YRE TWINNING
International collaboration and cooperation
The Young Reporters for the Environment (YRE) programme and International Competition offers a unique opportunity for your school, university, scout group or youth group members to twin with other YRE participants from around the world.
Whilst setting up a successful YRE twinning requires some planning, the benefits for young people are vast. Ready to team up? Join our Facebook Twinning Group and meet other educators who’ve done it before.
Global Challenges, Local Solutions
Shared Knowledge, Unique Solutions: Environmental issues like climate change, pollution and biodiversity loss go beyond geographical borders.
Scaling Up Impact: Local environmental initiatives can have a bigger impact when they are part of a larger movement.
Enhanced Skills for Sustainability
Cross-cultural Sustainability Strategies: Collaborating with other YRE leaders will broaden a young person’s understanding of environmental issues.
Advocacy and Communication for Change: Strengthen a young person’s ability to rally support for local environmental initiatives in their community.
Building a Network for a Sustainable Future
Connecting with Global Changemakers: Working internationally teaches young people to build relationships with other YRE leaders from around the world who share the same environmental concerns.
What to keep in mind when initiating a collaboration
Twinning checklist
Consider the following when initiating a collaboration to ensure a smooth and successful twinning experience for your young reporters.
Age, time zone differences, academic year difference, language barriers, environmental focus areas.
What communication methods will be used that will work for both groups (email, WhatsApp, video calls etc.) Consider the country you wish to twin with may not have reliable internet or restrictions on what communication apps can be used.
How will your YRE work equally distributed across both groups? Have clear outlines in mind for roles and responsibilities.
Set timelines for completion of work. This is especially important if young people wish to submit their twinning work as entries in the article or long-form reportage video categories as part of the Internation YRE competition.
While twinning internationally brings a global perspective to your YRE work, do not underestimate the power of national or local partnerships when working through the 4 steps of the YRE programme. If possible, it is always more rewarding to plan a face-to-face visit with your YRE twinning partner- to find out more about how to do this please head over to our YRE Missions section.
How to twin
Here is a step-by-step guide on how to find a school or youth group to twin with.
Firstly, join our Facebook twinning group to be part of our growing community of twin schools, youth and scout groups!
Now follow the steps below to find a match, create a plan, start collaborating and introduce your young people to each other. And don’t forget to share your stories!
Write a post introducing yourself, your school and the number and age of your students. Also indicate your flexibility in terms of time zones, language and communication methods.
Engage with other Facebook members to find a match.
Found a match - Discus logistics of the collaboration by clearly outlining expectations, roles, responsibilities, and communication plans with your potential twinning partner.
Create a project plan that outlines the objectives, timeline, deliverables, and communication channels. Fairly divide the task between the two groups.
Introduce your YRE students to each other, adhering to all safeguarding, and GDPR practices in both countries.
Start your YRE-twinning project!
Tell us shortly about your twinning project using the form below and we will showcase it on our website.
If you want more information on how to twin, click on the button below to download a detailed guide.
Share your twinning stories and be featured on our global platforms!
Click on the button below to access the webform for sharing or reach out to Shimon, YRE Coordinator, shimon@fee.global, if you have any questions! We look forward to hearing from you.