Ahaus Wessum

The children of Gottfried-von-Kappenberg Elementary School in Wessum have once again successfully participated in the 'Children's Footprints Campaign' this year. They cycled, walked, or took the bus - the key was to keep the car parked. For every car-free journey, the children earned a Green Footprintt. On Tuesday, September 19, the children proudly presented 3,084 Footprints to Mayor Karola Voß.

"This is truly a great success! Your green footprints help make the air cleaner. You are showing the adults how simple climate protection can be on a small scale," Voß rejoiced with the children of the school's Children's Parliament. The collected footprints from Wessum will be forwarded to the European Climate Alliance.

Many elementary schools and daycares throughout Europe choose to collect Green Footprints for climate protection based on the distances they cover on foot, on scooters and bikes, or by bus or train. During an action week, they engage with topics like sustainability, climate, and transportation, developing an awareness for eco-friendly mobility. The elementary school students are already unanimous - next year, they'll participate again, demonstrating how straightforward climate protection can be on a small scale. 

In total, the children collected 3084 Green Footprints from Gottfried-von-Kappenberg Elementary School in Wessum.

BAD DRIBURG

The team of the Kindergarden Brakel-Riesel reported: We accomplished many walks during this week: pony range, sportsground, playground… The kids were impressed and motivated us to explore new pathes eco-friendly.

Bergheim

During the Action Week for Climate Protection and Mobility organized by the city of Bergheim, every climate-friendly journey made – on foot, by scooter or bike, by bus or train – counted as a Green Mile. Each child collected these miles in a special album provided free of charge by the city of Bergheim.

By collecting these miles, the children playfully engaged with topics like climate change, mobility, and sustainability, making their own contribution to climate protection. In total, 14 institutions in Bergheim, involving over 1500 children, participated in the campaign, accumulating a total of 10,202 green miles. Additionally, the children expressed their wishes and demands to climate policymakers on self-designed posters and cardboard feet. These artworks were exhibited in the City Office during the autumn holidays.

Mayor Volker Mießeler appreciates the children's enthusiasm and the numerous collected miles: "Once again, this wonderful initiative has strengthened awareness for climate and nature conservation, as well as mindfulness and sustainability on our planet, among the children and thus our future generation. I am particularly pleased that everyone participated so well and that so many green miles were collected. I will now hand over these accumulated miles to the Climate Alliance."

Bielefeld 

Bielefeld has participated in the campaign every year since 2008. This year, 29 facilities participated to collect an impressive 40,259 Green Footprints from 4,755 kids. Huge thanks to everyone involved!

At a kindergarten in Bielefeld, a four-year-old girl girl was inspired by the Green Footprints campaign. She decided to ride her little bike all by herself along the Lutter River into the city, covering quite a distance. Her mom cycled alongside with a child trailer, ready to help if needed during the approximately 4km journey. The little one was so proud when she arrived at the kindergarten all by herself! 

Delbrück

In 2023, the dedicated efforts of Delbrück's young climate protectors resulted in a remarkable achievement of 5,108 Green Footprints. The primary schools in Weserloh and Ostenland played a significant role, contributing 3,842 Footprints, while four local kindergartens added 1,266 Footprints by earning 978 Green Footprints, along with 156 Red Footprints and 132 Blue Footprints. This collaborative endeavor showcases the outstanding commitment of the community's participants. Kudos to all for their exceptional efforts in making a difference! 

Dormagen

In the fall, Burg Elementary School in Hackenbroich once again took part in the Green Footprints campaign. Students from the 15 classes of grades 1 to 4 participated.

Eitorf

Frief e.V. Nachmittagsbetreuung am Teilstaudort collected a total of 243 Footprints from 73 kids. Of the 243 Footptints, 175 were green, 25 were blue, and 43 were orange.

District of Höxter

In 2023, communities in the Höxter district came together for the Children's Footprints Campaign, demonstrating remarkable dedication to environmental awareness. The Children's Lobby Menne led the way, contributing Footprints to schedules, symbolizing their commitment to reducing their ecological impact. Bad Driburg's Primary School under the Iburg saw 545 students embark on 6,674 car-free journeys, reflecting their determination to safeguard the planet. Steinheim's Buddelkiste Daycare made a mark with 330 Footprints, primarily on bikes or scooters.

