The seminar was successfully completed with the presentations of six multicultural working groups. Some teams performed structured presentations with a focus on the topics covered in their discussions. Other groups introduced their themes in more interactive forms by, for example, a TV panel discussion format involving "experts" and "correspondents" or by symbolizing a topic by means of related objects. Having taken into account the facts, that the time to prepare was short, as well as the team members did not know each other so well, all the groups came up with forward thinking ideas, applied multicultural approach in both discussions and interpretation of topics. In addition, all students fully participated and managed the demanding task very well.
Brownfields (agriculture or urban derelict lands) From environmental and economic burdens to new opportunities?
Team 1
Christina Bočáková
CZECH REPUBLIC
Dmitrij Nagel
GERMANY
Alena Pospíchalová
CZECH REPUBLIC
Joseph Vargas
Costa Rica
Li Ziyuan
CHINA
Kecen Zhou
ESTONIA
The job content and objectives
Brownfields nowadays are perceived not only as a problem and an obstacle to the possible further development of municipalities, towns and regions, but also as an opportunity for further use. The working group focused on the types of brownfield owners (which are typically individual landowners, local government or community) and their potential how to use the land. The team also focused on particular examples how to brownfields can be decontaminated (e.g. using bioremediation, phytoremediation, taking into account both benefits and disadvantages) and then revitalized, for example by setting up community or urban gardens. During the entire seminar, students discussed and worked on the current situation of brownfields in Germany, the Czech Republic, the European Union, the United States and China, as well as the case study of the former military training area Ralsko, for which they proposed a concrete use of this area, including its funding and possible impact on the whole region.
Open Cast Mining: The energy of the future or yesterday?
Team 2
K. A. M. Shafiul Alam
BANGLADESH
Pavel Doubek
CZECH REPUBLIC
Fabian Garavito
COLOMBIA
Salman Khan
PAKISTAN
Marie Mühlich
GERMANY
Ilya Noskov
RUSSIA
Vladimír Žd’arský
CZECH REPUBLIC
The job content and objectives
A group of students who had the task of preparing a presentation on Open Cast Mining was very diverse. Six countries were represented. At first, students attempted to define the layout of the presentation, not only the economic but also the environmental impacts of open cast mining. They also considered the value of coal for interest groups in individual countries and its future. The visit to the mayor of Višňová community, which students attended that day, was also very inspiring. It was interesting to see how the students communicated during the preparation of the presentation, how everyone acted rationally and responsibly. At the beginning, the Czech and German students took the lead role, but gradually they all joined the discussion and the ideas just started to flow. Overall, student cooperation has brought an interesting and beneficial presentation.
The job content of this team was the elaboration of the topic Waste Management - Ground Contamination. With regard to this topic, the presentation of this working group had three main objectives: to analyze the topic, to specify the topic and to draw final corrective recommendations. In the first part of the presentation, this waste issue was presented on the basis of available up-to-date information, and first it dealt with the basic concepts that concerned this area within the classification of waste. Subsequently, the definitions of waste management and its methods were presented and analyzed in detail. In the second part of the presentation, the presented issue was documented by two concrete case studies which pointed out the danger of failure of waste management methods (the ecological disaster in Brazil in 2015) and poorly organized waste management (the situation in Uganda) with the possible negative consequences. In the final part of the presentation, this working team focused on the mapping of corrective options, ranging from preventive measures to reduce waste (eg zero waste), through recovery and reuse of waste materials (eg construction of new roads) to the use of waste for the production of energy (heating of buildings and production of electricity by waste burning). As a conclusion, it was stressed that these measures are already being used in some countries, but this is by no means sufficient, and it is therefore necessary to keep the responsible actors informed (governments, organizations and individuals) and persuade them to include such measurements in their day-to-day activities.
Plastics – recycling. Is recycling only the patch for our hectic and lavish lifestyle?
Team 4
John Flanagan
USA
Vladislav Chipiga
RUSSIA
Michaela Jiránková
CZECH REPUBLIC
Saroj Kafle
NEPAL
Daniela Šantinová
CZECH REPUBLIC
Amanda Ramos
Peru
Ricardo Urrego
COLOMBIA
The job content and objectives
This team’s members included representatives from 6 different countries including the Czech Republic, Peru, Colombia, Nepal, the USA, and Russia. Their process initially involved discussing the situation of how plastic is distributed, used and recycled in each of their countries. They noticed significant differences which led them to finding statistics to verify their findings. They also focused on the widespread use of plastics globally and in their presentation pointed out how rampant the forms and applications are. The team provided information about the various types of plastic and the amounts consumed worldwide. They also reported on the environmental damage caused by plastics. Finally, they offered a number of practical ways to minimize the use of plastic, particularly how individuals could make
a difference beyond recycling from the ground up.
This international team focused on the pollution in the world ocean caused by plastic waste. First, the members described the situation in their own countries, which helped them compare different approaches to plastic pollution and get wider perspective of this global problem. After thorough research and data collection, they prepared a presentation of their findings in the form of a role-play taking the roles of experts and reporters. This attention-grabbing method enabled them to take the audience to various places on the Earth. The students not only shared the data of renowned institutions such as Ocean Conservancy but they also used their environmental and economic background. Finally, they suggested possible solutions, which included, for example, limits for the production and sales of single-use plastics and introduction of higher taxes on such products.
Universalism vs. Communitarism: Choosing the right actions or cultural paternalism?
Team 6
Snigdha Kunder
INDIA
Jimena Linares
COLOMBIA
Nikola Pavlíková
CZECH REPUBLIC
Diana Riano
COLOMBIA
Tereza Venclů
CZECH REPUBLIC
The job content and objectives
Certain traditions and cultural habits that are naturally passed on and applicable in some cultures and communities may be perceived in a completely different way. As an example, multinational organizations consider reprehensible and cruel treatment of animals to be unacceptable compared to some specific cultures, where this might even be a means of survival in severe conditions. It is thus difficult to find any kind of universal solution
(i.e. " should or should not be enforced ..."), as numerous international conferences and conflicts show. The question is where the right of a particular culture to act individually ends and where and how some general standards should be applied. The working group evaluated its own examples.
Cultural and Economic View
of Interventions into Nature with High Impact on Ecosystems - Case Study of an Open Cast Coal Mine in the German-Polish Border Region
Imprint
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