CHAPTER 7

CASE REPORTS

Contents

7.1. Turkey

The terms environmental literacy, ecological literacy and ecoliteracy have enormous importance in our lives and they are needed to be taught in detail to the society in order to save the resources of our environment. Numerous frameworks for environmental education, ecology and broader humanities are presented for the supplement of ecoliteracy awareness and sustainability of the protection of the nature and the world. Therefore, in order to have healthy societies, what we need is; clean air, natural resources and a nontoxic and undistorted environment.

To be an ecoliterated human being, we have to obey some rules related with ecological literacy and here are some examples presented:

  • An ecological literate architect and engineer; pays attention to the fact that the buildings it builds are constructed using sustainable materials and it conserves energy savings.
  • An ecologically literate urban regional planner chooses bridge and road routes without affecting the areas of natural habitats where the city breathes and does not open first grade agricultural lands to industry and settlement.
  • An ecological literate fisherman hunts in a way that he allows the fishes to continue for their generations,
  • An ecologically literate mayor does not approve the constructions to take place at stream beds,
  • An ecologically literate individual defines the need and consumes only as much as it needs,
  • An ecological literate parent feeds her child with nature-friendly products,
  • An ecologically literate parent; pays attention to the harmonization of processes such as nutrition, habitat, school, social environment of the child with nature.
  • An ecologically literate youth; while trying to lead his personal and business life, he tries to take care of all entire life of living things.
  • An ecological literate teacher; realizing that it is a part of nature, it supports students' learning process with their experiences of nature.
  • An ecological literate greengrocer; pays attention to the fact that the products it sells are manufactured in a manner that protects human health with a nature-friendly approach and away from chemicals.

To give the education on ecoliteracy, in Turkey, there are many Universities, schools, training centres, associations, fellowships and societies and their aims are the same, to give the ecological literacy to the people. Also various conferences, seminars, workshops and meetings are organised to give the literacy on ecology and environment.

Best practice examples in Turkey are listed below:

