Search

The paper investigates how teacher trainees in higher education geography and external, non-scientific partners perceive and experience collaborations in an active teaching and learning approach. Such formats are recommended in education for sustainable development (ESD) but are likely to be challenging experiences for all actors involved. The study analysed two transdisciplinary-oriented courses, where future teachers in geography and primary social and science education collaborated with civil society partners. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 24 students and partners; course evaluations complemented the database. The analysis identified several approaches to collaboration and aspects that either led to intensive collaboration or challenged its transdisciplinary character. Furthermore, the study revealed the interdependencies between the external partners' expectations, their motives and the perceived effects of the collaborations. The partners anticipated a wide range of expectations, some of which went beyond what the students could reasonably deliver. Our analysis also showed that the collaborations enabled students to learn, experience and reflect on an active teaching and learning approach to ESD. We conclude that transdisciplinary-oriented courses can oscillate along the spectrum between "nice try" and "valuable initiative". The paper ends with recommendations for shaping and delivering transdisciplinary-oriented courses effectively.

It is widely recognized that education plays a key role in addressing current global challenges. Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) combines local actions with global thinking. In Virtual School Garden Exchanges (VSGEs) primary and secondary students from the Global South and North interact and communicate digitally about their school gardens. This study focuses on educators' expectations regarding learning outcomes of VSGEs and possible parallels with ESD and Virtual Exchanges (VEs) in general. A qualitative content analysis of 23 semi-structured interviews with educators engaged in 18 VSGEs was conducted. Even though the VSGEs took different individual approaches, the analysis revealed many commonalities in the respondents' intentions: amongst other things, educators were aiming to promote knowledge about gardening and food, horticultural and cooperation competencies, and values such as solidarity. Nevertheless, some educators feared that VSGEs might also have some negative effects. The results show parallels with the aims of ESD and VEs.

Children and adolescents spend a large part of their day at school. Physical and mental problems result from physical inactivity, sitting positions at work and "indoor lifestyle" (WHO 2004). Therefore, health education is a major topic in school. Biology classes (scholastic) can make an important contribution in this context. Health as a person's state is composed by physical, mental and social aspects (WHO 1946, Hurrelmann 2010). The presence of nature can have positive effects on all components of the (subjective) well-being of humans at all ages. The fact has already been well proved by science (Ulrich 1984; Health Council of the Netherlands 2004; Barton/Pretty 2010). In the scholastic context environment or gardens hold various functions as (special) places for the contact between humans and nature: They are areas for explorative learning, they provide manifold sources for interdisciplinary teaching, they are spots to generate skills and recovery and they are places for nutritional and environmental education (Blair 2009; Jäckel 2010). Generally, school gardens may take over a significant function in view of health education and wellness of children and adolescents. As a consequence, practical work and other activities in a school garden let the place become a point for physical agitation, relaxation and stress reduction. School garden classes and school garden practice in most of the cases are only held in the lower age groups of pupils (primary school). An analysis shall show that school gardens also could be employed for the health education in higher grades (11th and 12th grade). Representative a course of pre-study students (teacher students and/or prospective teachers) of the second semester were interviewed and tested in the educational garden of the University of Rostock about their subjective well-being. As a result, it was proved that garden activities have highly positive effects on self-esteem.

At the botanical garden of the University of Würzburg, we conducted practical lessons on bionics, focused on the lotus effect, with 260 students. Those approx. 14 years old, 8th-grade mid-level students were divided into two groups. During an instructional discussion about the topic, one group was confronted with their alternative conceptions (AC), whereas the other group was not (NAC). Both groups were treated equally, following the experimental phase and results discussion. Questionnaires were used to measure conceptual change in a pre-, post- and retention test design. Both groups changed their conceptions in short-term similarly. Over a long-term period, the NAC group showed significantly higher knowledge than the AC group. We discuss that the methodology of the alternative conception confrontation should be selected very carefully by the teacher, as this step is the most delicate within the whole conceptual change process.

