Ecomedia Research project
How can environmental literacy be meaningfully integrated into Forest School education? This question lies at the heart of Ecomedia Kids, our ongoing research project exploring how environmental literacy and media literacy can be embedded within the experiential framework of Forest Schools.
Ecomedia Kids is designed for children aged 5 to 10 and seeks to expand these essential literacies within the unique context of outdoor, nature-based learning. The project builds on the established pedagogical principles of Forest School while extending its scope to address the growing need for critical engagement with both environmental issues and media cultures.
Our initiative is developed in partnership with Ecolia Forest School, a child-led, nature-based educational approach that fosters learning through play, exploration, and hands-on experiences in outdoor environments. Forest School education traditionally emphasizes immersion in nature, risk-taking, and experiential learning. While these foundations remain central, Ecomedia Kids introduces an expanded framework that integrates critical media engagement alongside environmental understanding.
The project seeks to bridge the gap between environmental literacy and media literacy. In an era where children encounter environmental narratives across digital platforms, social media, advertising, and popular culture, it is essential that they develop the ability not only to experience nature directly but also to critically interpret the ways it is represented.
The Ecomedia Kids project is grounded in a Participatory Action Research (PAR) framework, which positions children, educators, and researchers as active contributors to the research process rather than passive subjects. Children are encouraged to express their perspectives, document their observations, and contribute to discussions that shape subsequent activities.
Preliminary results from the first phase of the research were presented at the Disinformation Congress in Madrid and are available online. Through this participatory model, Ecomedia Kids generates context-rich insights while fostering agency, voice, and democratic engagement among young learners within the Forest School setting.
By combining experiential outdoor learning with media analysis and creative expression, Ecomedia Kids positions children not merely as learners, but as emerging eco-citizens capable of engaging thoughtfully with complex environmental challenges.