  • 1. Project Name: Clean Environment Project with Natural Treatment Facilities
    Promoter: Bursa Special Provincial Administration
    Subject: Sewages of the villages in and around Bursa province created environmental pollution and was a threat for water resources. Through this project, Bursa Provincial Directorate created an opportunity to solve the bad smell and the environmental pollution caused by domestic wastewater from villages sewage.
    Objectives: Within this project, it is aimed to improve living conditions of rural areas and to disseminate countrywide the sense of clean and living environment through environment friendly waste water natural treatment technology.
    Outcomes: The project contributed to the prevention of the epidemic diseases and pollution created by wastewater of villages. It also ensured solving the wastewater problems through natural treatment or constructed wetland which also has economic aspects and it is a system of an alternate solution for treatment of waste water.
  • 2. Project Name: Establishment of a Sustainable Packaging Waste Management System in cooperation with Industry, Local Authorities and Customers in Turkey
    Promoter: Environmental Protection and Packaging Waste Recovery and Recycling Foundation (ÇEVKO)
    Subject: Increase in the amount of packaging is directly correlated with the rise in consumption and product variety. Packaging waste is eligible for recovery under conditions of proper separation and collection. Environmental, economic and social costs arise when packaging waste is disposed of with organic waste. Recovery of packaging waste allows increasing of secondary materials while contributing to reservation of natural resources such as energy, oil and precious metals. Managing packaging waste within a separate system also results in creation of new sectors and job opportunities.
    Objectives: Cooperating with local authorities for countrywide application of collection, separation and recovery activities; ensuring information accumulation in waste management through domestic and international applications; informative and training activities regarding environmental awareness; taking place in R&D activities, provision of advisory and technical support to relevant stakeholders.
    Results: Approximately 2,500,000 tons of packaging waste has been collected in the Project period and within this framework over 12 million barrels of oil have been saved. This amounts to about 5% of 236 million barrels, an amount equal to the yearly gross oil consumption in Turkey. Approximately 16 million trees have been saved as a result of the recovered paper and similar packaging products.
  • 3. Project Name: Sustainable Management of Local Electronical Wastes in Istanbul
    Promoter: Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IMM)
    Objectives: Making a feasibility study about collection and evaluation of waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE). Collecting at least 6.000 units of computer wastes. Reaching 60% as the ratio of repaired amount to all collected.
    Subject: Public foundations, private companies and citizens who want to donate their computer wastes to IMM’s workshop contact with IMM by telephone or e-mails throughout Istanbul and state the information related to the equipments. On this request, technicians go to the collection points and receive the equipments in exchange for official report. The equipments are tested if they are working or not. Then they are classified as reusable materials, recyclable materials and hazardous wastes. The equipments that will be repaired are stocked for reuse after their data are erased and they are repaired. Stocked equipments are then donated to the educational, public and social institutions that are in need. The equipments that are not possible to be repaired are separated into parts such as plastics, metals etc. and sent to recycling points. The materials consisting of hazardous materials are sent to licensed firms to be disposed.
    During the project period, it has been learnt that; recycling of WEEE is important. We have seen that the citizens and stakeholders (producers, companies, etc.) are really willing to participate in the process. It can simply be managed to attract their attention with good advertisements.
  • 4. Project Name: Kaçkar Mountains Sustainable Forest Use and Conservation Project
    Promoter: The Turkish Foundation for Combating Soil Erosion, for Reforestation and the Protection of Natural Habitats (TEMA)
    Objectives: Scientific Approach for Conservation and Planning and Developing scientific methods for the conservation of Kaçkar Mountains, and establish a conservation model to convey its values to the future; Rural Development Supporting the local people to turn the resources of the forests into additional sources of income, and to improve their quality of life ; Wildlife Development Monitoring, conservation and development wildlife, while providing local people with the methods to conserve their products without damaging wildlife ; Sustainable Tourism Developing tourism, the most important and promising source of income for the local people, through environment friendly methods. Potential additional sources of income, namely non-timber forest products and other natural products were researched and demonstrated. Problems in the product marketing chain were addressed via pilot projects in order to improve agricultural income generation. Critical training was provided to increase agricultural productivity.
    Results: About 320 households earned an alternative income through sustainable site specific practices, more than 1,000 people got trained on sustainable and productive practices of agriculture, animal husbandry, tourism, insulation, techniques of avoidance from damages associated with wildlife and 50% of the people in the project area became aware of the unique natural worth of the region at the end of the project. A pilot Vegetable-Fruit Drying Facility was built, agricultural training was offered to farmers and potential of income generation activities such as fodder crops plantation, beekeeping and fruit orchard management were demonstrated. The most important output of the project “Kaçkar Mountains Management Plan” is the anticipation that it will become a model for Turkey through local ownership and effective implementation.

7.2. Bulgaria

The application of SES for achievement of sustainable economic development is illustrated with a case study “Agrarian sustainability - economic, social and ecological aspects on sectoral macro-level”. The data presented are based on official statistical and other information as well as on expert evaluation. On their basis, the sustainability index for economic, social and ecological aspects was calculated and the critical areas that lead to improving the level of agrarian sustainability in Bulgaria are identified.

The evaluation of Bulgarian agrarian sustainability is based on a methodology, initially developed for analysis of governance system and sustainability levels in Bulgarian agriculture. The system for assessing agrarian sustainability includes selected principles, criteria, indicators and reference values for each of them:

  • The principles are the highest level which expresses the state of sustainability within the economic, social and ecological aspects;
  • The criteria are related to indicators, which express the state of agricultural sector assessed when the relevant principle is realized;
  • The indicators are quantitative and qualitative variables, e.g. behavior, business, investment, outcome, impact that can be valued and measurement of correspondence with the criteria, giving idea of sustainability in all its aspects can be done.
  • Reference values are the desired values of each of the indicators, which assist the evaluation and give direction to improve/achieve sustainability.
  • Welfare of employed in agriculture;
  • Conservation of farming;
  • Gender equality;
  • Social capital;
  • Adaptability to the social environment.

The lowest level has the sustainability index for the Social capital principle, the Gender equality principle and the Welfare of the employed in agriculture. Bulgarian agriculture is characterized by low productivity at labor, land and livestock. This is due to the fact that the labor productivity in Bulgaria is lower than the EU average because of low or old technology use, low labor quality, lack of qualification, lower motivation due to insufficient payment, aging labor force and other socio-economic factors.

