Learning Beyond the Classroom

Exploring Sustainable Living in Switzerland and Germany 

This spring, Mrs. Chumiecki led a group of seven students on an experiential learning trip to Germany and Switzerland to explore innovative sustainability efforts. They visited the cities of Berlin, Freiburg, Lucerne, and Zurich, and saw state-of-the-art models of renewable energy, urban farming, and eco-tourism. In the green city of Freiburg, they hiked through the Alpine glacier and discovered an underground city in a bunker system in Lucerne. The trip heightened students’ awareness of how our wants and needs impact our planet’s well-being and helped us rethink our unsustainable habits and practices. As a result, some have already begun to dream up solutions to better balance the dynamic relationships among people, the planet, and profit – starting with small changes at our school. 

“Overall, we had a great trip as friends and as a school to Germany and Switzerland. We all learned a lot about sustainability and how to improve our living conditions to help the environment and benefit our personal life. We were able to be hands-on with ways of life we are not used to, and it exposed us to critical thinking and proved to everyone on the trip we can continually improve our way of life. Most of the lessons we learned involved cutting down the use of fossil fuels and other harmful materials instead of using natural power sources with no adverse side effects, such as a hydro pump bringing energy to many buildings in one large area. These solutions can benefit our future and improve everything around us by creating more green earth and being conscious of how our decisions can hurt or help our planet.” — Grant Wright ’22