How do we empower the next generation to take climate action while making our schools more sustainable today?
This was the guiding question behind Visions2045 (“Schools as Drivers to Climate Neutrality in Cities”), a European initiative that brought together schools, municipalities, and educational organizations from Bulgaria, Germany, Poland and Slovenia.
Funded by the European Climate Initiative (EUKI), Visions2045 set out with a clear mission: to turn schools into pioneers of climate neutrality in their cities. Between November 2022 and April 2025, the project engaged teachers, students, facility managers, parents, local authorities and initiatives in creating visions of climate-neutral schools – and taking concrete steps towards their implementation.
Manuals for schools and municipalities were created to support them in the adaption of their learnings and are available to the public and other schools free of charge: www.ufu.de/en/projekt/visions-2045
From Vision to Action
The journey started with a Climate Check – an honest look at each school’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Heating, mobility, electricity use, food, waste and more were examined to understand where the biggest climate impacts occur.
Using this knowledge, schools organized Vision Workshops. These were not traditional lectures, but creative, participatory spaces where students, teachers, and other stakeholders imagined their ideal climate-neutral school. Together, they developed individual roadmaps for each school containing concrete, step-by-step action plans to guide their transformation.
Actions included:
• Energy managers that reduced energy consumption by up to 15%.
• School gardens and tree planting, creating green learning spaces for all ages.
• Sustainable mobility campaigns, encouraging cycling, walking, and safe bike shelters.
• Healthy, seasonal food initiatives and waste reduction projects.
• Collaborations with municipalities, parents, and local companies to support climate action beyond school walls.
Results That Inspire
The project has already demonstrated that schools can significantly reduce emissions while motivating young people to see themselves as changemakers. Students learned not just the science of climate change, but also the power of teamwork, creativity, and persistence. Teachers at the same time experience, how embedding sustainability into daily routines creates lasting cultural change. Both impacts do make a difference in self-perception regarding climate change.
“This project is worth implementing. Apart from the tangible benefits, great importance should be placed to the participation of the school community – students, teachers, parents and supporting institutions. Such integration will not only increase the success of the project but also pave the way for more efficient implementation of future initiatives.” (participating school in Poland).
Why this project matters for Europe
Schools are more than places of learning – they are hubs of community life and the most common public buildings in our cities. By making schools climate-neutral, we don’t just cut emissions. We model the future we want to live in, inspire families and neighborhoods and create ripple effects across entire regions.
Visions2045 shows that when European communities work together, change is not only possible – it is already happening.
A Call to Action
The roadmap is clear: analyze emissions, build visions together, take action, reflect and adapt. Every step counts to bring us closer to our shared goal of a climate-neutral Europe.
We invite schools, municipalities and communities across Europe to join this movement. Let’s learn from each other, celebrate our successes and put climate action into a lived experience – starting in our schools.
Check out the free materials created by the Visions 2045 project to support schools to become climate-neutral: www.ufu.de/en/projekt/visions-2045
They are available in English, Bulgarian, German, Polish and Slovenian.
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