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SSEEAAMMEEOO--JJaappaann EESSDD AAwwaarrdd Supporting Partner:

PART I: Details of Your School

1. Name of your school: Kiettisack International School

2. Full address: Lao-Thai Frienship Road,Sokpaluang Village,

Sisattanak District, Vientiane, Lao PDR, P.O. Box 4348

3. Country: Lao PDR

4. School’s telephone number (country code+city code+telephone number): 856-21-314979

5. School’s fax number (country code+city code+fax number): 856-21-312383

6. School’s email Address: chansanga@kiettisackinternationalschool.com

7. Name of the Head Master/ Principal/ School Director: Director Chansanga Valakone

8. Name of Teacher Coordinator: Teacher Steve Howard

9. Email address of the Coordinator: stevehoward1969@gmail.com

10. School website (if available): www.kiettisackinternationalschool.com

11. Educational level (Such as Kindergarten 1 to Grade/Year 9): Kindergarten 1 through to Grade 12

12. Number of teachers in your school: 25

13. Number of teachers participated in this programme: 4

14. Number of students in your school: 450+ PART II: Information about the School’s Programme The information of part II from no.1 to 13 should be no longer than nine (9) pages long of A4 in total. The information should be written in Times New Roman font, 11-12 point size. 1. Title of the school’s programme “Urban Vertical Farming To Promote Global Citizenship and Sustainability in the Lao PDR” 2. Summary of the programme (a half to one page A4) Education is widely considered a cornerstone of human development but our education systems currently do not always enable us to address challenges such as climate change, escalating food prices, global financial crises, growing inequality and rapid technological advances. In order to be in a position to address such challenges and bring about improvements in human

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well-being requires changes in what we know and do. We must envision a new kind of education which is Global Citizenship. The education we receive must give us an understanding of the global system and must empower individuals to make informed, appropriate decisions for environmental integrity and economic viability. By introducing our programme "Urban Vertical Farming" We can create a learning environment in which all of our students can one day understand, take part in and promote Global Citizenship. Our aim is to create a flourishing urban farm at our school in the hope that we can harvest future crops and sell them on the premises at an organic market. Finances made from the sales will be used to buy more “grow sticks” which will be distributed to the local heads of villages. We also plan to create a seed bank so as to be able to supply seeds along with the vertical farm kit. The students will educate the Heads of the villages in Global Citizenship and in the set up and ongoing care of the farms in the hope that future harvests will be used to fund further equipment and seeds which can be donated to the residents of the villages, giving them a sustainable solution to eradicate high food prices, foods that are non-organic and promote healthy eating. 3. Background information or reasons why the school created this programme We chose "Urban Vertical Farming" as our programme because at this Moment in time in our City (Vientiane) We are witnessing urbanization on a grand scale. Over the past twenty years Vientiane has gone from a sleepy riverside Capital to a City that has sprawled outwards to engulf rice paddies and agricultural land hectare by hectare. Not so long ago, maybe go back fifteen years, and you would not see many motorized vehicles of the four wheel type. Scooters were the mode of transport for those with money, those with less financial clout would meander through the streets on a bicycle. Then along came urban development. With this development came a rise in land prices. The people living at one time out in the suburban districts began to morph into urban dwellers as the expansion spread East and West along the Mekong and reached out to the North also, (The South of Vientiane forms the Border with neighbouring Thailand).In some ways this was a positive for the economy, the once poor people sold off their agricultural land to the developers yet they still retained their properties which stood upon the land. When you look at Vientiane today you see evidence of this in the small hamlet typed dwellings sandwiched in between office blocks. Year by year the land used for growing crops is getting further away from the City. Fruit and Vegetables and also meat and poultry have to travel many miles in badly maintained trucks that emit plumes of oily smoke along their journey, adding to Laos' already large carbon footprint if you compare it with the population. So, we studied some methods of urban farming and decided to create a vertical farm model that would be inexpensive to build, very low maintenance and using resources that are readily available to the local people of Vientiane. We want to bring the idea of inexpensive food production, healthy diet and at the same time help the environment in and around our City. By teaching our students methods of vertical gardening in an inner City School we hope that they will in turn begin to educate their peers so that urban vertical farming is a common practice in Vientiane. 4. Objectives/goals of the programme What is the overall objective? Promote the production and purchase of locally grown foods and to demonstrate the viability and Sustainability of urban food production and commerce and its role as an integral part of the community landscape. What are our goals? Provide the community with access to affordable fresh produce, and education on growing and preserving fresh produce and improved health through better diet, and to promote economic benefits of urban farming and the viability and sustainability of such efforts.

