This unit is my final product for my 2025 Fulbright Distinguished Award in Teaching Research grant. This is a working draft and hasn’t been tested in a classroom yet. Feedback is more than welcome to refine and improve it at globalgreensprouts@gmail.com. 

Inspired by my 3 months in Finland, this interdisciplinary, sustainability-focused unit brings together the best insights and educational tools I discovered. 

At its core, this unit is about connecting students with their local environment—past, present, and future—through hands-on activities, storytelling, and inquiry-based learning. Rooted in outdoor education and environmental stewardship, it encourages students to develop curiosity, care, and a sense of responsibility for the world around them. Most importantly, it empowers them to take meaningful action toward ecological sustainability.

By blending Finnish educational approaches with global sustainability frameworks, this unit fosters cross-cultural dialogue and helps young learners become environmental changemakers in their own communities.

In Finland, outdoor learning enhances mental and physical well-being while fostering emotional connections with nature. It strengthens observational skills, deepens awareness of environmental changes, and provides an emotional foundation for students to take meaningful action in protecting the environment.

Outdoor learning also encourages discussions about human-caused nature loss and collective conservation efforts. Natural spaces, particularly forests, are essential for well-being, cognitive development, and equitable access to nature. In Finland, outdoor education is integrated into curricula, reinforcing sustainability as a core educational value.

The first theme of this unit emphasizes outdoor learning and encourages its application across all themes to ensure a continuous and immersive connection with nature.🌿

To cultivate a deep and meaningful connection between children and their environment, it is essential to provide them with opportunities for direct experiences in nature, allowing them to explore their surroundings at their own pace. Encouraging children to follow their own interests fosters curiosity and personal investment in their ecological relationships. By actively listening, observing, and responding to children’s discoveries, educators can validate their experiences and nurture their sense of wonder. Hands-on experiences, such as collecting natural objects or making discoveries, bring joy and deepen their engagement with the natural world. Moreover, empowering children to take action for the environment—whether through brainstorming ideas or implementing sustainable projects—builds a sense of agency and responsibility, reinforcing their role as stewards of the Earth.

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development highlights the interconnectedness of ecological sustainability and biodiversity. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) provide a global roadmap for building a fairer, more sustainable world.

Finland has fully embraced the SDGs, integrating them into policies and education. This unit emphasizes key SDGs, particularly those related to climate action, biodiversity, and sustainable communities.

A valuable model for understanding SDGs is the SDG Wedding Cake Framework from the Stockholm Resilience Centre. This model organizes goals into three layers:

1. Biosphere (Foundation Layer): Protecting nature, ecosystems, and environmental health (e.g., Life on Land, Climate Action, Clean Water and Sanitation).

2. Society (Middle Layer): Focused on communities, social justice, and well-being (e.g., Reduced Inequalities, Sustainable Cities and Communities).

3. Economy (Top Layer): Encompasses economic growth, industry, and innovation (e.g., Decent Work and Economic Growth, Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure).

This unit prioritizes the foundational  layer of sustainability-the biosphere.  It also weaves in social, historical, and cultural perspectives for an interdisciplinary learning experience