Humboldt Students Adopt a Tree15. November 2024
As part of project weeks, the international students at the Humboldt-Institut have been looking into the subject of ‘The forest and us’.
In the first week, they explored the forest on the school grounds together with the caretaker Mr. Schneider. Then, in the second week, the students created informative posters of our forest animals, such as foxes or owls, which they hung on the walls of the school corridors. In the third week of the project, the students were given specific tasks for which they had to take and upload photos in the forest. Then, in the fourth week, the students created posters based on the seasons with materials from the forest, such as leaves or cones.
Finally, in the fifth week, our institute has taken on a tree sponsorship for the first time in cooperation with the city of Lindenberg. The school has chosen a cherry tree, which was planted on the campus.
The cherry tree was chosen because it can be planted in autumn, and the campus is already home to many other fruit trees – such as apple, pear, plum, quince and peach. In contrast to other tree species, a fruit tree is also more tangible for our young students, as they can harvest its fruit later.
Together with Ms. Münch from the Office for Food, Agriculture and Forestry in Kempten, our students planted the cherry tree. Afterwards, Ms. Münch presented some interesting facts about the cherry tree and answered questions from the students. The tree will have white blossoms in spring, which attract bees. These bees pollinate the flowers from which the cherries grow. They ripen in summer and are ready to be eaten.
Ms. Münch also told us that the city attaches great importance to sustainability and environmental protection, for instance by promoting mixed forests in the surrounding areas. The forests should not only harbor one type of tree, but ideally both coniferous and deciduous trees. This variety ensures greater biodiversity and resilience to pests and diseases. Forest owners can also obtain certification if they organize their forest sustainably.
Young people, such as our students, play a major role in this as well. The city does a lot of work in the area of information and education, not only at schools like our language institute, but also at universities. Furthermore, the counseling is free of charge. As part of the ‘The forest and us’ project, our students have been involved in strengthening regional sustainability.
The Humboldt-Institut Lindenberg is also the first German member of the Green Standard Schools, a global association of language schools. The goals of the association include reducing the ecological footprint of language travels and anchoring the concept of sustainability in teaching in order to promote students’ ecological awareness.
After all, environmental protection is not just a matter for politicians; the everyday habits and behavior of each individual make an important contribution. The more people learn about environmental issues, the more likely they are to change their actions and encourage those around them to change theirs.
The certification as part of the Green Standard Schools demonstrates the Humboldt-Institut’s high level of environmental awareness: ‘The Humboldt-Institut has been in existence for over 45 years and to ensure that future generations can also learn German with us, the topic of sustainability is particularly close to our hearts’, says Managing Director Lennart Güthling, emphasizing the importance of sustainability in the education sector.
Earlier this year, we already covered the „Project week sustainability“.