Willebadessen's Family Center Am Park and Warburg's St. Martin Family Center actively engaged, accumulating 1,747 and 601 Footprints respectively. Borgentreich's Alsternest Stage Family Center celebrated 479 Footprints, while the Family Forum contributed 1,616 Footprints, emphasizing their dedication to sustainable mobility.

Glückspilz Frohnhausen Daycare consistently participated, totaling 721 Footprints. St. Nikolaus Family Center in Nieheim and St. Josef Vinsebeck Catholic Daycare in Steinheim added 179 and 407 Footprints, respectively. Flotte Rasselbande Riesel Daycare displayed 528 Footprints, reflecting their dedication to car-free mobility.

Rainbow Daycare in Höxter and the Primary School Union of the City of Beverungen continued their steadfast support, contributing 223 and an impressive number of Footprints respectively, emphasizing their enduring commitment to environmental conservation. These collective efforts underscore the profound impact that local communities can have when they unite for a common cause, leaving a lasting legacy of sustainable practices for future generations 

Geisenkirchen

Several child care facilities in the area have actively participated in the campaign, each contributing to a collective effort in environmental awareness. The Städtische Tageseinrichtung für Kinder und Familienzentrum Kriemhildstraße engaged in the campaign from September 18th to October 6th, 2023, encompassing four weeks of involvement. With 85 children distributed across four groups, the center aimed for three posters and needed a single class set. Additionally, they requested one extra accompanying booklet to facilitate their participation. Similarly, the Städt.

Tageseinrichtung Blumenstraße joined the initiative from September to October, spanning four weeks. In this period, 45 children from two groups were involved, with a requirement of two posters. They didn't request any extra materials, indicating a self-sufficient approach. The Städtische Tageseinrichtung Middelicher Straße participated from September 4th to September 15th, 2023, engaging for two weeks. With 22 children organized in one group, they aimed for one poster and didn't require additional materials.

Furthermore, the Städtische Tageseinrichtung für Kinder und Familienzentrum Leithestraße contributed to the campaign between September 11th and October 13th, 2023, covering four weeks. In this period, 115 children were divided into six groups. The center aimed for four posters and needed two class sets.

Additionally, they requested two extra accompanying booklets to enhance their participation. The Städtische Tageseinrichtung für Kinder und Familienzentrum Rotthauser Straße (Schweizer Dorf) embraced the campaign throughout September 1st to September 30th, 2023, participating for four weeks. 25 children from one group represented the center, aiming for one poster without any extra materials requirement.

Lastly, the Städtische Tageseinrichtung für Kinder Küppersbuschstraße participated from September to October, dedicating one week to the campaign. With 115 children spread across six groups, they didn't request any posters or extra materials, showcasing an efficient and focused approach to the initiative. In total, these facilities contributed to 19 weeks of active involvement, engaging 407 children across 20 groups. They requested 11 posters, three class sets, and three extra accompanying booklets collectively, emphasizing a concerted effort toward environmental education and awareness.

Geseke

In the town of Geseke, 744 elementary school students participated this year, collecting an impressive total of 8,265 Green, 927 Red, and 537 Blue Footprints in September. Together, they amassed an incredible 9,729 Footprints, a contribution they would like to take with them to the climate conference in Dubai. 

Güterlosch

The Hulahoop daycare center in Gütersloh not only likes to hula hoop, but is also committed to climate protection. For example, the daycare center has planted raised beds and collected Green Footprints for saving energy and climate-neutral mobility and climate-friendly nutrition.

During the climate week from May 2nd to May 12th, 2023, four groups comprising a total of 76 children actively participated in environmental initiatives. The yellow group collected 156 Green Footprints, along with 16 Red Footprints for climate-friendly food and 19 Blue Footprints for energy-saving efforts. The red group contributed 126 Green Footprints, 53 Red Footprints for sustainable food choices, and 17 Blue Footprints for energy conservation. The blue group gathered 177 Green Footprints, and the green group contributed 52 Green Footprints. Together, these groups amassed a total of 40,386 Green Footprints, emphasizing their commitment to environmental awareness. Additionally, they earned 7,786 Bonus Footprints, showcasing their dedication to comprehensive eco-friendly practices 

The photo shows a happy and a sad Earth, painted together with the children. Together, the group also thought about what makes the earth sad or happy in each case and pasted these visualizations on the respective earth.  

