WATER DETECTIVE PROGRAM

The Water Detective Program is a water-focused environmental education program that aims to increase the knowledge of natural processes in early general education and to promote an integrated approach to teaching and focusing on creative thinking that sparks curiosity and helps in solving problems.

We are living in a world that is rapidly changing due to climate change, technological advancements, population growth and rapidly increasing negative impact of our civilization on the natural environment. All these problems require fast and drastic changes in our attitudes towards nature and changes in our behavior.

Early integrated education on natural processes related to deterioration of habitats and biodiversity, droughts and floods, erosion and deforestation etc.  –  based on games, experiments, fairy tales, role-playing – increases the notion of risks and solutions, which we believe leads to better decision making, and eventually to resilient communities that are built in harmony with nature.

As an architect and planner, I soon in my career realized that it is not very easy to be constructive in group communication without having at least a basic common knowledge base. Since the water is connected to everything in our lives, a national Water Detective program was born in Slovenia in the late 1990s. Twenty-year experience leads to the ELEDAN project that brought the program into the international dimension.

At this point we are aiming at achieving our goals by providing teachers with educational tools that will support them in their desire to motivate children to learn about water and environmental problems and to search for solutions.

We believe that is essential to combine research with direct experience and artistic expression. Through artistic expression, one can personalize natural processes and, therefore, change the perspective when looking at a particular problem. This can give different insights into problems, but it also touches the pupils’ emotions. This is very important because in this way our basic value system is involved, which is needed to bring forward our willingness to change.

We are happy that we were able to provide you with the first e-learning package designed around our first research question “How can a river clean itself?”.  I hope that you will find it useful.

Marta Vahtar
the leader of the Water Detective Program

ELEDAN - Developing an E-learning tool for Environmental Education for Primary and Secondary School in the Lower Danube Region

danube_river_basin
Environmental education plays a crucial role in shaping a friendlier attitude of youth towards nature. Understanding the importance of biodiversity in supporting human life contributes to shifting the behavior of future adults, increasing their support for environmental protection. The current lack of concern towards nature triggers habitat destruction and species decline, jeopardizing sustainable development.
This is why the ELEDAN project would like to spark a change in the Lower Danube Region.

Young children are more sensitive towards environmental problems. Given their high interest in hands-on experiments and the internet, innovative and attractive e-learning tools for environmental education will be created for teachers and pupils to complement the regular school curriculum as a part of this project and the projects to come.

Past events

10
11
Dec
International Workshop - 2 days
9:00 - 18:00
Belgrade, RS
31
Oct
DSPF Networking Event
9:00 - 18:00
Vienna, At
19
Oct
National Workshop - 1 day
9:00 - 18:00
Bucharest, RO
14
Oct
National Workshop - 1 day
9:00 - 18:00
Sofia, BG
8-9
Oct
International Workshop - 2 days
9:00 - 18:00
Belgrade, RS
6
Oct
National Workshop - 1 day
9:00 - 18:00
Belgrade, RS
25
26
Jun
International Workshop - 2 days
9:00 - 18:00
Bucharest, RO

Our goals:

  • Developing a value system for living in harmony with nature for children 6-15 years old by creating innovative and attractive e-learning tools for environmental education that focus on water as a central element of life.
  • Establishing a network of experts, teachers and pupils to connect the latest scientific knowledge related to water and water environments with the widest possible audience.
  • Using innovative approaches, teachers and pupils will attempt to answer the main research question, which is the focus of the ELEDAN project “How can a river clean itself?”

We aim to provide attractive information that will spark pupils’ interest to learn more about the connections of human society and aquatic ecosystems and, in the longrun, initiate an environmentally friendlier attitude in future generations.

To answer this question, a holistic approach is used to explain:

  • The functionality of aquatic ecosystems;
  • The relationships between aquatic organisms and their habitats;
  • The benefits provided by natural, healthy rivers;
  • The inter-linkage with different economic fields connected to water;
  • Connections between natural and man-made water cycles;
  • Integration of man-made substances into the natural cycle of matter in nature.

Results of the ELEDAN project:

  • E-library – a collection of articles and other scientific materials on environmental topics for the general public that can be used by teachers and pupils;
  • E-resources for teachers with experiments and other activities that are accompanied by worksheets for pupils developed around the specific complex research question;
  • E-resources for pupils to set up a knowledge base on the research question “How can a river clean itself?”

Program developers and participants from Slovenia, Romania, Serbia, and Bulgaria at the first International Workshop in Bucharest (Institute of Biology Bucharest, Romanian Academy, Bucharest) 25-26 June 2018, where we started developing basic ideas about e-learning application.