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5. Core competencies of students (e.g. knowledge and understanding, cognitive skills, non-cognitive

skills and behavioural capacities) that the school aims for within the programme. By running this programme the School hopes to help the Students to understand the concepts of Urban Vertical Farming and why it is a sustainable benefit to the local, and hopefully one day, the national community. We want them to gain a knowledge of the problems our Country will face in the very near future as investment and development begin to spread throughout the now rural areas of Lao PDR and leave the population with only a small amount of land and space to carry out conventional farming methods. Our aim as Teachers is to educate the Students so that they benefit not only from the academic studying of Global Citizenship but also in a practical and hands on approach to the subject. The way in which we teach the subject to the students we allow information to enter the mind in order to stimulate cognitive development through perception of sound, visual information, speech and touch. We also develop non cognitive skills by using the programme to help them gain perseverance, motivation and self-control. 6. Period of the time when the programme was or has been implemented We began our "Global Citizenship" Programme for this years Summer School project (July 2014). Four Teachers were involved in the classes, which replaced Our 'Co-Ordinated Science' with 'Environmental Science and Sustainability'. The Programme is also being carried through into the new Semester with its inclusion in our General Studies syllabus. Students from Year 7 to Year 12 are involved and actively participating in the upkeep of the Urban Farm every day.

7. Activities (Actions and strategies of implementation) Our initial implementation of the programme was to introduce Students to the concept of being a Global Citizen. At first they were unsure of the interpretation of what being good Global Citizens actually meant. Through information resources and presentations the Teachers helped to develop their understanding of the subject and to bring them on board with the idea of helping to provide sustainable futures not just on a global scale but also in our Country and our Community too. We then raised awareness that in the near future - by 2050 in fact, 80% of the Worlds land mass will be urbanized leaving only 20% for rural farming. Couple this with the rise in population by this time - approx. 2.3 Billion (for this figure alone we would need agricultural land 1.5 times the size of Brazil in order to produce food to sustain them) and they began to understand that this was a very real problem indeed. We then began brainstorming sessions and decided upon the idea of urban vertical farming. Although this is not a new idea it is something that has never been introduced to Laos. As a Third World Country we are still living somewhat in the 'dark ages' concerning technology and advanced scientific projects and we agreed that the design of our project and also the cost would be a major factor. We set the students the task of designing a system that would use inexpensive materials sourced locally. We looked at many different examples of vertical farming and settled on the use of 4" PVC soil pipe with holes cut out at set measurements. The whole concept of urban vertical farming is to reduce the area of land used to grow food but to increase the amount produced. We calculated that by using the soil pipe in 2 metre lengths then each section could produce 20 fruit or vegetable plants. The pipes are placed in 20 litre buckets that are filled with compost which are also used to grow low growing herbs. We also designed a self-watering system that will be installed in the near future so as to reduce the labor involved in the feeding process. The system consists of 1" PVC pipe running down the centre of the soil pipe, 3mm holes are drilled adjacent to the planting holes for the fruit and vegetables so as to provide water directly to the root ball of the plants without too much evaporation and water wastage.