Hareswinkel

Last year, the Arche Noah daycare center in Harsewinkel took part in the Kids on the Move campaign and diligently collected Green Footprints. This year, the "DRK movement daycare center Freunde" also took part. They already have the name movement in their name. Then it must not have been so difficult for the children to cover everyday distances and routes to the daycare center on foot or by bicycle or scooter.
 
A group of 22 children aged 3-6 took part. They managed to collect 191 Green Footprints and 27 red ones. Congratulations! The DRK-Bewegungskita was also very diligent in implementing the blocks. 191 of the Mobility block were implemented and 37 of the Climate Protection on a Plate block.
 
The project started on May 22 and ended on June 2, 2023. On the first day, the educators discussed the booklets and materials with the children and pasted a Green Footprint on each child if he or she arrived at the daycare center without a car. Over the next few days, this was an integral part of the sitting circle.

At the same time, the children worked in small groups to paint their "way to the daycare" and posted these pictures. In addition, the children made several posters on which the advantages and disadvantages of different vehicles were discussed. A footprint was made for each child. And since not all children have the opportunity to come to the daycare center without a car, the DRK-Bewegungskita made many trips during the project period. The destinations were, for example, a grocery store, various playgrounds, the library, the surrounding area and the weekly market. At the weekly market, everyone then went shopping for regional foods together, and the next day the children cooked together and also ate lunch together with the whole group.

What a nice action! We are very pleased that Harsewinkel has participated so well and that we have implemented so much of the "Kids for Climate Action" campaign.

Herdecke

Werner Richard Schule's class 'Füchse' collected 441 total Green Footprints from 25 kids. Of the 441 Footprints, 266 were green, 62 were red, and 113 were blue.

Lage

In Lage, this year, the children of Kachtenhausen Elementary School, along with many other primary schools and daycare centers, collected Children's Footprints. Participation was widely popular, contributing to the development of environmentally conscious young citizens. The results from Lage are impressive! In total, they collected 797 green, 108 yellow, and 65 blue Footprints.

The Children's Footprints campaign in Lage introduces young residents to the importance of sustainable transportation early on. School principal Kerstin Bolling-Stock emphasizes that the children motivated each other and even convinced their parents to get more involved in climate action – as reported by the Lippische Landes-Zeitung.

Timotheus Peters, the city's climate protection manager in Lage, has planned an entire action week because the Children's Footprints campaign runs not only in Germany but throughout Europe.

Lengerich

At Hohne Elementary School, the students of Class 2a, under the guidance of teacher Andrea Brügmann, recently participated in the "Green Miles for the Global Climate" initiative organized by the Climate Alliance. Over three weeks, the 19 students focused on eco-friendly commuting to school and leisure activities, accumulating an impressive 652 "children's footprints." The initiative included tracking their climate-friendly journeys and encouraging parents to choose walking or cycling for short distances. The class also engaged in sustainability topics in their lessons, addressing issues such as waste reduction, water conservation, and animal welfare. As a conclusion, the students formulated ten wishes for a sustainable lifestyle and sent them to the Climate Alliance in Frankfurt. These wishes will be presented to politicians worldwide at the UN Climate Conference in Dubai in December 2023, showcasing how children can lead the way in climate protection. The students of Class 2a express their ongoing commitment to climate action, planning to contribute their ideas to the long-standing "Energy Detectives" working group at the school.

Leverkusen

In Leverkusen, Children's Footprints participants collected an impressive 23,729 footprints, proving not only their enthusiasm for sustainable mobility but also their commitment to environmental protection. This remarkable achievement is the result of dedicated and collaborative efforts from schools, teachers, parents, and, of course, the enthusiastic young participants.