Program developers and participants from different towns in Serbia at the National Workshop in Belgrade (Institute for Multidisciplinary Research, University of Belgrade, Belgrade) on the 6th of October 2018 were testing some of the experiments and providing feedback for improvement of e-learning tools and application.

Program developers and participants from Bulgaria were also testing some of the experiments at the National Workshop in Sofia (Institute of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Research, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Sofia) on the 14th of October 2018.

There were also program developers and participants from Romania and Moldavi testing some of the experiments and providing ideas for improvements at the National Workshop in Bucharest (Institute of Biology Bucharest, Romanian Academy, Bucharest) on the 20th of October 2018.

Towards the end of the ELEDAN project, program developers and participants from Moldavia, Slovenia, Romania, Serbia, and Bulgaria met at the final International Workshop in Belgrade (Museum of Science and Technology, Belgrade) on the 10th-11th of December 2018 to discuss future steps to ensure the continuation of the project. Participating pupils developed good friendships and created great stories about sturgeons and their protection.   

Authors

Marta Vahtar, project leader and coordinator, Slovenian national coordinatorMarta Vahtar, project leader and coordinator, Slovenian national coordinator

Marta Vahtar, educated as a landscape architect, architect, as well as an urban, environmental, and regional planner (University of Ljubljana, Slovenia and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, USA) has over two decades of experience in the fields of water management and spatial planning on the state and local levels. She also has several successfully completed landscape architecture projects in which she has focused on aspects of environmental restoration, multifunctional spaces, green and blue-green infrastructure. etc. She leads a non-profit organization, the Institute for Integral Development and Environment, which she founded in 1995. The mission of this NGO is to promote participative methods of planning and design, and environmental awareness through environmental education. Since 1997, she has run a Water Detective program for primary school children in Slovenia. Since then, she has also participated in water education and awareness programs in Vietnam and in several EU projects. She has also written and illustrated several educational booklets for children and pupils and prepared educational materials for teachers.

Cristina Sandu, project co-leaderCristina Sandu, project co-leader

Dr. Cristina SANDU is the president of the International Association for Danube Research (IAD, a scientific NGO), with over 20 year experience in aquatic ecology. Her main research interests focus on water quality, eutrophication and trophic status assessment, impact of river channelization on aquatic biota, nature conservation. Between 2012 - 2018, she coordinated the Danube Sturgeon Task Force, a network established in the frame of the EU Strategy for the Danube Region - Priority Area 06 Biodiversity (DSTF – EUSDR PA 06) to foster the recovery of the Danube sturgeons. Starting with 2009, she represents IAD as observer in the International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River, contributing to the implementation of the Water Framework Directive and the Danube River Basin Management Plan.

Simona Mihailescu, Romanian national coordinatorSimona Mihailescu, Romanian national coordinator

Dr Simona Mihailescu (coordinator) is a senior scientist at the Institute of Biology Bucharest – Romanian Academy, Department of Ecology, Taxonomy and Nature Conservation, with over two decades of experience in environmental protection and biodiversity conservation. Her main field of interest comprises the assessment of natural resource sustainability, biodiversity assessment, especially for species and habitats of community interest (Habitats Dir.), monitoring and managing plans for protected areas, mountain flora and vegetation, plant species chorology, databases on species and habitats. Since 2001, she has been the Scientific Secretary of the Commission for the Protection of Natural Monuments, Romanian Academy.

Emilia Radu, Romanian team memberEmilia Radu, Romanian team member

Emilia Radu is a researcher at the Institute of Biology Bucharest (Romanian Academy). She has worked for more than a decade on the ecology, taxonomy, and nature conservation team of the institute, being involved in different national and international projects approaching biodiversity (aquatic macroinvertebrates, macrophytes), especially in the Danube Delta region; at the same time, she has dedicated herself to different activities regarding nature protection and communication about nature. She has participated in the organization of different events of ecological education, instructing primary and secondary school pupils and developing practical activities for them.

Cristina Alina Dumitrache, Romanian team memberCristina Alina Dumitrache, Romanian team member

Cristina Alina Dumitrache is a researcher at the Institute of Biology Bucharest, Department of Ecology, Taxonomy and Nature Conservation. She graduated from the Ecological University of Bucharest, Faculty of Ecology and Environmental protection, and has a Master’s degree in systemic ecology and sustainability, from the University of Bucharest. Since 2006, she has worked at the Institute of Biology Bucharest, her main field of interest being contamination with heavy metals and the hydrochemistry of aquatic ecosystems, especially in the Danube Delta but also in urban areas.