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We incorporate 1” valves at the top of each system in order to control water flow to each unit. At the moment we are watering by hand but we have sourced a solar powered water pump that will provide water to the farm. This pump will be provided to us for free by an International Renewable Energy Company from Germany who are involved in a lot of projects for NGO Companies throughout Laos in order to provide water to isolated villages that are not connected to the main grid supply for water or electricity. We realised in the very early stages of the Programme (Week 1) that NONE of our students had ever grown any types of vegetable at home before. So we really had to start this project “from the ground up” in more ways than one. Using Internet sites such as “How To” and “Instructables” for research, the students began their learning curve on the road to becoming Urban Vertical Farmers. We broke the Programme down into stages so the students could be focused on certain things at certain times, without being overpowered by information. We felt that it was important to do this as the age range of our students (Year 7 – 9/10 year olds through to Year 12 – 16/17 year olds) was over a wide spectrum. Stage 1: Choose what type of seed/vegetable to grow: We want there to be a wide range of produce to sell when we harvest our farm for the first time, and also to provide us with seeds for our seed bank. The Students gathered information on the germination time of the seeds from internet gardening sites. Most of these sites were British or American where the planting of vegetables can only be done “after the last frost” We had fun explaining to the Students exactly what frost is – we have never had frost or snow in Laos! Stage 2: The Students then prepared seeds trays. Firstly they had to be taken home and washed in hot soapy water and rinsed in hot water so as to sterilise them. We explained to them the reason for this is that seeds can be affected by some types of bacteria causing them not to germinate. We then filled the trays with a 3” thick layer of prepared potting compost. The compost was lightly watered and the students then, using an ice cream stick, carved shallow furrows in the compost. They then sprinkled the seeds into the furrowed rows finally covering the seed rows with 2mm of topping off compost, again this was lightly watered. The ice cream stick was then marked up to show the type of seed and date of planting and pushed gently down into the compost at the side of the seed tray. The last thing we did at this stage was place the seed trays on the windowsill in the Science Lab, which happened to be on a Friday afternoon. Stage 3: The average germination time for the seeds was 7/10 days so when we returned to school on the Monday morning the Students were very happy to see some of the seeds had already germinated (Red beans, black beans and Chinese cabbage) It was on this day the students began their “Grow Diaries” Which was a daily log of activity from their seeds. Over the next few days all of the seeds had germinated and some of the stems were stretching for the sun and becoming ‘lanky’. We then placed the seed trays outside on a sheltered balcony at the back of the school. They were receiving approx. 8 hours of sunlight but they needed to be sheltered from the rainstorms as July is the beginning of our wet season here in Laos. At this stage we had the following seedlings growing: Tomatoes( Three different varieties) – Chilies – Okra – Lettuce – Black Beans – Red Beans – Yard Long Beans – Cucumber – Chinese Cabbage – Asian Basil – Coriander – Garlic – Lemon Grass

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Stage 4: We tended to the seedlings every day, checking the compost to ensure it was not too dry and watering when necessary. They had now sprouted their first sets of true leaves and were looking healthy. After two weeks of taking care of the seed trays we moved onto the transplanting stage. We used plastic cups instead of seedling pots as they are readily available and a lot cheaper. The Students were then instructed on how to ‘lift‘the seedlings out of their trays and on how to transfer them to the cups without damage to the tiny roots. Stage 5: It was now time to purchase the materials for the farm and begin initial construction. Here is our shopping list: 8 x 4m lengths of 4” UPVC soil pipe 12 x 1m lengths of 1” UPVC pipe 16 x 20 litre buckets 48 x 10 kg bags of potting compost We began by cutting the 4” pipe in half to provide us with the 2m lengths we required with the grow sticks. We also cut eight of the 1” pipes in half for the watering system. The 4” pipe was then marked out so as to cut out the holes for the seedlings to be planted through. The holes were cut out using a drill and a hacksaw (as can be seen in the photos provided). We then transported all of our equipment to our Senior Campus as this was to be the site of the farm. A place had been chosen that would give us approximately eight hours of sunlight per day. Stage 6: The 4” lengths of pipe were placed centrally in the buckets and the buckets were then filled up with potting compost. This held the ‘grow stick’ in place and also provided a medium for the low growing herbs. We then positioned the 1” pipe inside the 4” so that it was protruding from the top of the 4” 100mm. This will be attached later to the watering system. We need to wait for the compost to settle in the grow sticks and compact before the watering system is fully automated. The 4” pipes were then packed with compost, as we filled them to the level of each planting holes we planted the seedlings in the holes. We finalised the positions of the grow sticks and allowed the daily rain to compact the compost whilst also feeding the plants. On days when there was no rain we used a watering can to pour water into the 1” pipe. This is where we are at the moment. Once the compost has compacted we will fit the automated watering system and then plant the low lying herbs in the buckets.