The Welfare of employed in agriculture was assessed with Insufficient sustainability, while higher sustainability score was gained for the Conservation of farming principle, although the share of trained farms is very low. More employed in the agriculture should receive training and possibilities to develop their skills and knowledge in order to increase the sustainability of the agricultural sector.

Gender inequality is another major issue that Bulgarian agriculture faces and which is the reason for the low score for the Equality principle. Based on data of the share of women farm managers the indicator value suggests that there is inequality.

The highest is the value of the Index of adaptability to the social environment. Having in mind the changing social structure, the decline in the number of employed in agriculture, as well as the demographic crisis in the rural areas, there is a positive trend in the ratio of gross fixed capital formation to labour availability. That means that the shortage of labour could be successfully resolved with more capital formation.

The environmental sustainability of the Bulgarian agriculture is evaluated in general as Good. This is the assessment subject with most diverse indicators covering eight principles of environmental sustainability. The highest level of sustainability has been measured for the Effective energy consumption and the Adaptability to the environment. Concerns stem from the level of the indexes for some of the principles that are critical for ensuring environmental sustainability. Such principles are the Air quality, Biodiversity, Animal welfare, and Organic production.

Applying this systematic approach, the Social - Ecological sustainability of Bulgarian agriculture is assessed as Good. However, the data reveal that there is still much work needed in order to ensure that the agriculture does not harm the environment and the biodiversity. It is important to point out that in several aspects, Bulgarian agriculture demonstrates strong sustainability; the effective energy consumption for instance. What is important, is to make sure that in case of more intensive economic growth these high scoring factors will not deteriorate.

7.3. Germany

There are numerous case studies by the Federal Environment Agency (UBA) on all areas of environmental protection: from transport and agriculture to water protection and biodiversity.

Case 1:

A has won the lottery. He wants to invest the money. He's very resourceful at car washes. The question is, what is the first thing he needs to clarify in terms of environmental law if he wants to start a car wash.

Immission control permission, §§ 4, 6 BimSchG.

The Federal Immission Control Act (BimSchG) is the most important specialist law in the field of environmental protection as a whole.

Law for the protection against harmful environmental effects caused by air pollution, noise, vibrations and similar processes (Federal Immission Control Act - BImSchG)

§ 4 Approval

(1) The construction and operation of installations which, by virtue of their nature or operation, are particularly likely to cause harmful effects on the environment or otherwise endanger, seriously disadvantage or seriously disturb the general public or the neighbourhood, as well as of fixed waste disposal installations for the storage or treatment of waste, shall require a permit. With the exception of waste disposal facilities, facilities that do not serve commercial purposes and are not used within the framework of economic activities only require a permit if they are particularly suitable for causing harmful effects on the environment through air pollution or noise. The Federal Government, after hearing the parties involved (§ 51), shall determine by statutory instrument, with the consent of the Bundesrat, which installations require a permit (installations requiring a permit); the statutory instrument may also stipulate that a permit is not required if an installation, as a whole or in its essential parts specified in the statutory instrument, has been approved according to its type of construction and is constructed and operated in accordance with the type approval.

§ 6 Licensing requirements

Authorisation shall be granted if

  • 1. It is ensured that the obligations resulting from § 5 and a statutory instrument issued on the basis of § 7 are fulfilled, and
  • 2. Other regulations under public law and occupational health and safety concerns do not conflict with the construction and operation of the installation.

In the case of installations which serve different modes of operation or in which different substances are used (multi-purpose or multi-substance installations), the licence shall be extended to cover the different modes of operation and substances upon application if the requirements under para. 1 are met for all modes of operation and substances covered.

An applied for modification permit may also not be refused if, after its implementation, not all immission values of an administrative regulation pursuant to § 48 or a statutory instrument pursuant to § 48a are complied with, but if

  • (1.) the immission contribution of the installation is reduced by the project significantly and to a greater extent than is enforceable by subsequent orders pursuant to Article 17 para 1, taking into account Article 17 para 3 a sentence 3,
  • (2.) further air pollution control measures are implemented, in particular measures that go beyond the state of the art in newly constructed plants,
  • (3.) the applicant also submits an immission management plan to reduce his share of the polluters in order to achieve subsequent compliance with the requirements under Article 5 (1), No. 1, and
  • (4.) the specific circumstances do not require a revocation of the permit.