The Green Footprints campaign in Leverkusen is not just a step towards a more environmentally friendly future but also an expression of children's awareness of the importance of sustainable transportation and nutrition. The collected footprints represent not only distances covered but also symbols of change achievable through small yet determined steps.

A total of 10 schools and 7 daycare centers participated. On November 28, the children will receive an award for their efforts. We think they truly deserve it for this fantastic accomplishment!  

Löhne

The collected Children's Footprints from the 12 participating classes of Löhne-Bahnhof Primary School are being sent. A total of 915 Green Footprints, 435 Red Footprints, and 333 Blue Footprints were gathered during the week from September 25th to September 29th, 2023.  

Lünen

The kids of Lünen actively participated in the 'Walking to the Daycare' campaign with the 80 children from Kita Marktgasse. They encouraged their parents to either walk or cycle with them to the daycare. If that wasn't possible, they asked their parents to park their cars as far away from the daycare as possible, allowing them to cover the last part of the journey on foot. In total, 320 green miles were collected during the campaign. 

Much

The Janusz-Korczak School participated again in 2023. The 60 children from Classes 2a, 2b, and 2c sent us 749 green, 123 red, and 179 blue footprints, along with their wish feet for the politicians. 

Ratingen

One daycare in Ratingen, Meygner Busch in Ratingen, collected children's footprints this week. In total, they collected 491 miles: 371 green footprints, 86 red footprints, and 34 blue footprints.

At Johann-Peter-Melchior School in Ratingen, all 8 classes with 220 children participated. The children at JPM diligently collected green miles last week, collecting a total of 2,294 miles.

All together, 2,785 green footprints were collected in Ratingen. The children found the campaign fantastic and would like to continue collecting. It was a great success!

Remsheid

In Remscheid, several schools participated in the campaign to reduce their environmental impact. 

At GGS Hackenberg, 4671 green footprints were collected by 284 students. Kita Hackenberg contributed 421 footprints with 88 children participating. GGS Hasten accumulated 2162 green footprints with 246 students involved. GGS Steinberg added 3943 green footprints with 198 students. KGS Franziskus gathered 3607 footprints, comprising 3113 green, 281 blue, and 213 red footprints, contributed by 335 students. GGS Mannesmann collected 1828 footprints, including 815 green, 77 blue, and 936 red footprints, with 145 students participating. Kita Ahörnchen's 87 footprints consisted of 83 green, 2 blue, and 2 red footprints from 64 children. FZ Johannes Nest gathered 248 footprints, including 201 green, 13 blue, and 34 red footprints, contributed by 75 students. GGS Kremenholl amassed 2587 green footprints with 156 students involved.

In total, these schools in Remscheid collectively collected 19554 footprints. This included 17977 green footprints, 380 blue footprints, and 1197 red footprints, with a total of 1591 children participating in the campaign. 

Rheda-Wiedenbrück

We received a great folder from the "evangelische Kindertageseinrichtung Sonnenschein" in Rheda-Wiedenbrück. It was filled with photos of activities such as the excursion to the castle park and the market, where the children had a look at the different types of fruit and vegetables together. The children collected Green Footprints not only during the walks, but also after having returned home from the day care center and on weekends with their parents - and so the group together managed to collect 1,045 Green Footprints in the period from May 1 - 12. We are as proud of this result as the teachers, parents and children! Congratulations for your efforts! 

Additionally, the Andreas-Wenneber GV Wenneberschule has successfully completed this year's participation in the Climate Footprints Campaign. In good weather, many families made an effort not to transport their children to school by car. Additionally, several classes refocused their lessons on the topic of climate protection.

The following footprints were achieved during the two weeks at the end of August:

Green footprints: 1889 Orange footprints: 247 Blue footprints: 98. This was quite successful considering the approximately 140 children involved.

A total of 2,934 Green Footprints were collected through the efforts of the "evangelische Kindertageseinrichtung Sonnenschein" and the Andreas-Wenneber GV Wenneberschule in Rheda-Wiedenbrück during their respective campaigns. Great work!