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8. Teaching and learning methodologies that the school applies for promoting the core competencies as identified in number 5

1. Make Learning Relevant Students are more engaged in learning and retain knowledge better when they see that it is relevant and vital to their own success and happiness. By discovering Students' talents, learning styles, and interests, we can adjust teaching methods and strategies. By giving students a say in how the classroom operates, we increase Students' sense of ownership in the education process. 2. Create a Classroom Code of Conduct A positive and productive classroom requires a common understanding of positive and negative behaviors. To establish this understanding, We as Teachers ask Students to identify the ways they like to be treated. This discussion elicits lists of behaviors that are respectful, fair, kind, and empathetic. Together, Teachers and Students agree that treating others the way you want to be treated is the best code of conduct, and We agree that this code will dictate the behaviors that are appropriate for their classroom. 3. Teach Positive Actions We need to teach Students positive behaviors in a thorough, consistent, systematic way; We cannot assume that Students just know them. In Kiettisack International School We cover the following concepts: The importance of doing positive actions to feel good about yourself. Positive actions for a healthy body (such as nutrition, exercise, and sleep). Positive actions for the intellect (such as thinking, decision-making, and problem-solving skills). Positive actions for self-management (such as managing time, energy, emotions, and other personal resources). Positive actions for getting along with others (such as treating others fairly, kindly, and respectfully). Positive actions for being honest with yourself and others (such as taking responsibility, admitting mistakes, and not blaming others). 4. Instill Intrinsic Motivation Students need to feel good about themselves. At KIS, Teachers help Students understand that people are likely to feel good about themselves when they engage in positive actions. Our School explains a three-step process for choosing positive actions: First, we have a thought; second, we act consistently with the thought; third, we experience a feeling about ourselves based on the action. That feeling leads to another thought, and the cycle starts again. With practice, Students learn that if they have a negative thought, they can change it to a positive one that will lead to a positive action and a positive feeling about themselves—a powerful intrinsic motivator. With repeated reinforcement by Our Teachers, this simple explanation helps Students understand and improve their behavior in any situation.

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5. Reinforce Positive Behaviors Teachers can strengthen intrinsic motivation by recognizing and positively reinforcing positive actions when they see them. Recognition activities and items—such as chart points, stickers, and certificates—can be effective. When Our Teachers or other Staff use this strategy, it is important that they recognize the positive behavior, ask how it made the Student feel, and tell the Student the extrinsic reward is a reminder of that good feeling. When Students make the connection between their performance and feeling good about themselves, intrinsic motivation is enhanced and positive behaviors continue. 6. Always Be Positive Perhaps the most important strategy, yet often the most difficult to carry out, is to be positive—from classrooms to playgrounds, during school and after. There is always a positive way to respond to a situation. A positive attitude is the change agent that will create positive classrooms and schools that produce happy and successful Students. 9. Partnership, community participation and international connection (Details of partners, their roles

and activities that they have involved) Partnerships: It is our intention to run this Programme at our sister School – KIS Luang Prabang in the North of Laos once we have perfected and finalised the programme in Vientiane. Community Participation: Once we reach the first harvest of our farm we will hold an organic market at the school for the residents of Vientiane. Funds raised from this will help us buy more equipment which we plan to donate to The Village Chiefs in the surrounding community and to then educate the communities in Urban Vertical Farming. International Participation: We have received Teaching Resources from The British Red Cross, who are an International Charity. We have also received Training resources from Oxfam International. We are also organizing through T. John Warren, from JBAC School in Nong Khai Thailand, to visit the School to give a presentation on Urban Vertical Farming in order to promote Global Citizenship and Sustainability for the local Communities. 10. Monitoring and evaluation mechanisms and summary of results Monitoring and evaluation mechanisms: Use of learning journals.

