Funded under the Science in Society banner of the EU's Framework 7 programme, we describe here what CarboSchools in Norwich hopes to achieve and provides dedicated webpages to record the progress of the UK project (2008 - 2010). This was TSN's first successful EU application.
1st January 2011
Although funding for this project has now stopped, we continue to promote the resources developed by the project to teachers. Additionally, in April 2011, the first CO2 data from Flegg High School started appear on the pages of School CO2 web.
Background:
CarboSchools has its origins in two large EU science research projects, CarboEurope and CARBOOCEAN, both of which are studying different aspects of the carbon cycle. CarboSchools encourages researchers from these communities to engage with schools, and work in partnership to share their research, experiences and knowledge with teachers and pupils.
The project involves nine research institutes in seven countries exploring how they can best motivate and support such partnerships at the regional level involving a wide variety of contexts, approaches, topics and age-groups and trying to exploit TSN's best practice model of linking teachers with scientists.
The main Carboschools website describes the overall project. The pages here are designed to describe those aspects particularly relevant to the UK contribution, facilitated by TSN
UK data:
Two Norfolk schools are contributing data to the European wide School CO2-web.
View CO2 web: detector locations in a larger map
Diss and Flegg High Schools are equipped (via the project) with Vaisala Carbocap sensors to detect CO2 levels above their schools. This data is sent electornically to the University of Groningen, were it is processed and made publicly available via the School CO2-web pages of the CarboSchools website.
Although equipped with kit back in Summer/Autumn 2009 a series of technical difficulties meant that the first data from the probes was not sent through until April 2011! But now the data is here, it will just keep coming!
View Locations of School CO2 data (UK) in a larger map
Flegg High School. (Somerton Rd., Martham, Great Yarmouth, NR29 4QD)
A rural school located in North-East Norfolk, 3 miles from the east coast of England located at the edge of the village of Martham (population c.3000). The school have gained additional benefits from the Weather Station that is linked to the probe and data from that can be seen here.
CO2 data available from 28th April 2011.
Diss High School. (Walcot Rd., Diss, IP22 4DH)
The school is situated on the edge of the market town of Diss (population c. 7000) in South Norfolk. CO2 data not yet available.
Regional celebration event:
TSN celebrated the outputs from CarboSchools at the 2010 TSN Annual Meeting. Our guest speaker for the evening was celebrated climate scientist Prof. Corinne le Quéré from the School of Environmental Science at the University of East Anglia (UEA).
The evening included Phil's tour of the CarboSchools online library of resources (see video below), a showcase of TSN's EcoBox, a stand from the National Trust funded Energy Busters team, and poster presentations and films from Rowan Road Infant School, Brisley Primary school and Sheringham High School about their EcoSchools activities.
The primary 'Sustainable Living' box (part-funded by CarboSchools) could not be displayed because it was on loan to a school at the time. Details of the box can be found here.
Hear Phil describe the CarboSchool online library here
Carboschools resources from Phil Smith on Vimeo.
Relive Corinne's wonderful presentation here.
A copy of her presentation slides have been made available here
UK Project Launch:
10 - 12th March 2008
The CarboSchools kick-off meeting was held in Norwich, hosted by TSN. The meeting included an invitation to Norfolk teachers to hear about the project, help guide its direction and be updated in Carbon-science at a teachers' twilight evening. Flyer available here; press release about project launch available here
12 - 14th March 2008
Carboschools regional coordinators training session, Norwich. In addition to exploring ways of working and sharing best practice between partners we discussed the wider social implications of the project - think global, act local - and heard an inspiring presentation about the success of Eco-Schools from its founder and director Patricia Oliver (An Taisce, National Trust Ireland).
Project Partners:
Max Planck Institut fuer Biogeochemie (MPI-BGC), Jena, Germany (coordinator)
Teacher Scientist Network (TSN), Norwich, UK
Rijksuniversiteit Groningen (RuG), the Netherlands
Leibniz-Institut für Meereswissenschaften an der Universität Kiel (IFM-GEOMAR), Kiel, Germany
Institut Pierre-Simon Laplace (LSCE), Paris, France
Universitetet i Bergen og Bjerknessenteret for klimaforskning (UiB-BCCR), Norway
Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA EPHYSE/EPOC), Bordeaux, France
Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche - Instituto di Biometeorologia (CNR-IBIMET), Firenze, Italy
Fundació Parc Científic de Barcelona, Laboratori de Recerca del Clima (PCB-LRC), Barcelona, Spain
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