Integra_et_Klima

Integra_et_Klima is a three-year research project funded by the German Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety (Bundesministerium für Umwelt, Naturschutz, Bau und Reaktorsicherheit BMUB) under the National Climate Protection Initiative (Nationale Klimaschutzinitiative NKI).

Integra_et_Klima aims to focus environmental education efforts on migrants. Modules on sustainable housing, mobility, nutrition and consumption will be included in integration courses for language training and employment preparation. For this purpose, specially-designed teaching materials are developed for testing by trained lecturers in language and integration courses. The overall goal is the promotion of environmental awareness and competence of participants to enable them to actively reduce their greenhouse gas emissions.

The materials were tested in several integration courses throughout Germany. Their practical applicability in class was ensured by continuous feedback loops with the lecturers and their effectiveness and attractiveness was assessed among the participants in a multi-stage evaluation process. The evaluation revealed CO₂ savings for those who participated in the integration courses, while the CO₂ footprint of migrants in the control group increased and slowly approached the German average. The teaching materials are available for free download from Oekom-Verlag.

The research project was headed by the Environmental Psychology group at the University of Applied Arts and Sciences Dortmund chaired by Prof. Dr. Marcel Hunecke (Projektgruppe der Umweltpsychologie der Fachhochschule Dortmund um Prof. Dr. Marcel Hunecke). The project partner Multicultural Forum (Multikulturelles Forum Lünen) is a provider of integration courses for migrants. The ifeu assists with the development of the teaching modules and performs analyses on the energy consumption of migrants. In addition, carbon balance calculations of the achieved CO₂ reductions are carried out at the ifeu.

In addition to the research institutes, several representatives of migrant organisations providing practical guidance are involved with project. Among them are

Gülcan Nitsch, Yeşil Çember im BUND Berlin e.V.

Nadiya Dorokhova, Migranten für Agenda 21