Solingen

For the 20th time, children from 22 Solingen daycare centers and students from 14 elementary schools were on the move again this year, collecting Green Footprints. 4,935 children took part and even managed to surpass last year's result. This year's Kids on the Move campaign was organized by the police's traffic accident prevention unit, the environmental advisory service of the NRW consumer center and the city's health service.
 
At the closing event at Westersburg Elementary School, the students of Class 4c proudly presented their school's collection results in the presence of Mayor Tim Kurzbach and other guests: 1,846 Green Footprints plus 446 additional Footprints (compared to last year: 4,160 Green Footprints and 6,206 additional Footprints).

With an average of 8.1 Green Footprints, the children experienced how great it is to master their everyday journeys without the parent cab. Even on the way to daycare or school, they got a good workout and exchanged the latest news with friends. They have experienced how much fun it is to be on the road like this and to protect the world's climate in the process. Health and fitness are promoted and safe traffic behavior is trained. The little ones showed the big ones how it's done: Don't argue for long, just get going and do what each individual can do to protect the climate.

In addition to the Green Footprints, the children could also earn extra footprints for energy saving and climate-friendly nutrition. Raising awareness for a climate-friendly and sustainable lifestyle.

The campaign was accompanied by other activities at the facilities:

• Walks in the neighborhood
• Children's city map: "Who lives where?" with photos in front of the individual front doors
• Excursion to the fauna or visit to the city library by bus
• A lot of walking; kindergarten walk in the past and today
• Hikes and walks in the forest and to the playground
• Cycling in the traffic garden
• Created and planted raised beds
• Waste separation practiced
• Plastic-free breakfast
• Electricity detectives and light service in the group / class

In total, children in Solingen earned 40,386 Green Footprints and 7,786 Bonus Footprints. As a thank you, all classes and groups received a certificate and pencils "I am an environmental professional" made of FSC-certified wood or a reflective "click bracelet" for traffic safety.
 

Steinfurt

The students of Hohner elementary school from the town of Lengerich (Steinfurt district) are out and about as climate protectors. Sustainability has long played a major role at Hohne Elementary School. In the past three weeks, a class has once again taken part in the Kids for Climate Action campaign, which is organized by the Climate Alliance and carried out in 25 European countries. It is coordinated by the Center for Sustainable Development of the Steinfurt district and the city of Lengerich.

Class 2a, under the guidance of their class teacher Andrea Brügmann, made a three-week effort to make as many trips to school and in their free time as possible in a climate-neutral manner by bicycle, scooter or on foot. As a result, the 19 children in Class 2a were able to collect a remarkable 652 Green Footprints.

In mid-March, the children received their collection booklets, in which they could stick colorful stickers for each climate-friendly trip they made to school, sports or friends. The children proudly shared their progress in class and repeatedly persuaded their parents to leave the car behind and walk or bike short distances. One boy successfully persuaded his parents to walk the short distance to the bakery on the grounds telling them that exercise is healthy, too.

In science lessons, the class worked on the topics of getting to school, avoiding and separating waste, sustainability, using precious drinking water and animal welfare. Their own behavior was questioned again and again and the children developed a lot of joy and great ambition in behaving in a climate-friendly way.
At the end of the activity, the class thought together about what wishes and ideas they could formulate to convince even more people to adopt a sustainable lifestyle. They wrote down ten wishes on colored feet and sent them to the Climate Alliance in Frankfurt, which will present them at the annual UN Climate Change Conference in Dubai in December 2023 to the politicians from all over the world who will be meeting there. Tens of thousands of children in Europe will be able to show how easy it is to make progress in climate protection.

The children in Class 2a want to continue their commitment to climate protection. Among other things, they will contribute their ideas to the "Energy Detectives" study group that has been running at the elementary school for many years.


 

WILLEBADESSEN

The team of the Kindergarden Brakel-Riesel reported: We accomplished many walks during this week: pony range, sportsground, playground… The kids were impressed and motivated us to explore new pathes eco-friendly.

Wuppertal

Students from Liegnitzer Str. Wuppertal participated in this year's Climate Miles campaign. The kids paid attention to climate-friendly mobility, regional food and sustainable energy and collected stickers.

In total, 120 children from 5 different classes were able to collect 1,100 climate-friendly Footprints. A really great result!