ADSWIM and WATERCARE Projects Meet Kids and Youth: The Challenge of Bringing the World of Research to School to Merge Research, Education and Communication

Abstract

The transfer of communication and knowledge from science and research to the general public is a paramount step to raise people’s awareness about environmental issues and their negative and positive impacts on each of us. Many projects and initiatives seek to raise awareness among citizens, with particular attention to young people, about the importance of maintaining clean and healthy oceans. With this paper, we aim to present the successful communication initiatives developed during two Interreg projects, AdSWiM and WATERCARE, with schools and educational organisations on the local and national levels in Italy and Croatia. Both projects make a special effort to realize dedicated communication strategies with the objective of raising the awareness of environmental topics and issues among young people (i.e., students of different school grades) and teachers. The promotion of ocean literacy among students is crucial, as children and young people represent the future citizens and consumers who will develop attitudes and make decisions that will inevitably affect the environment.