Mirjana Lenhardt, Serbian national coordinatorMirjana Lenhardt, Serbian national coordinator

Mirjana Lenhardt is a research professor at the Institute for Multidisciplinary Research and Institute for Biological Research University of Belgrade, Serbia. She has more than 30 years experience working as researcher in the field of ichthyology, fish ecology, eco-toxicology and fish biochemistry. The part of her work was devoted to endangering factors of sturgeon species populations and their protection as well as to investigation of non-native fish species. Dr Mirjana Lenhardt has published more than 70 papers in International Citation Index journals and 7 chapters in books. She is a Expert Group Leader for Fishery/Fish Biology of International Association for Danube Research.

Marija Smederevac-Lalić, Serbian team memberMarija Smederevac-Lalić, Serbian team member

Marija Smederevac-Lalić is a researcher at the Institute for Multidisciplinary Research, with the PhD in Environmental Science at the University of Belgrade. She has 15 years experience of working in science, in the Ministry, and NGO’s. Her experience in NGO sector was mostly related to environmental education. Since 2006 she works at the Institute and she took a part in different research projects. Her main field of interest comprises the monitoring and management of fishery resources, invasive species, socio-economical aspects of natural resources utilization, assessment of natural resources sustainability, etc.

Jovana Kostić-Vuković, Serbian team memberJovana Kostić-Vuković, Serbian team member

Jovana Kostić-Vuković is a research assistant at the Institute for Multidisciplinary Research, University of Belgrade, Serbia. Her research focuses on examining the impact of different sources of pollution on the quality of freshwater ecosystems by monitoring microbiological indicators and ecogenotoxicological and histopathological biomarkers in autochthonous fish. Since 2014 she is involved in practical training on the courses Microbiology, Microbiological practicum and Methods in microbiology, at the Chair of Microbiology, Faculty of Biology, University of Belgrade. She has published 13 scientific papers and participated with more than 30 announcements at scientific meetings in the country and abroad.

Luchezar Pehlivanov, Bulgarian national coordinatorLuchezar Pehlivanov, Bulgarian national coordinator

Assoc. Prof. Luchezar Pehlivanov, PhD is the Head of the Department of Aquatic Ecosystems of the Institute of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Research at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (IBER-BAS). He is a member of the Bulgarian Water Association, the Bulgarian Ichthyological Society, and International Association for Danube Research. His research activities are in the management, sustainable use, and protection of fish communities; the study, conservation, and management of protected wetlands; the assessment of human pressure and impacts on aquatic communities in surface water bodies; ecological quality assessment and monitoring of surface waters under Annex V of the Water Framework Directive 2000/60/ЕU/. In the previous decade, he has led over 10 large projects, some of them in the Danube Water Basin, and is well familiar with the environmental problems in this area.

Galia Georgieva, Bulgarian team memberGalia Georgieva, Bulgarian team member

Galia Georgieva is a researcher at IBER-BAS, Department of Aquatic Ecosystems. She is a PhD student in hydrobiology, and her professional interests are in aquatic macroinvertebrates used as biological quality elements, bio-indication, and water quality monitoring; freshwater ecosystems and the anthropogenic impact on them. As a PhD student, Galia has been part of 16 projects, including developing a river basin management plan. She has published 14 scientific papers and participated with more than 20 announcements at scientific meetings in Bulgaria and abroad.

Veselka Tsavkova, Bulgarian team memberVeselka Tsavkova, Bulgarian team member

Veselka Tsavkova is a research assistant at the Ecological Station at Srebarna Biosphere Reserve, part of IBER-BAS since 1996. She is a PhD student in Hydrobiology, and her research focuses are in zooplankton and express water chemistry analyses. Her Master’s degree is in psychology, and she successfully uses this knowledge in work with children. Veselka works with local schools and teachers and uses the Srebarna Lake as a model object to acquaint students with the diversity of aquatic organisms. She has been a leader of some projects for children in kindergartens and primary school students in first to sixth grades.

The project is partly financed by the Danube Strategic Project Fund (DSPF) which is financed by the European Union and and the City of Vienna. The project is lead by Slovenian NGO, the Institute for Integral Development and Environment (ICRO – Inštitut za celostni razvoj in okolje, Domžale) with partners from Romania (Institute of Biology Bucharest, Romanian Academy, Bucharest), Serbia (Institute for Multidisciplinary Research, University of Belgrade, Belgrade), and Bulgaria (Institute of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Research, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Sofia), and with associated partners from Slovenia (Ministry of the Environment and Spatial Planning, Ljubljana), Romania (Agapedia Foundation Romania, Brasov) and Moldova (Institute of Zoology, Moldavian Academy of Science).