School presentation by Mauro Bozzoni – Liceo scientifico Calini – Brescia, Italy
“The Liceo Calini, a high school situated in Brescia has started a project of study of the surface waters already starting from 2014.
The project called “Acqua*Morfosi_d’Ambiente” (http://www.acquamorfosidambiente.org/) has developed thanks to the grants of the Foundation CARIPLO and the collaboration of various organizations: FAI, A2A Water Cycle, Adamello Park, Sorbonne of Paris (Prof. Ciavarella Raffaele), Alternative Environment, OMAL Automation. The two-year project, which involved about fifty students from the institute, developed around the idea of seeing how water changed in its path from upstream to downstream (from the glacier to the tap). The studies have focused on the one hand the action of water on the environment and on the other hand the action of man on the water. The analyzes were chemical, physical, biological and geomorphological.
The project in the following two years was replicated with the name Acquamorfosi 2.0 and involved a new group of about 50 students.
Then it was decided to give the project an international flavor, through a strategic partnership involving Italy, Croatia and Poland. The project idea was linked to the Directive on the 2000/60 waters of the European Community and its application at a territorial level. At the same time the accent was placed on the comparison between different environments: rivers that are fed by alpine glaciers, rivers of northern Europe and with mountainous environments without glaciers, rivers of karst environments.
The project was designed to provide scientific skills to students through campaign activities with the support of experts from institutions outside the school. Therefore the project is characterized as work-based learning.
The structure of the project has therefore foreseen the involvement of schools and specialized bodies in the field of surface water research:
G.R.A.I.A. Srl – Gestione e Ricerca Ambientale Ittica Acque – Varano Borghi (Varese, Italy)
Liceo scientifico Calini – Brescia, Italy
Parco Adamello – Comunità Montana – Breno (Brescia, Italy)
JavnaUstanova Natura Viva (Croatia)
Gimnazija Karlovac (Croatia)
Zespół Szkół Drzewnych i Leśnych (Poland)
Stowarzyszenie Ekologiczno-Kultnuralne Klub Gaja (Poland)
The project was thus submitted to the judgment of the Erasmus + Agency. In 2017 “WRITTEN ON WATER” was completely financed and could take off.
Fieldwork covered various research practices: electro-fishing, macroinvertebrate sampling, algae classifications, geomorphological surveys, chemical and physical analyzes, landscape observations, granulometric classifications, vegetation surveys ripale, the construction of the trophic chains.
The “WRITTEN ON WATER” project aims to identify and evaluate the specific skills related to the scientific area of interest, on the one hand, while on the other hand it intends to create guidelines that allow other schools to re-propose the project in other contexts.
In parallel to this Erasmus + project, Liceo Calini also took part in an INTERREG project involving the countries of the Alpine macro-region. The YOUrALPS project was developed by our institute together with the Adamello Park (pilot site 12 connected to the national leader: Regione LOMBARDIA) and concerned study of trees in relation to climate change in the alpine environment. Part of the project also concerned aspects related to the river and tree vegetation connection and to the relationship between forest and history (Capitulare de villis of Charlemagne, Coren delle fate [Graffiti] – UNESCO site of Sonico – BS). A third class (25 students) was involved in the project.
All three projects were included among the work-based learning activities”.
Download the speech of Mauro Bozzoni about WrittenOnWater Project.
