Eco-activism as an act of global citizenship: a comparative study of cross-border solidarity engagements in variously transnational school contexts in Germany

• In Event: Global Citizenship Education, Solidarity, and Youth Activism in Turbulent Times: Complementary Perspectives

Proposal

At first sight, global citizenship and European identity may appear as contradictory: one aims to instill a global sense of activism and social engagement, whereas the other focuses on Europe, raising the question of an exclusively regional reach. However, at closer look important overlaps exist between them: they are both recognised attempts to overcome nation-focused ideologies, are promoted by international and supranational organizations, and are translated into specific educational agendas aiming to implement cosmopolitan and inclusive orientations into the daily lives of future citizens. In both cases, a link between a form of supranational identity, belonging, or allegiance and civic action as an act of citizenship is presupposed as a prerequisite of successful implementation.
Drawing on 5 years of research into several schools promoting global and European citizenship and building on neoinstitutional theorising (Bromley & Meyer 2015, Meyer & Ramirez 2000, Meyer 2010), this paper brings examples from a particular geographical location (Germany) to answer the question of how different forms of schooling provide both a site and an organisational environment where students can learn and enact civic activism in various ways. Based on two multi-sited comparative studies into global citizenship and solidarity in three types of schools, I argue that active engagement as a characteristic of ‘good citizenship’ is transnationally prescribed and interactionally accomplished in day-to-day schooling settings. Empirically I focus on practices of eco-engagement as one aspect of cross-border citizen engagement observed through ethnographically informed fieldwork in schools spanning “transnational education spaces” (Hornberg 2010). The schools included in the research are: (1) German Schools Abroad: schools meant to preserve but also represent and promote German culture abroad, intended primarily for German expats, diplomats, or professionals abroad, and offering diplomas recognized international and/or binationally; (2) Schola Europaea schools: multilingual schools established for the children of EU-employees, supranationally organized and funded, only partly under the jurisdiction of single states in Europe, and offering prestigious internationally recognized diplomas; (3) Europe-Schools or Europaschulen: state schools in Germany adopting a European profile of interculturality in addition to their regular curriculum, primarily offering German-recognised and sometimes bi-national diplomas. The schools share an ethos of transnationality that could be considered as a pre-requisite of cross-border citizenship engagement. However, they are differently located in the opportunity structure at national and global levels and they serve differently-privileged school publics, thus leading to the hypothesis that the disruptive potential of activism fostered might differ considerably across schools. The data collected comprises of classroom observations, interviews with teachers and group discussions with students, which were thematically analysed using a constructivist grounded theory approach (Charmaz 2012). Bringing together data from these schools offers insights into a broad range of public/private, national/transnational school organizational environments in which youth activism may be fostered or stifled. This allows for a complex exploration of the interplay and contradictions of citizenship action at different analytical levels (macro-, meso-, micro). I conclude by formulating implications of the findings for wider processes of transnationalization in, and of, schooling, as seen through the specific lens of environmental activism.

Author

• Simona Szakács-Behling, Helmut-Schmidt-Universität