Dr Anna Buncler
University of Warsaw, Faculty of Modern Languages, Department of Hungarian and Finnish Studies
How did you hear about this teaching mobility?
Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE) is our partner at University of Warsaw. They sent us an invitation letter about Teach with Erasmus+ project and the teaching mobility pilot project in Beauvais, France, this is where I got the idea to apply to the teaching mobility.
What motivated you to participate?
I was very excited when I read about this project. I have already been doing some climate change related actions in the past. In 2017, at the university we did Vegan Days to promote eating less meat and going vegan. The students prepared food, and everyone could eat for free. We also did Eco Days with students about using less plastic. These small things will not save the planet, but I believe that we can do small changes in our lives to improve the situation. So, when I heard about the teaching mobility, I decided to apply the same day. Although my background is not researching climate change nor natural sciences, but I wanted to participate to show another angle of climate change through small actions.
What did you expect from this mobility?
My most important expectations were sharing knowledge and experience, getting inspired and inspire others, getting to know the students and teachers of UniLaSalle, and getting more information from professionals about climate change.
I also think it is important to spread information about climate change in the university world. We have to think about how to live to reduce our harm to the planet, how to implement small changes and share innovations.
Which part did you find the most useful?
All parts of the program were really interesting for me. I liked the lectures, and I also enjoyed creating projects and talking with students about them. The program was quite intensive from the morning to the evening, and we covered a lot of topics. I liked the discussions during and after the lectures. The students were very engaged. Going into the project, we created a relaxed atmosphere and discussed important issues in a friendly environment.
The main organizer, Nathalie from UniLaSalle brought a lot of energy into the program. The local staff was welcoming, and they took care of us very well.
Thanks to this mobility, I got more knowledge, more inspiration to do more at my home university. I am thinking about to start new projects related to climate change when I return home after the mobility.
What would you add to the mobility week?
We had an intensive and rich program throughout the week, even more intense than I thought before arriving. What I would still add to the program though is more information about different start-ups who work in the field of climate change and offer different solutions to the problems.
