Mongolia has long been struggling with forest degradation and deforestation, which has raised concerns about rising poverty and the deterioration of water quality and availability. “In addition to improving forest management, the key to preserving Mongolia’s forests lies in gaining the support of the general public for the implementation of sustainable land management and nature conservation. The goal of this project is therefore to promote education about forests and forestry in Mongolia through the development of forest pedagogy, which will use engaging methods to show participants the life and significance of the forest as well as the importance of a forester’s work, and spark an interest in forests,” explained project leader Václav Pecina, outlining the background of the project.
A key activity of the project was an August study tour to the Czech Republic by Mongolian educators from the partner institution, the Mongolian University of Life Sciences. “During their nearly two-week stay in the Czech Republic, they visited a number of organizations and sites dedicated to environmental education to gain inspiration and experience. They subsequently successfully completed a basic course in forest pedagogy organized by the Association of Forest Educators of the Czech Republic and the Hranice Secondary Forestry School. The organizers went out of their way to accommodate us in every way, and the other course participants also welcomed them very warmly despite the language barrier—which was a wonderful and heartwarming experience,” Pecina said, describing the collaboration.
This was followed by a trip back to Mongolia, where the newly trained Mongolian forest educators carried out their first programs. They were accompanied on the trip by experienced forest educators from MENDELU, who helped them prepare the programs and provided important feedback. “It was fascinating to observe their incredible growth during each event. After every event, we held a joint feedback session where we discussed the positives as well as the areas that still needed work. And I have to say, their progress was absolutely amazing—it wasn’t incremental, but rather leaps and bounds. It was amazing to see how enthusiastic they were and how actively they implemented new knowledge. It was an honor and a joy to collaborate with such talented educators; their ability to learn, absorb every new insight, and immediately put it into practice—simply a senior educator’s dream. We explored various teaching styles. “How to make the most of the environment that’s available, because the forest is the greatest asset for forest educators who go there and teach about it right in the forest itself,” said experienced forest educator Petra Packová, sharing her impressions of the events in Mongolia.
“In Tunkhel, where we held three events, we also put together a special program specifically for new forest educators and local foresters to show them how to make the most of a particular location for the program. There was a fire at that site in 2017, and it was incredibly interesting to observe the natural succession following the fire. We built the program from the ground up—what a fire is, what the conditions for burning are, what types of fires there are, how a fire spreads, what stops it under natural conditions, and what we as humans can do to stop a fire. We also covered how different tree species are adapted to fire and how fire is actually important and necessary for landscape restoration in certain areas. We also explored how complex it is to establish a new habitat. The program showed them how important it is to build it logically, from the very basics all the way to more complex connections and relationships. The opportunity to get a feel for a specific location—to see, understand, touch, try things out, measure, run around, count, perceive, and smell—enhances the experience of the place and deepens the absorption of the information we need to convey to the participants. It’s like stringing beads one by one onto a thread. At the end, you tie the knot, and a complete picture of the issue of forest fires emerges. A story that comes to mind when you close your eyes and recalls what you experienced in the forest,” says Packová, describing the program at one of the locations.
Forest education holds enormous significance and potential in Mongolia. “First, Mongolians have a genetically ingrained sense of playfulness and competitiveness; second, they have a strong connection to nature and love it. At the same time, the effects of climate change are being felt in Mongolia, altering traditional ways of life, causing damage to forest stands, and—due to overgrazing—preventing natural regeneration, while desertification is gradually becoming evident in the landscape. These are profound issues—such as life itself—and they need to be communicated and explained,” says Packová, outlining the conditions for implementing forest education in Mongolia.
The project also involves extensive collaboration with other organizations and Czech companies, as well as integration with the curriculum at MENDELU. “We have equipped Mongolian forest educators not only with knowledge but also with educational materials, in the development of which we involved several Czech companies, led by Lesní svět. As part of her bachelor’s thesis, our student and forest educator Eliška Dorňáková developed several new educational games that we have successfully implemented in Mongolia. We are currently finalizing a book with ideas for educational games about forests and climate change for Mongolian teachers; these topics are already becoming relevant here as well,” Pecina explains, outlining the project’s outcomes.
The implementation and development of forest education in Mongolia were made possible through the IMAGINE project, which is being carried out jointly by Mendel University in Brno and the Mongolian University of Life Sciences. The main objective of the project is to build the basic professional and institutional capacity for the systematic development of forest education in Mongolia. The project is financially supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic. #CzechAid