The HighScope Summer Camp for Teenagers founded by David P. Weikart in 1963, and operated until 2002, was an international, inclusive gifted education program that aided many young people, including those from disadvantaged social strata, in their personal development and shaped them in a special way. The six-week program stood for a high degree of structure and high expectations from the youth with regard to active thinking, problem solving and responsible action in the sciences, arts, and in social intercourse. Diversity and social justice were organically integrated, as was closeness to nature and a hands-on approach. The author worked on David P. Weikart's team during the summer of 1984 and then helped to found a similar program in Germany. The author's personal HighScope experience remained intact over the decades and an effective background source of inspiration and orientation for his work in special and inclusive education.

Modern knowledge-based societies, especially their younger members, have largely lost their bonds to farming. However, learning about agriculture and its interrelations with environmental issues may be facilitated by students' individual interests in agriculture. To date, an adequate instrument to investigate agricultural interests has been lacking. Research has infrequently considered students' interest in agricultural content areas as well as influencing factors on students' agricultural interests. In this study, a factorial design of agricultural interests was developed combining five agricultural content areas and four components of individual interest. The instrument was validated with German fifth and sixth graders (N?=?1,085) using a variance decomposition confirmatory factor analysis model. The results demonstrated a second-order factor of general agricultural interest, with animal husbandry, arable farming, vegetable and fruit cropping, primary food processing, and agricultural engineering as discrete content areas of agricultural interest. Multiple regression analyses demonstrated that prior knowledge, garden experience, and disgust sensitivity are predictors of general agricultural interest. In addition, gender influenced interest in four of the five agricultural content areas. Implications are directed at researchers, teachers, and environmental educators concerning how to trigger and develop pupils' agricultural interests.

Although informal learning environments have been studied extensively, ours is one of the first studies to quantitatively assess the impact of learning in botanical gardens on students' cognitive achievement. We observed a group of 10th graders participating in a one-day educational intervention on climate change implemented in a botanical garden. The students completed multiple-choice questionnaires in a pre-post-retention test design. Comparing the test scores revealed a significant short-term knowledge gain as well as a long-term knowledge gain. Consequently, our results show the potentials of botanical gardens as effective learning environments, and for complementing formal school-based learning settings regarding climate change education.

