Pesca, cucina e marineria: un'educazione alla tutela del mare per donne senior

Through F‑LIFE, Treenacria pursued interconnected educational, social, and civic goals aligned with Erasmus+ priorities on inclusion, adult learning, and sustainability. The main objective was to ...

Through F‑LIFE, Treenacria pursued interconnected educational, social, and civic goals aligned with Erasmus+ priorities on inclusion, adult learning, and sustainability. The main objective was to empower senior women in coastal and island areas by offering accessible environmental education on marine ecosystems, sustainable consumption, and responsible everyday practices. A second objective was to deepen participants’ understanding of the “sea as a resource” in its cultural, environmental, and productive dimensions, linking traditional maritime knowledge with modern sustainability principles. The project also aimed to reconnect women with fields historically seen as male‑dominated, such as fishing and maritime culture, promoting gender equity and active ageing. A third objective focused on civic participation, encouraging women to move from awareness to action as local ambassadors of sustainable behaviours within families and communities. At organisational level, Treenacria sought to strengthen its capacity in non‑formal adult education and European project management, benefiting from methodological exchange with SEAL Cyprus and highlighting the value of locally rooted education for sustainability and social cohesion.

The project was implemented through three complementary activities over 24 months, with a total budget of €60,000. Activity 1 focused on management, monitoring, communication, and dissemination, coordinated by Treenacria with support from SEAL Cyprus. It covered planning, financial management, quality assurance, monitoring tools, coordination meetings, and dissemination through Erasmus+ platforms such as EPALE and the Project Results Platform. Activity 2, led by Treenacria, delivered an experiential environmental education pathway on marine sustainability, fishing culture, and storytelling. Forty hours of workshops were held in Italy and Cyprus, involving at least 30 senior uneducated women. The activity combined outdoor learning, reconstruction of women’s roles in fishing, and reflection on marine environmental challenges. Activity 3, coordinated by SEAL Cyprus with Treenacria, translated sustainability into daily practices through food‑related education. Six workshops addressed sustainable consumption, food waste reduction, and reinterpretation of Mediterranean culinary traditions, concluding with a dissemination event in Sciacca with around 50 participants.

The project generated concrete and transferable results, with a significant impact at individual, community and organisational level. Key outputs include two multilingual educational manuals (Italian, English and Greek) focusing on marine sustainability, recreational fishing as a tool for outdoor education, and sustainable food consumption; educational formats for senior adults; narrative and experiential workshop models; sustainable menu prototypes; as well as monitoring tools and publicly accessible dissemination materials shared through EPALE and the Erasmus+ Project Results platform. Overall, 30 senior women took part in 12 structured workshops and more than 60 hours of non-formal learning activities carried out in Italy and Cyprus, enriched by online transnational exchanges and local events. Participants developed practical skills in environmental literacy, waste reduction, responsible consumption and civic participation, becoming promoters of sustainable practices within their own living contexts. At community level, the project strengthened local networks among public authorities and NGO. At organisational level, partner organisations consolidated skills in international project management and non-formal education.