Education
IERSD undertakes significant educational activities, developing modern educational programs and initiatives targeting various educational levels, interactive exhibitions, co-organizing postgraduate programs and summer schools, among others.
Educational and Digital Training Programs
The educational program “About Winds and Waters” was developed by the WEATHER unit of the IEPBA and provides a modern, fully interactive physics lesson, as students participate in experiments, interactive applications and watch explanatory videos with the aim of studying the creation of meteorological phenomena (http://www.meteo.gr/perianemon.cfm). The Meteorology educational program “About Winds & Waters” has been approved by the Ministry of Education, Research and Religious Affairs (no. prot. 131633/D2 of 09/08/2016) and by the Institute of Educational Policy (IEP) (act 23/30-06-2016 of the Board of Directors) from which it receives annual renewals of its operating approval. The structure of the program is fully compatible with the knowledge that children gain from school physics at all levels of secondary education and is adapted each time to the knowledge of the students who attend the program. Particular emphasis is placed on educating students on ways to protect themselves from severe weather events, such as lightning, tornadoes and heavy rains. The program is presented at the Penteli Visitor Center and has been operating since November 2016. In total, approximately 14,000 students, teachers and adults attended it until December 2024 (of which approximately 1,500 students in 2024).
It is a digital, online and freely accessible encyclopedia developed by the METEO unit with the wiki software, on which the digital encyclopedia Wikipedia is based, and aimed at the general public. The articles of Meteopedia concern information regarding meteorological phenomena, meteorological terms and definitions, as well as data from named severe weather events, according to the criteria set by the National Observatory of Athens/meteo.gr.
During the suspension of educational activities, due to the measures to combat the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic, the “About Winds & Waters” team created digital educational programs on the topic of weather, climate and climate change. Specifically, the digital module MeteoEdu@Home (https://meteo.gr/meteoedu/) was developed and operates continuously, which enables students and adults to participate online from their homes in educational activities related to the science of Meteorology. This section presents educational videos, applications and fun games on the topics: Climate Change, Lightning, Clouds & Weather Forecasting
Educational Activities
From October 2018 to the present, the scientific educational meteorology team “Peri Anemon & Hydaton” (About Winds & Waters) of IEPBA’s METEO unit has created and presents two educational activities at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center (SNFCC): “The Climate is Changing…” and “Sustainable Planet” (https://www.snfcc.org/education/viosimos-planitis/).
● “Sustainable Planet (for Junior High School students)”
Using the SNFCC’s energy canopy and meteorological station as a starting point, and employing experiments and observation through special VR glasses, students discover how humans have impacted the climate globally and locally, and how the use of renewable energy sources has evolved. The goal of this educational program is for students to learn about the principles of bioclimatic design and how they are applied in both the design and daily operation of the SNFCC. From October 2018 to December 2024, approximately 5,500 students participated in the program.
● “Sustainable Planet” (for 4th-6th Grade Primary School students https://www.snfcc.org/education/viosimos-planitis
Through experiments and constructions, students understand the environmental impacts of modern lifestyles, recognize eco-friendly daily behaviors, and participate in creating useful objects through an interactive recycling workshop. From October 2019 to December 2024, approximately 6,000 students participated in the program.
Interactive Educational Exhibitions
● “The Weather and Climate of Crete”: Since June 2018, in collaboration with ANEK LINES, “Peri Anemon & Hydaton” launched a pavilion/exhibition on two of its ships (El. Venizelos and Kriti II) operating on the Crete routes. The exhibition, titled “The Weather and Climate of Crete,” consists of video screenings that clearly present the problem of climate change, the main characteristics of Crete’s weather by season, current weather conditions on the island from the NOA/Meteo.gr station network, the island’s water resources, satellite sea temperature measurements, and weather forecasts for Crete’s cities and most of its beaches. Finally, the pavilion features interactive games on tablets, focusing on weather and climate.
● “The Secrets of Weather”: In collaboration with the TITAN Cement Group, “Peri Anemon & Hydaton” created the interactive meteorology exhibition: “The Secrets of Weather.” This is a fully interactive exhibition, divided into three thematic sections, presenting the evolution of the science of Meteorology and meteorological instruments from ancient Greece to the present, as well as explaining the most significant meteorological phenomena through videos, experiments, and interactive applications, with an emphasis on extreme weather events and ways to protect against them. The exhibition launched in October 2018 at the group’s factory facilities in Thessaloniki and Elefsina, and from October 2019 (2019-2020 and 2022-2023), the exhibition was presented at TITAN’s facilities in Drepano, Achaia (Patras). In total, approximately 27,000 visitors have attended the exhibition up to December 2024.
Postgraduate Programs
IERSD participates in the Inter-institutional Postgraduate Program “Cultural Heritage Materials and Technologies” organized by the Department of History, Archaeology and Management of Cultural Goods of the University of Peloponnese (TIADPA), in collaboration with NCSR Demokritos and the National Observatory of Athens, since the Academic Year 2015-2016. The objective of the Master’s program is to provide specialized, modern, and competitive scientific knowledge to higher education graduates in the thematic field of research and applications of new technologies for cultural heritage and its materials. The Master’s program, which is conducted in English, accepts graduates from humanities, natural sciences, and engineering departments of Greek universities and equivalent recognized foreign institutions, as well as graduates from TEI departments with a related subject area (“Cultural Heritage Materials and Technologies”).
Summer Schools
IERSD participates annually in the organization of the international summer school ‘Theory and practice of aerosol chemistry and engineering for climate, air quality, emissions and health effects by means of In-Situ and Remote Sensing Observations’ by the Hellenic Association of Aerosol Research (HAAR – http://www.hellenic-aerosol.org/). The program takes place at the Navarino Environmental Observatory (NEO) (https://www.navarinoneo.com/) in Messinia, aiming to train young researchers in modern methods and practices for studying the main characteristics of atmospheric aerosols and their crucial role in climate change.