In Germany, tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) infections mainly occur in southern regions. Despite recent increases in incidence, TBE vaccination coverage remains low, necessitating additional preventive strategies against TBE. Our case-control study in Southern Germany from 2018 to 2020 mapped knowledge/application of tick-protective strategies and identified TBE risk factors. We calculated odds ratios (OR), with 95% confidence intervals (CI). We interviewed 581 cases and 975 matched controls. Most participants recalled lifetime tick bites, mainly while walking, gardening, or hiking. However, only 45% of cases noticed ticks during exposure time; another 12% reported unpasteurized milk intake. While tick-protection knowledge was satisfactory, application lagged behind. Risk factors included dog ownership (OR = 2.45, 95% CI: 1.85–3.24), walks ≥ 4×/week (OR = 2.11, 95% CI: 1.42–3.12), gardening ≥ 4×/week (OR = 1.83, 95% CI: 1.11–3.02), and garden proximity < 250 m of forests (OR = 2.54, 95% CI: 1.82–3.56). Applying ≥2 tick-protective strategies (OR = 0.52, 95% CI: 0.40–0.68) and keeping lawns mowed (OR = 0.63, 95% CI: 0.43–0.91) were inversely associated with TBE. In 2020 (likely pandemic-related), cases reported significantly more walks than previously, potentially explaining the record high case numbers. Our findings provide guidance on targets for TBE prevention. Persons with gardens near forests, frequent outdoor activities, or dogs could particularly benefit from targeted information, including on vaccination and preventing tick bites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Under the cultural and historical development of different countries, the landscape of each country also represents the characteristics of the country from different aspects. The continuous process in landscape design has led to a variety of modern landscape types. Germany, which is known as an industrial powerhouse, seems to have not lagged behind in the field of art like "gardening", and in modern times industrial landscapes with unique design styles and ecological awareness showed up. Therefore, studying the history of German gardens and their influence will provide new ideas for the future development of landscape. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Urbanization is increasingly compromising residents' connection to natural habitats and landscapes. With established relationships between human–nature connection (HNC) and pro-environmental behaviour and human well being, there are calls for effective interventions to strengthen HNC in urban settings. However, much of this research has operationalised HNC in narrow psychological terms. Based on an embodied framework of urban human–food connection (HFC) as a specific dimension of HNC, this article explores the role of active urban gardening in promoting different types of internal and external HFC and their link with pro-environmental food behaviour (PEFB). Based on a quantitative survey in Germany addressing vegetable gardeners in Munich (N = 254), a principal component analysis extracted four components of HFC comprising external body-related HFC (i.e. immediate urban garden-body activities: food harvesting and experiential food interaction) and internal mind-related HFC (i.e. immediate urban garden-mind activities including food discovery as well as food consciousness). These were found to be statistically related to one another. Furthermore, regression analysis revealed that food consciousness through concerns on food consumption and environmental impacts as well as food as part of life attitude as an internal HFC is the sole predictor of PEFB. The study suggests an embodied HFC model emphasizing the need for local body- and mind-based nature connections for fostering earth stewardship. Future research should explore the relationship between inner dimensions of nature connectedness and external behavioural change to enable transformations towards sustainability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Evidence on the health benefits of spending time in nature has highlighted the importance of provision of blue and green spaces where people live. The potential for health benefits offered by nature exposure, however, extends beyond health promotion to health treatment. Social prescribing links people with health or social care needs to community-based, non-clinical health and social care interventions to improve health and wellbeing. Nature-based social prescribing (NBSP) is a variant that uses the health-promoting benefits of activities carried out in natural environments, such as gardening and walking. Much current NBSP practice has been developed in the UK, and there is increasing global interest in its implementation. This requires interventions to be adapted for different contexts, considering the needs of populations and the structure of healthcare systems., Methods: This paper presents results from an expert group participatory workshop involving 29 practitioners, researchers, and policymakers from the UK and Germany's health and environmental sectors. Using the UK and Germany, two countries with different healthcare systems and in different developmental stages of NBSP practice, as case studies, we analysed opportunities, challenges, and facilitators for the development and implementation of NBSP., Results: We identified five overarching themes for developing, implementing, and evaluating NBSP: Capacity Building; Accessibility and Acceptability; Networks and Collaborations; Standardised Implementation and Evaluation; and Sustainability. We also discuss key strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats for each overarching theme to understand how they could be developed to support NBSP implementation., Conclusions: NBSP could offer significant public health benefits using available blue and green spaces. We offer guidance on how NBSP implementation, from wider policy support to the design and evaluation of individual programmes, could be adapted to different contexts. This research could help inform the development and evaluation of NBSP programmes to support planetary health from local and global scales., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: [JA – member of the Steering Group of the Scottish Social Prescribing Network; associate member of the One Health Breakthrough Partnership; and member of the Pharma Pollution Hub. ML – director of Social Prescribing Evidence Hub in Ireland and author of the first social prescribing book. GI − scientific and therapeutic interest in NBSP, its implementation into the German health system to foster nature-based intervention for prevention and therapy. KK − offers nature-based and sustainable interventions in the field of prevention and therapy at VERDE in Leipzig, Germany. SP – co-founder of One Health Breakthrough Partnership in Scotland, and advisor to the Pharma Pollution Hub in England. JR − active and ongoing interest in NBSP, its implementation, and how NBSP can benefit wetland conservation. KW − Clinical Supervisor for the Active Health Link Worker Project, Velocity Cafe & Bicycle Workshop social enterprise, funded by NHS Highland and Transport Scotland.]., (Copyright © 2024 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

The article discusses a workshop titled "Hannover als Standort gartenhistorischer Forschung gartenkünstlerischer, gartenkultureller bzw, landschaftskultureller Bestände," (Hannover as Site for Historical Garden Research and Landscape Resources) on July 13, 2012 at the Gottfried Wilhelm Leinz Universität hosted by the Zentrum für Gartenkunst + Landschaftsarchitektur (Center for Gardening and Landscape Architecture). The workshop, which took place in Hannover, Germany was held in connection to garden culture resources in the collections of Technische Informationsbibliothek (TIB) and the Universitätsbibliothek (TIB/UB).

