The BSP Statute

The Baltic Sea Project (BSP)
- Status report on the organisation

The BSP is a regional programme within the UNESCO Associated Schools network.

Year launched: 1989

The objectives in the BSP are to:

• increase the awareness of the students about the environmental problems in the Baltic Sea Region and give them an understanding of the scientific, social and cultural aspects of the interdependence between man and nature
• develop the abilities of the students to study changes in the environment
• encourage students to participate in developing a sustainable future

The BSP works with the following means:

• building networks of schools, teachers and educational institutions in the Baltic Sea Region
• creating and developing educational approaches and joint programmes for environmental, international and sustainable development education
• organising joint activities and events and publishing the BSP Newsletter and other relevant information

The Basic characteristics of BSP schools are:

• active participation in looking for solutions to the environmental problems in the Baltic Sea Region
• networking
• pilot function in promoting environmental education in the spirit of the Rio Declaration for responsible and sustainable development – Agenda 21 and Baltic 21

The educational approach for the BSP is to:

• achieve a balance between a holistic view and individual subject studies
• change the role of the student from passive recipient to active constructor
• change the role of the teacher from supervisor to guide in a learning process
• use networks to provide participants with opportunities to learn and pass along new ideas
• use international co-operation as an inherent element of school work

Countries involved:
The following countries are members of the Baltic Sea Project:
Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia and Sweden

Ownership:
Each country has a national BSP-coordinator. Furthermore one general (= regional = international) co-ordinator is appointed in the country that hosts the Project.
The National Commission of UNESCO is invited by the National commission for UNESCO in the host country to put on the task of hosting the project for 3-4 years. The host country is responsible for appointing the general co-ordinator and for the annual budget for the Project.

• Finland hosted the Project in 1989- 993
  General co-ordinator: Mrs Liisa Jäskeläinen
• Sweden hosted the Project in 1993-1997
  General co-ordinator: Mrs Siv Sellin
• Denmark hosted the Project from 1997-2000
  General co-ordinator: Mrs Birthe Zimmermann
• Germany hosts the Project from 2000-2003
  General co-ordinator: Mrs Ute Grönwoldt
• Poland hosts the Project from 2003-2006
  General co-ordinator: Mrs Jolanta Mol

The general co-ordinator undertakes the following tasks:

• keeps contact with the nine national co-ordinators and UNESCO
• raises money for activities that are beyond the annual budget
• plans the annual consultation meeting in co-operation with one national co-ordinator. At the consultation meeting all countries are represented by their national co-ordinator + 1 teacher representative and with a UNESCO representative as observer. Joint programmes, themes, development of teaching material, and other activities are discussed, suggested and decided.
• keeps contact with the teachers who are programme co-ordinators on the joint BSP programmes
• arranges international contacts between schools and teachers
• edits and publishes the Baltic Sea Project Newsletter which is published twice a year and sent free of charge to all BSP schools and institutions and to the regional co-ordinators in UNESCO sister Projects: The Blue Danube River project; The West Mediterranean Project; The Caribbean Sea Project; The South-East Mediterranean Project with an extension of the Black Sea; The Zambezi River project; The Indian Gulf Project
• edits and publishes the “Catalogue of School Activities” and other relevant information material
• updates the Baltic Sea Project web site: http://www.b-s-p.org
• participates in the elaboration and publishing of Learners’ Guides in co-operation with an international team of BSP teachers
• arranges international (regional) in-service teacher training courses, meetings, and other activities decided among the national co-ordinators at the annual consultation meeting
• represents the Project at various events e.g. at national BSP meetings in the countries involved; at co-ordinators meetings in UNESCO sister projects; at UNESCO ASP conferences