About the Project
The project R.A.V.E. Space – Raising Awareness of Values of Space through the Process of Education – deals with problems of education about spatial planning and sustainable spatial development in primary and secondary schools. It searches for new ways of education about spatial development and land use as a contribution to raise awareness of importance of spatial planning which is considered to be a basic tool for a responsible spatial management, land use and territorial cohesion under the terms of sustainable development.
R.A.V.E. Space project gathers together 9 partners from 5 countries (Greece, Italy, Montenegro, Poland, Slovenia) who joined their forces because they are convinced about the importance of raising awareness about spatial planning and spatial development.
We are supported by the UN definition "Sustainable Development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs."
We believe that attitude towards sustainable development strongly depends on the knowledge that people from all over the world possess, particularly of environment and spatial limitations. In order to take an active part in sustainable development people do and will need more comprehensive knowledge, not only isolated facts and data. Ability to recognize and understand procedures, connections and interdependences between separate acts, interventions, people, politics or ideas is going to be of crucial meaning.
That is why spatial planning, using environmental, spatial, economic, demographic and other data necessary to make developmental decisions, is one of the activities with growing importance. As one of the comprehensive activities spatial planning in a great part of its effectiveness depends on all the participants. For quite some time it is known that isolated professional praxis is not sufficient without allied parties on the side of decision makers and other participants.
Bringing more knowledge about spatial planning and spatial development decision making in school is one of the tasks in a row of activities that citizens need to perform so as to gain better efficiency in future development. Namely the process of educating young people must be accompanied by a strategy for exerting influence upon adults as well.
The nature of the problems linked to the poor amount of commonly shared knowledge about spatial development demands immediate action. Educational strategy is thereby meant to be more than bringing new contents in the obligatory educational curriculum. The strategy is meant to define ways of reaching schoolchildren and wider population alike.
R.A.V.E. Space project meets with the UNECE Strategy of promoting sustaianble development through education.
Project Partners from the whole project area share the opinion that awareness of values of space and importance of public participation is insufficient. The situation should be overcome with the establishment of educational system which would assure that this knowledge would be incorporated in a regular educational process in primary and secondary school.