It is indeed true that nature inspires creativity, however with the advancement of technology and increased urbanisation there has come a gross dissociation between human beings and their environment. Most children today lead a nature deficit lifestyle. They prefer to live, learn and play indoors. It is thus a sad reality that a generation of children today have been raised completely in the indoors within restricted and confined spaces. It is unfortunate that although they may be well aware of global environmental threats they lack any kind of tangible contact with it. The only experiential learning they have had is through the television and computer consoles.

Field Trips bridge this gap and become the missing link between children and the environment. In field trips children are exposed to powerful learning opportunities as they get to directly interact with the environment and thus understand why they need to care for nature.

For Field trips the Sustainable Schools Initiative requires registered schools to conduct any outdoor educational experience with an environmental objective. Any kind of visit can be reported like a visit to the zoo, desalination plant an eco-habitat or even a city park.

A field guide manual will be available for download once the school’s registration is accepted. A copy of the field manual will also be available for the schools on request. In addition to having a list of places that the school could take their students to, the manual would highlight different kinds of field activities and surveys that students can undertake in different habitats. The manual would also serve as a guide for the identification of flora and fauna in each of the Emirate’s habitats.

Guided field trips would be offered to registered schools by volunteer field educators during weekends from October to March each year. The Agency personnel will also be conducting selected field trips to areas not easily accessible to schools. The schedule for all these field trips would be available online.

Schools will have to report on:

• Number of students taken out on field trips.
• Whether the field trips were integrated into the curriculum, if so how ?
• Upload a report not exceeding 5-10 pages with photographs that best describes your students field experience.
• Teachers/ field educators should report on the behaviour and discipline of students during the field trips especially pertaining to littering and sensitive behaviour to life forms.

Once the schools submit their Field Trips report, along with evidence, then the school will be evaluated by the Sustainable school assessment committee. The committee comprises educational and government and non-government authorities. Short listed schools will present their submissions – and will defend themselves on questions asked by the review committee. Short-listed schools can expect a visit by members of the committee to visit the schools to review on the ground results if needed.