The article reports on a historical study of gardeners and their work in Bamberg, Germany, undertaken as part of the celebratory naming of Bamberg as a UNESCO world heritage site in 1993. The time period celebrated by the award covers the beginning of the 18th century to the present, although Bamberg's gardening and viticultural fame and legacy date to the Middle Ages. The author aims to show the effects of modernization and globalization on Bamberg's historic gardening practice. The gardeners' traditions as an organized guild or association are also examined.

The article explores how artists, patrons and visitors of gardens have succeeded or failed in solving some of the problems arising from a confrontation of sculpture and garden in German sentimental landscape gardens at the end of the 18th century. It examines copies of antique sculpture made of inexpensive non-precious materials which were designed for placement in palaces and gardens. Moreover, it evaluates that statues' durability when set up outdoors and the plasticity of the materials used.

The article focuses on household work and presents information on the number and composition of private households in the Federal Republic of Germany, their role in the social and economic network and a description of the activities carried out by private households. The article also provides estimates of the macroeconomic importance of the household sector as compared to the official market economy. In this context some of the problems which occur with the evaluation of household activities in the national accounts are discussed. The article also provides an outlook on the future perspectives of the household sector and its importance in the economic policy debate. Besides the everyday housework activities, households are also engaged in the production, use, and maintenance of other goods and services. In spite of continuing urbanization, gardening is a standard activity in more than 50% of the households and transportation services are performed by 70%. Since there is a widespread desire to own one's house or apartment. and since self-help represents the sole possibility for the not-so-wealthy to acquire a house of their own, self-help in house construction is, especially in rural areas, very important.

The aim of the present study was to examine whether the association between self-rated health and social exclusion can be moderated by the frequency of gardening in the total sample and stratified by sex. Cross-sectional data employed in this study came from the fifth wave of the German Ageing Survey ( n = 5048), a nationally representative sample comprising non-institutionalized individuals aged 40 and above. A single-item measure was used to quantify self-rated health (ranging from 1 = very good to 5 = very bad). An established scale developed by Bude and Lantermann was used to assess social exclusion. Moreover, individuals reported the frequency of work in the garden (daily; several times a week; once a week; 1-3 times a month; less often; never). Poorer self-rated health was associated with feelings of social exclusion. The frequency of gardening significantly moderated the association between these factors in women. This cross-sectional study emphasizes the moderating role of gardening in the relation between self-rated health and social exclusion in women. Longitudinal studies are required to validate the present findings.

Background: Allergic contact dermatitis (ACD) is one of the most common occupational skin diseases (OSDs). Its prevalence and the causative allergens differ between occupations., Objectives: To evaluate the prevalence of ACD and the pattern of patch test results of patients taking part in a tertiary individual prevention programme (TIP) for OSD in Germany., Patients and Methods: In a retrospective cohort study, the data of 3411 TIP patients patch tested between 2007 and 2016 were analysed., Results: In 2687 (78.8%) patients, work-related skin disease was diagnosed, mostly hand dermatitis. The highest proportion of face dermatitis was seen in painters (8.1%). ACD was most common in painters (56.8%), hairdressers (45.8%), construction workers (31.5%), gardeners/florists (26.7%), and metalworkers (26.5%). On average, hairdressers had the youngest age (31.4 ± 12.6 years, P < 0.0001) and the shortest time in the profession prior to the TIP (mean 13.7 years). The pattern of patch test reactivity showed occupation-specific differences related to work exposures., Conclusions: Identification of occupational groups at risk for ACD and relevant allergens may help in the development and implementation of targeted prevention strategies. Our data suggest that there should be a particular focus on hairdressers and painters., (© 2018 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)