ESC: Exploring Sustainability and Environmental Interpretation at Serra Guarneri: 7 Months in Sicily

The Palma Nana cooperative was found in 1983. It operates in the fields of environmental conservation and preservation, and the promotion of environmental and civic awareness with people and pupils. The cooperative organizes and manages activities of environmental education on behalf of the Italian Chapter of the World Wildlife Foundation (WWF). Environmental Education and Responsible Tourism are the key priorities of Palma Nana’s activities. Aiming to promote ecological awareness, the cooperative organizes didactic activities in schools, updating and training courses, seminars, exhibitions, events, summer camps for youth, nature holidays for adults, family camps and excursions in natural and urban environments. The cooperative mainly operates on two fields: in the city of Palermo our staff works in and with schools, organizing daily excursions and school workshops. We also run a Center for Environmental Education (CEA) in the Madonie Mountains Park. Serra Guarneri is both a tourist venue and a didactic structure. During the summer, we organize tematic holidays for families and adventure camps for young of different age. In autumn and spring, Serra Guarneri hosts school trips and a range of events in collaboration with diverse institutions that deal with the environment. We work in the structure -where we organize nonformal education activities; in the woods- where we cover both the botanic aspect of nature, and its sensory interpretation; and in the surrounding territory, trying to promote virtuous examples of the rural world. Our main educational goals -To stimulate citizens’ sense of interest and love for nature -To facilitate tighter links between citizens and their territory -To rediscover a form of active and direct knowledge of surrounding territory -To stimulate civic behaviors of involvement and active participation in environmental issues, decision-making and policies -To build the ability to connect local dynamics to environmental phenomena at the global scale -To produce behavioral changes in people and communities. In the field of training, education and awareness-rising, the Palma Nana cooperative has developed direct actions to encourage knowledge transfer and awareness in young people through workshops, stages, courses and residential activities. Our work is aimed at people of all ages, students, teachers and workers. These actions were carried out in collaboration with institutions and operators operating in the field of the protection of natural heritage, the third sector and economic operators with the aim of preserving natural reserves, forests, the sea, cities and neighborhoods for discover their differences together. The Palma Nana Method implements non-formal education paths, with the aim of transmitting the values of Environmental Education through workshops and experiences. The educational objective of the proposals is to offer activities where the participants are personally involved in doing (learning by doing); we bealive that it is not enough to act, manipulate, operate, it is necessary to reflect, think (learning by thinking); moreover, there is no action, there is no thought, without motivations, interests, passions (learning by loving). The courses stimulate the development of life skills to improve one's cognitive and socio-emotional well-being and the recognition of one's talents. The values that support the actions of the Palma Nana Method are: -Give value to respect -I listen and I am part of a group -Consistency between what I say and what I do -Educate to beauty -Research of well-being -Moments of autonomy through creativity and play -Innovation and communication -Involvement of local communities Palma Nana is part of the board of the AITR (Italian Association for Responsible Tourism) association, and of the Adventure Camps circuit: two national networks that work in synergy to promote the enhancement of the territory through direct and sustainable knowledge. We are part of Eruopean networks operating within the Erasmus plus program for the dissemination of knowledge on the Sustainable Development Goals, and for the research for local strategies for their local application. As an Environmental Education Center, we participate in territorial networks for Local Development, for the production and distribution of food. We work for local development through our actions, training and tutoring courses addressed to young people, helping them to develop sustainable business forms. In the Madonie Park, we have a wide range of seasonal rural activities to support the receptive structure: we produce oil, jams of all types and every job is carried out in harmony with the cycles of seasons.