§ 21 Biotope network, cross-linking of biotopes

  • (1.) The network of interlinked biotopes serves to permanently safeguard the populations of wild fauna and flora, including their habitats, biotopes and biotic communities, and to preserve, restore and develop functioning ecological interrelationships. It should also contribute to improving the coherence of the Natura 2000 network.
  • (2.) The biotope network should be transnational. The “Länder” shall consult with each other on this.

Case 2:

What if one wants to set up his plant in a very beautiful agricultural area? Are there any agricultural restrictions?

Nature conservation law: general rules of intervention, §§ 18 - 21 BNatSchG, § 4 ff LG NRW 2. designation of protected areas, §§ 22 ff BNatSchG

§ 16 Stockpiling of compensation measures

Nature conservation and landscape management measures that have been carried out with a view to expected interventions shall be recognised as compensatory or replacement measures, provided that

  • 1. The requirements of § 15 paragraph 2 are fulfilled,
  • 2. They were carried out without any legal obligation,
  • 3. No public funding was used for this purpose

§ 18 Relationship to building law

If encroachments on nature and landscape are to be expected on the basis of the establishment, amendment, supplementation or cancellation of urban land-use plans or bylaws pursuant to § 4 (4) sentence 1 number 3 of the German Building Code, decisions on avoidance, compensation and replacement shall be made in accordance with the provisions of the German Building Code.

§ 19 Damage to certain species and natural habitats

Damage to species and natural habitats within the meaning of the Environmental Damage Act is any damage that has significant adverse effects on achieving or maintaining the favourable conservation status of such habitats or species.

§ Article 21 Biotope network, cross-linking of biotopes

  • (1) The purpose of a biotope network is to permanently safeguard populations of wild fauna and flora, including their habitats, biotopes and biotic communities, and to preserve, restore and develop functioning ecological interrelationships. 2 It should also contribute to improving the coherence of the Natura 2000 network.
  • (2) The network of biotopes is to be transboundary. 2 The Länder shall consult with one another on this.
  • (3) The biotope network consists of core areas, connecting areas and connecting elements.

Case 3:

A sets up his paint plant in a beautiful area where a river flows by in the immediate vicinity. From time to time he secretly dumps the toxic chemicals produced in his business into the river. Is he allowed to do this and can he be punished for it?

  • (1) Water law (WHG, LWG): water law permits and authorisations for the use of water bodies in the sense of the water law WHG, §§ 7, 8 WHG, §§ 25 - 28 LWG NRW
  • (2) Law for the order of the water balance (Water Resources Act - WHG)

§ 8 Permission, Licence

  • (1) The use of a water body shall require a permit or authorisation, unless
    • otherwise provided for by this Act or by regulations issued on the basis of this Act.li
  • (2) No permit or authorisation shall be required for the use of water bodies for the purpose of averting a current danger to public safety, provided that the threat of damage is more serious than the adverse changes in the properties of the water body resulting from such use. The competent authority shall be informed of such use without delay.

    • Criminal liability for environmental offences (not only water pollution): §§ 324 ff StGB; furthermore administrative offences, here § 41 WHG.

    Criminal Code (StGB) § 324 Water pollution

    Anyone who without authorisation pollutes a body of water or otherwise adversely affects its properties shall be punished with imprisonment for up to five years or a fine. (2) The attempt is punishable

    7.4. Spain

    We have selected some experiences that have been carried out in Spain under the umbrella of public administrations and private management.

    Case Study 1:

    The Autonomous Organization for National Parks, under the Ministry for Ecological Transition, organizes the National Park Volunteer Program annually. It is a unique opportunity to get to know these protected areas by collaborating in ecosystem conservation and natural and cultural heritage restoration programs. In order to participate it is necessary to be of legal age. All the participation expenses are paid by the organization, except for the travel expenses to the protected area, which must be paid by the volunteer. The Volunteer Program assumes the double challenge of:

    • facilitate awareness, consciousness-raising and change of attitudes towards the environment as a tool for environmental education
    • offer a space that satisfies the growing demand for social participation in knowledge and intervention on the quality and conservation of the environment

