Gaia Changemakers Program

The Gaia ChangeMakers Program combines fun, challenge and transformation. A camp to inspire 15 to 19 year-olds over three weeks to discover themselves, their values, inner strength and potential. The camp starts in Zurich, then Prague, and finishes in the beautiful Swiss Alps. Students explore global challenges like meeting energy demands, circular economies and sustainability, and a solutions based approach to build the hope, skills, and values needed to address them.

SCHLÜSSELERLEBNISSE:

- Immersive art and engineering projects (e.g. painting a mural in a Swiss Village and building a remote controlled hydrogen fuelled car)

- Hands-on workshops (e.g. Inner Transition work to take action, Climate Fresk to understand the causes and effects of climate change, conflict management skills...)

- Company visits, and expert talks around circular economy, supply chain and more (e.g. Patagonia, Panasonic, Planted Foods and more)

- Excursions and activities in a variety of urban and natural settings. (e.g. staying on a glacier, hikes, swimming in the lakes, visiting a Swiss Chocolate factory, sightseeing and more!)

SCHLUSSFOLGERUNGEN:

- Develop skills that set you up for life, and universities and employers highly value in their best recruits, such as systems thinking (complexity awareness), problem solving like an innovator (using design thinking) and conflict management (leadership and communication).

- Using the "Inner Development Goals" skills are coupled with values like empathy building, developing a sense of being, inclusion, respect and resilience.

- Students are challenged to consider possible careers, even ones that may not yet exist.

- International Baccalaureate Diploma students may use the program to meet a number of the "CAS" (Creativity, Activity, Service) requirements.

- Learning and friends to last a lifetime.

Das Programm wurde von Make The Change, gegründet von Diya Kanoria, entwickelt. Während ihrer langjährigen Erfahrung als Highschool-Lehrerin in Großbritannien, den USA und der Schweiz hat sie viele Auslandsreisen mit Schülern geleitet. Durch ihre Lehrtätigkeit und als ehemalige Curriculum Area Leader an der Zurich International School hat Diya ein tiefes Verständnis für die transformative Kraft der Bildung. Sie hat zwei Master-Abschlüsse von der University of Cambridge und der Duke University.

The program is the product of several collaborations and partnerships, for example with Felix Keller, Professor at the University ETH Zurich, UNESCO Bioreserve Engadin, Netpathie, the TransformActionLab, APAG Elektronik, Freitag Lab, Planted Foods, Patagonia and more.

Students can participate as semi or fully residential students. Semi-residential students do not need accommodation in Zurich, and will be with their families on the weekends. We know three weeks may seem long during summer vacations, but meaningful transformation takes time, and we are confident you will want it to be longer once you take part!

All participants receive a Gaia ChangeMaker Certificate, and will be invited to join our "Gaia Fellowship Program", with lifelong access to the Community, a safe and secure way for Fellows to collaborate on projects and to explore curated content and exchange ideas.