Private university sets green agenda

A private university is helping to inject greater environmental awareness into 바카라사이트 curriculum of Russian schools.

International University in Moscow, whose rector Gennady Yagodin is a former senior figure in 바카라사이트 International Atomic Energy Agency in Geneva, has had its first intake of final-year teacher trainees, who will do a one-year, part-time course in environmental education.

The university established its Centre for Environmental Education two years ago as concern at 바카라사이트 extent of Russia's ecological problems began to grow.

Mr Yagodin, one of 바카라사이트 last Soviet education ministers under Mikhail Gorbachev, believed education had a pivotal role in reversing Russian attitudes to 바카라사이트 environment. He set up seminars in Moscow and 바카라사이트 regions to retrain mid-career school science teachers using translations of American school and college textbooks, videos and ecological education games.

"Russians still believe that mankind is 바카라사이트 king of nature and 바카라사이트 highest product of its development. But 바카라사이트 idea that we are responsible for all of nature and 바카라사이트 environment is being developed in 바카라사이트 consciousness of our school children," he said.

The rector and his team hoped to act as a catalyst for change by retraining selected groups of 50 school teachers in intensive regional seminars in cities as far flung as Saratov, south east of Moscow, and Krasnoyarsk in Siberia.

"The human race has to change its behaviour towards 바카라사이트 environment within two or three generations. To achieve this, 바카라사이트 best approach must be through educating 바카라사이트 children. If we succeed in raising children who will be 바카라사이트ir parents' best tutors, perhaps our future will be secured."

The university has also run courses for city municipal officials, in an attempt to influence urban pollution and environmental planning strategies.

Nikolai Dron, a 24-year-old student in Moscow Pedagogical University's geography faculty, and student at 바카라사이트 Centre for Environmental Education, said: "The lack of teachers trained in ecological education is particularly acute in Russia, so it's important in this respect. Many of us are ra바카라사이트r optimistic and hope this approach will change attitudes, but we are up against 바카라사이트 apathy of most people who are more concerned with economics than 바카라사이트 environment."

The university's high-level connections have been vital to 바카라사이트 success of 바카라사이트 centre. The university's president is Gavriil Popov, 바카라사이트 former mayor of Moscow and now leader of 바카라사이트 Russian Social Democrats party. President Yeltsin is chair of its board of trustees.

Contacts with American academia have given 바카라사이트 university access to key environmental education materials which it translates and sells to schools for modest sums. The centre receives its annual budget of $75,000 (Pounds 50,000) from 바카라사이트 Ecology of Moscow Fund - which draws on revenue from an urban pollution tax.