    The environmental volunteer offers:

    • dedication, commitment and contribution to the improvement of the natural heritage
    • interest, motivation and free time

    The Autonomous Organization of National Parks provides:

    • technical management, information and training
    • accommodation, meals and transport within the Parks
    • accident, health and liability insurance
    • materials for activities and identification of volunteers

    Figure 1. Volunteers in a National Forest Park



    Source: Ministry of Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge (Government of Spain)

    Case Study 2:

    “Green Homes” It is an educational program aimed at families concerned about the environmental and social impact of their decisions and daily habits. With this initiative we want to accompany them in the process of change towards a more responsible management of their home:

    • promoting self-control of domestic water and energy consumption
    • introducing cost-saving measures and behaviours
    • helping to make a more ethical and greener purchase

    The program offers participants:

    • Quarterly meetings where information is exchanged on basic and very practical issues related to the topics being addressed at any given time
    • Personalized attention, in person or by telephone and e-mail, to help resolve all the doubts that may arise
    • Materials with practical recommendations and information and a simple sample and savings kit

    Participants make a commitment in their homes to:

    • Complete an initial and final questionnaire on water, energy and mobility
    • Provide data on your domestic consumption

    Case Study 3:

    The International Foundation for the Restoration of Ecosystems (FIRE) is a private non-profit organization that was created in 2006 with the aim of restoring and conserving ecosystems, transferring academic knowledge to operational projects with the highest possible social return. It is composed of a network of more than 30 professors, researchers, students and professionals from different academic institutions, non-governmental organizations and companies from several European and Latin American countries.

    Its objectives are:

    • Develop applied research for ecosystem restoration
    • Promote, coordinate and execute restoration projects
    • Disseminate knowledge for decision making in the field of public policies for sustainable development
    • To promote relations between the scientific community and different social actors, with the aim of developing projects and actions for the restoration of ecosystems
    • Design, implement and evaluate education and training programs for students, professionals and technicians
    • Promote and support the creation, consolidation and development of companies and social initiatives aimed at the sustainable use of natural resources

      • In addition to collaborating in important international projects, the main projects carried out are:

      Life Fields: to reconcile ecological restoration actions with the agricultural use of the territory. It includes the revegetation of boundaries and paths, the introduction of islets of woody vegetation, the restoration of water points (ponds, fountains, troughs), the placement of nesting boxes for birds and the construction of shelters for wildlife

      Custody of the Territory: strategies and instruments to facilitate conservation initiatives and the good use of a territory's natural, cultural and landscape values and resources through the direct participation of civil society.

      Avian pest control: to evaluate the ecological restoration actions of certain species of insectivorous birds and small and medium sized birds of prey, which are useful for the biological control of agricultural and forest pests

      RestauRural: ecological restoration project and improvement of the environmental quality of the rural environment, which is carried out with the voluntary participation of schoolchildren for the detection, collection and classification of waste in their municipalities

      Diploma "Restoration of ecosystems and environmental services": on-line training on ecological restoration

      Publication of the tale "The adventures of Lady Acorn": written by Victoria Gonzalez, is intended to bring knowledge about the natural regeneration of the Mediterranean forest to children

      Figure 2. Project "Analogous Forests for the ecological restoration of the Mediterranean"


      Source: FIRE 2018

      7.5. Italy

      7.5.1. The INFEA program

      The INFEA (INFormazione Educazione Ambientale - Environmental Education Information) program was created in 2000 under the initiative of the Ministry of the Environment: it aims at spreading information, training and environmental education structures throughout the country.

      The INFEA system is configured as an integration of systems on a regional scale, where the regional administration plays a role of listening, proposal and coordination, promoting a continuous dialogue with the actors involved in the world of environmental education and ecoliteracy.

      The INFEA program, the expression of the above mentioned system, spreads structures and tools throughout the country to assist and strengthen the role of the Regions and to guide actions towards the construction of a National System for Education, Training and Environmental Information/ecoliteracy.

      The State, the Regions and the autonomous Provinces therefore are directly addressed and committed to strengthen and develop their joint action in the field of environmental education and sustainable development, through the stipulation of concerted program agreements co-financed with regional, national and local communities.

