Caroline Mitchell ~ University of Sunderland

'Sparking Sustainability’ Project within Media and Journalism departments at University of Sunderland Working with community radio station-Spark FM and student online and printed magazines Alex Lockwood-lecturer and journalist Sustainability Reporter- Evi Karathanasopoulou-graduate student

Praxis Research group Part of ongoing research into how community media can be used as a location for new forms of participation, production and journalism Members across media and cultural studies, radio studies, film studies, video production and journalism

Spark-radio-tv-online Community radio licence for Sunderland Aimed at young people and students in Sunderland Participatory and enabling ethos Linked to media and journalism modules Sparking Sustainability reporter Developing Speech features on Spark

Project Aims To give students and staff critical knowledge and practical skills for living and working more sustainably To strengthen and integrate links between the university, existing local media, and the community to amplify sustainable development practice; T o support student and community media with sustainable planning,

Stage 1 Sustainability workshops With students on range of radio, print and journalism modules Contact via Facebook Open question - what does sustainability mean to you? How do you report sustainability, and how do you report sustainably? Completing online questionnaire

Questionnaire Sustainability-order of importance Environment Managing Resources Recycling Energy Sustainable development Personal wellbeing Global Poverty Waste

Questionnaire Planning ahead -to ensure a comfortable and healthy future for yourself and those around you. Locality- Sustainability is about locally based action where participants take ownership of the initiative and its results. “Living/working in a way that can be continued into the future”. “Defeating entrophy, preventing heat death, long term you can only delay it never stop”....

Questionnaire How sustainable did they feel in Their personal lives Studying at the University Their media work

Questionnaire-confidence with local community Most people do not feel productive, involved and supported “Could be better at working with outside groups and orgs, just been really difficult atm, tying to take one step at a time”. “More could be done in general. More volunteers are needed to serve the local community better, as a small handful of people can only do so much”!

Ideas for content Is a boozy life sustainable? Sustainability of Youth organisations in Sunderland Sustainability in everyday life and travelling Fair Trade and fashionitas Local interest-Electric cars made by Nissan

Ideas for practices Alternative station with an alternative power source Power the breakfast show with a Spark Treadmill… lose weight, get active and power the station! How to make it easier to approach local groups Specialist programmes and issues of online magazine

Stage 2 Teaching intervention exploring ways to report on ‘sustainability’ issues, To develop a media practice that is in itself ‘sustainable’ – what is important to you about acting sustainably? Working out in local area-Sunderland Riverside Steps to developing contacts, relationships and partnerships

Stage 3 Competition Target audience is Young People 13-24, living in Sunderland or with some link to Sunderland (think online audiences) Prize winning Articles Sustainable employment practices- AutismWorks and the IT industry The sustainability of the A690 youth project How students can act sustainably -testing out council guidelines Process-award for ‘Bright Sparks’ online training and support for radio station volunteers

Links with other campaigns Ellen MacCarthur’s Sustainability Foundation aims to equip young people for work in a world of increasingly limited resources and inspire them to re- think, re-design and build a positive future. University, Regional and local initiatives Nissan media –former student presents award

Stage 4 Influencing the curriculum Staff and students focusing on sustainability in different parts of their lives Guidelines for sustainability work in media, journalism modules and beyond Good practices-Getting out in the community Increasing confidence of working in partnerships Funding specialist issues of student media Social media and face to face Integrating student community media Employability

Sustainability as a 'cultural change process’ requires also the advancement of learners' skills and competencies (learners being both individuals and learning organisations) a “process or strategy of moving toward a sustainable future” Kagan, 2008

‘transformative learning’ we approach teaching as a process of transformative learning that offers students and teachers together a “shift of consciousness that dramatically and permanently alters our way of being in the world” Morell

SUSTAINABLE COMPETENCIES competency in foresighted thinking; competency in interdisciplinary work; competency in cosmopolitan perception, transcultural understanding and cooperation; participatory skills; competency in planning and implementation; capacity for empathy, compassion and solidarity; competency in self-motivation and in motivating others; and competency in distanced reflection on individual and cultural models. Barth, Godemann, Rieckmann and Stoltenberg (2007)

The media sector’s own sustainability to ensure that the station works effectively as an institution, basing itself on principles of access and participation,. to ensure that the programmes responded effectively to the needs and interests of the community to ensure that the community radio in the longer term actually would manage to create some of the desired basic social change Jallov 2004

Issues Supporting students –working in partnership-long process Financial viability of local media organisations in current economic climate-example of local press

conclusions a focus on developing core personal and interpersonal competencies, with a fundamental belief in both transformative and positive educational practices, are the best means to achieve long-term sustainability Sacha Kagan (2008)