, surveys)
  • Joint implementation (e.g. tree planting)
Details on the roles of the organisations involved in the project
The educational Vice Dean of Apáczai, who drives the Apáczai garden process and its integration into the educational program, together with three other school garden leaders of Hungary, also co-founded the Foundation for Hungarian School Gardens (Iskolakertekért Alapítvány) in 2015 in order to understand the barriers, to seek opportunities and to increase the number of school gardens in Hungary. [1] The elementary school student groups are responsible for the planting, maintenance, harvesting, seed collection and other activities under the supervision of teachers and practicing teachers in Apáczai’s garden. [1]
Project implemented in response to ...
... an EU policy or strategy? No
... a national policy or strategy? Yes
According to Halbritter, in 1868, it became mandatory by law to educate all future teachers of Hungary on modern agricultural practices and gardening – this is when Győr’s teacher training institution (now called Széchenyi István University, Apáczai Csere János Faculty) established its school garden in their current campus, thus creating one of the largest and most complex educational gardens of the country in the heart of Győr on 5.238 square meters. [1]
... a local policy or strategy? No
Expected impacts
  • Environmental quality, including air quality and waste management
  • Green space, habitats and biodiversity (SDG 15)
  • Health and well-being (SDG 3)
  • Social justice, cohesion and equity (SDG 10)
  • Sustainable consumption and production (SDG 12)
Details on impacts and indicators used There are observable biophysical impacts of the intervention, such as more lush vegetation, which slightly improves the local microclimate (temperatures, humidity, shadows) and air quality (dust control) around the school area, improves soil quality, and raises its organic matter content. School gardening also contributes to social equity, because several student’s families own unused land at home. Nevertheless, the purpose of school gardening in Győr is reportedly not the high agricultural yield, or the biophysical impacts, but on the activity itself - outdoor, cooperative, understanding, community-based work. Thus, their real impact lies in awareness raising, education and sensitization (e.g. creating the need for green space in the life of children). [1]

Presence of formal monitoring system

Unknown

Presence of indicators used in reporting

Unknown

Presence of monitoring/ evaluation reports

Unknown

Availability of a web-based monitoring tool

Unknown
[1] Katona, A. (2017). Case Study Working Paper Győr.
  • School Garden of the Széchenyi István University, Apáczai Csere János Faculty
    School Garden of the Széchenyi István University, Apáczai Csere János Faculty
    License: 
    Lados Mihály, retrieved 08/31/2018

 

Disclaimer: The data collection was carried out between June and August 2017, the information presented has not been updated afterwards.