      7.5.2. The INFEA network

      The IN.F.E.A. network of Information Training and Environmental Education is a tool of the National System IN.F.E.A. to promote the sharing of objectives and projects aimed at sustainability and environmental protection as a common good among the subjects that are in the network itself.

      he network is the union of all environmental education centres – both public and private – and is coordinated by the Ministry of the Environment across the regions.

      Each Region therefore has the role of coordinating the centres set within its territory, in collaboration with the Regional Environmental Protection Agencies, and the Regional School Offices.

      The network is made up of over 200 Environmental Education centres, 360 natural areas and 1500 subjects.

      All the entities that make Environmental Education in the context of the INFEA network must have agreements with public bodies.

      The activities of the network

      The network, in each region

      a. carries out Environmental Education/ecoliteracy interventions for the promotion, programming and implementation of educational projects, by making comparisons, awareness raising, training, information on the issues related to education for sustainable development;

      b. collects information and data to feed the Regional Information System: it plays the dual role of collecting and spreading environmental education initiatives that are carried out in each area in order to give visibility to projects and allow teachers, educators, administrators, individual citizens to access the available resources from the web or directly from the centres;

      c. operates in the following areas of intervention: Environment and health, Food and agriculture, Biodiversity, Citizenship and common goods, Consumption and lifestyles, Sustainable energy, Business and green economy, Sustainable mobility, Environmental resources, Land use.

      7.5.3. The local Agenda 21 processes

      The processes of aware participation of citizens find expression in the local Agenda 21, the local action of sustainable development through interdisciplinary, participatory and empowering methods and tools.

      Agenda 21 takes sustainable development as its underlying philosophy, accompanying it in a process generating strategies, objectives, tools, actions, criteria and methods for evaluating results. The definition of the objectives is strictly connected with the construction of the conditions necessary for the concrete action: consent, interest, synergies, human and financial resources.

      The methodological basis of local Agenda 21 is the integration of the environmental factor with the economy of all sectors, industry, transport, energy, agriculture, tourism and with the social aspects, employment, the condition of women and young people, training, health quality of life, especially children and the elderly and for vulnerable groups.

      The public bodies that have developed and that develop Local Agenda21 processes act ecoliteracy through the participation and training meetings of the local thematic working groups which generate local Sustainable Action Plans.

      7.5.4. Italian Alliance for Sustainable Development - Asvis

      Asvis was founded in 2016 to raise awareness in Italian society, economic actors and institutions of the importance of Agenda 2030 for sustainable development and to mobilize them to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. The Alliance currently brings together 270 of the most important institutions and networks of civil society and business.

      In its commitment to creating a more sustainable world, education plays a crucial role and has therefore launched numerous activities to support educational pathways for each person to become an agent of change, equipping themselves with the knowledge, skills, values and attitudes to be able to make informed decisions and act responsibly for environmental integrity, economic sustainability and a fairer society for present and future generations.

      ASviS collaborates with the Ministry of Education in the implementation of the "Plan for Sustainability Education". Thanks to the working group, the Alliance has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Ministry to promote and disseminate information, training and dissemination initiatives of the culture of sustainable development addressed to all components of the school world of all levels. Asvis also collaborates closely with the "Network of Universities for Sustainable Development" (RUS).

      Among the activities and projects launched by the Alliance in this field, or that have seen the collaboration of the same, are worth mentioning:

      • the national competition Miur-ASviS for Italian schools on SDGs, entitled "Facciamo 17 Goal. Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development", with the aim of promoting knowledge, diffusion and assumption of the lifestyles foreseen in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development;
      • the ASviS e-learning course, available online, which lasts about three hours and illustrates the Agenda 2030 and the SDGs system;
      • the Siena Summer School on Sustainable Development, launched by ASviS to educate on sustainability issues, in collaboration with Fondazione Enel, Leonardo, University Network for Sustainable Development (Rus), Sustainable Development Solutions Network Italia, Sustainable Development Solutions Network Mediterraneo and University of Siena Santa Chiara Lab. The school focuses on understanding the challenges posed by an unsustainable world and promoting concrete solutions.

      On the website of Asvis is available a Catalogue of materials for Education for Sustainable Development with materials produced over the years by non-governmental organizations, foundations, public bodies and the world of education for development education and global citizenship.