EURECA-PRO

Young Eco Heroes:
Bringing RCP to Schools

EURECA-PRO Lifelong Learning Academy
Summer 2025 – Spring 2026
15 Sep, 2025
  • Past events
Course Type:
Educational Activities with Workshop Components
Number of places:
Maximum 15 participants (per participating school)
Starting:
Summer Semester 2025
Ending:
Spring Semester 2026

Become a Young Eco Hero !

The Young Eco Heroes project is an initiative of EURECA-PRO, the European University on Responsible Consumption and Production. Its goal is to bring scientific knowledge on sustainability into society and to inspire young people to take an active role in shaping a greener future.

As a participant, you will work in small groups to design and present a project on Responsible Consumption and Production (RCP), showing how everyday actions can protect the environment. Through this process, you will strengthen important skills such as teamwork, problem-solving, creativity, and public speaking.

The project is voluntary, taking place outside of the regular school curriculum, and you will be supported by your teachers throughout. As part of the EURECA-PRO network, you will collaborate with peers from Greece, Germany, and Poland, while also learning how the European Union promotes sustainability.

If you are interested, you can register on Moodle with your teacher’s help. Each school will manage their own selection process.

Hard facts

📌 Activities will take place locally at participating schools, online for inter-school collaboration, and in person during a physical exchange between the groups.

⌛ The programme begins in summer 2025, with the student exchange and final presentations taking place in spring 2026.

✅ Evaluation will consider participation, creativity, teamwork, and the quality of the final presentations. Peer feedback will contribute to the assessment of collaboration and idea development.

🏆 All participants will receive a certificate upon completion of the programme.

Key skills

Young learners will build key skills while exploring sustainability, including:

  • 🌱 Understanding environmental issues and everyday sustainable actions
  • 🤝 Collaborating in teams to solve real-world problems
  • 🧠 Applying critical thinking and presenting ideas confidently
  • 🌍 Communicating across cultures and reflecting on personal habits

Programme:

  • 📅 Spring–Summer 2025
    Initial planning phase
  • 🏫 September–October 2025
    School Kick-Off Events: Introduction to EURECA-PRO and brainstorming project ideas
  • 💻 November 6, 2025
    Virtual Meeting: Student presentations, expert talks, interactive challenges
  • 🔧 November 2025 – February 2026
    Project Implementation: Students work independently at their schools/universities
  • 🌍 16–20 March 2026
    Student Exchange: Presentation of results to classmates, teachers, and the wider community
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Information Flyer

Meet the Young Eco Heroes Educators!

Katarzyna Pakura

Primary School No. 4 Mikołów, Poland
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Vasilios Chatzistauros

1st Experimental Junior High School of Chania, Greece
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Nektaria Ligkounaki

1st Experimental Junior High School of Chania, Greece
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Mareike Gerhardt

Martin Luther Gymnasium Hartha, Germany
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Contact information

Event Coordinators and Local Contact Representatives:

  • Aliki Stergianni, Technical University of Crete
  • Maria Speck, Hochschule Mittweida
  • Anna Wolny, Silesian University of Technology
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Katarzyna Pakura

Poland

Katarzyna Pakura is a Polish and English teacher at Primary School No. 4 in Mikołów, located in southern Poland.  

Her school collaborates closely with the Silesian University of Technology in Gliwice and was invited to take part in the inspiring international project EURECA-PRO – Young Eco Heroes. She believes this initiative is a fantastic opportunity for students to grow in many areas — from developing project-based learning skills to gaining new knowledge and improving their language skills. 

Motivated by the project’s creative and ecological approach, she is eager to help her students become more aware, responsible, and active European citizens.

Vasilios Chatzistauros

Greece

Vasilios Chatzistauros has graduated from the Department of Chemistry at the University of Crete and subsequently obtained an MSc and a PhD from the Technical University of Crete in the field of Analytical and Environmental Chemistry. 

He worked at the Technical University of Crete from 2003 to 2013 as teaching and research staff, and since 2013 he has been working as a Secondary Education teacher. He has participated in several European and environmental projects, mainly focusing on environmental protection and sustainable development. Raising students’ awareness—particularly on issues related to ecological consciousness—has been a core objective throughout his educational career. 

By participating in this project, he hopes to gain a deeper understanding of the environmental and social impact of fast fashion idustry, and try to deliver this knowlegde to his students so as to develop more sustainable consumption habits and learn how they can contribute to positive change through informed choices and advocacy. 

Nektaria Ligkounaki

Greece

Nektaria Ligkounaki lives in Chania, Greece, and works at the 1st Experimental Junior High School of Chania, where she teaches English. She holds a Master’s degree and serves as the coordinator of European projects at her school. She is also responsible for the Peer Mediation programme and has previously worked as a school life counsellor. In addition, she coordinates the foreign language teachers within her school organisation. 

She is passionate about applying innovative and creative teaching methods that actively engage students and help them connect learning with real-world issues. Through her teaching, she aims to raise students’ awareness of social and environmental challenges while fostering empathy, collaboration, and active citizenship.

She decided to participate in the EURECA-PRO Young Eco Heroes programme because she strongly believes that sustainability education can empower young people to take meaningful action for a better future. She is particularly interested in exploring how values such as respect, responsibility, and civic engagement can be integrated into environmental education. The programme also offers a valuable opportunity to exchange ideas with other European educators, learn from their experiences, and inspire students to become active eco-heroes in their communities.

Mareike Gerhardt

Germany

Mareike Gerhardt lives in Döbeln, Germany, and works at the Martin Luther Gymnasium Hartha, a secondary school where she teaches Biology and Chemistry. In addition to her teaching duties, she serves as the head of the mathematics, science, and technology department, coordinating interdisciplinary collaboration and supporting innovative learning approaches within this field. 

She is particularly interested in encouraging students to work independently and to develop confidence in their own ideas. In her teaching, she places great importance on students making an effort, approaching tasks thoughtfully, and attempting to solve problems on their own before giving up. She believes that learning to persist, reflect, and take responsibility for one’s own work is an essential part of both academic development and personal growth.

She decided to participate in this project in order to empower her students to take ownership of their work and to experience the joy of exploring new topics independently. She hopes that they will not only gain new knowledge, but also enjoy the learning process and transfer these skills to other areas of their education. Furthermore, she sees this project as a valuable opportunity for students to collaborate with international partners, broaden their perspectives, and potentially build long-lasting friendships beyond national borders.