We like to give our Students the opportunity to reflect and write down their learning during and after Programme activities. This improves learning outcomes and is also a useful technique for those who want to improve their facilitation style and method.

Use the skills and experience of the group.

Find out the skills, backgrounds and experiences of the Students. Empower the group to support each other and encourage them to take decision roles about how the programme develops.

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The use of local and global media studies.

Newspaper articles, films and images to stimulate conversation and learning. Reports and essays that are of relevance can also be found on the internet. We encourage our students to use many resources to further educate them in Global Citizenship for a Sustainable Future.

Breaking the Programme down into modules for evaluation.

We give the students milestones throughout the programme, after a milestone is reached we look back over it and have a Q & A session. Some of the questions we ask are:

How did you feel during this part of the Programme? Why? What did you learn during this part of the Programme? Are there different perspectives? How can we learn from this part of the Programme to help us during our journey towards becoming good Global Citizens now and in the future? Summary of results: Developing Global Citizenship within our School Curriculum is about recognising our responsibilities towards each other and the wider world. The outcome will be our Students as global citizens are able to take up their place in the world, contribute to it confidently, successfully and effectively, understanding the rights and responsibilities of living and working in a globalised Planet . Global citizenship is a holistic approach to developing the four capacities within learners. It encourages the development of our Students as independent, creative and critical thinkers, confident in themselves, secure in their own beliefs and values, committed to active participation in society, respectful of others and willing to find solutions to local and global problems. 11. Resources used for programme implementation myfolia.com – gardening and growing site with an abundance of information on plants and vegetables, from seed preparation right through to the harvesting phase. howto.com – An excellent website that explains in a step by step method, how to do practical themes and projects. instructables.com – Similar to howto.com in the way it gives clear instructions for projects searched for. The British Red Cross 12. Benefits/Impacts/ positive outcomes of the programme to students, school and community Firstly, Global citizenship covers a lot of ground. Thus, it is useful to consider the term “Global Citizenship” as shorthand for the habits of mind and complex learning associated with global education. The concept is useful and important in several respects. First, a focus on global citizenship puts the spotlight on why internationalisation is central to a quality education for our Students and emphasizes that internationalisation is a means, not an end. Serious consideration of the goals of internationalisation makes student learning the key concern rather than counting inputs.

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Second, the benefits of encouraging our Students to consider their responsibilities to their communities and to the world around them, institutions, and society. Simply put, an education which does not provide effective tools and forums for our Students to think through their responsibilities and rights as one of the several billions on planet Earth, and along the way develop their moral compass, would be a failure. Strengthening institutional commitment to serving society enriches the institution, affirms its relevance and contributions to society, and benefits communities (however expansive the definition) and the lives of their members. Third, the concept of Global Citizenship creates conceptual and practical connections rather than cleavages. The commonalities between what happens at home and "over there" become visible. The characteristics that human beings share are balanced against the differences that are so conspicuous. On a practical level, Global Citizenship provides a concept that can create bridges between the work of internationalisation and multicultural education. Although these efforts have different histories and trajectories, they also share important goals of cultural empathy and intercultural competence. No concept or term is trouble-free; no idea goes uncontested by some faculty member or group. For better or for worse, Global Citizenship will undoubtedly provoke disagreements that reflect larger academic and philosophical debates. There is plenty of skepticism about Global Citizenship. Some object to any concept that suggests a diminished role for the nation and allegiance to it or the ascendancy of global governance systems. The idea of developing our Students moral compasses can raise questions about whose values and morals and how our School can undertake this delicate task. Some students will choose not to accept responsibility for the fate of others far away, or may see inequality as a permanent fact of life. Some faculty will stand by the efficiency and wisdom of the market; others will see redressing inequality as the key issue for the future of humankind. And so on. Such debates, sometimes civil or unfriendly, are, for better or worse, the making of our School and Community on the road to becoming Global Citizens. Implementing new ideas—even if they have been around for a very long time as in the case of Global Citizenship—can be slow and painful. However, if Kiettisack International School can produce Students with the knowledge and the disposition to be Global Citizens, the world would certainly be a better place. 13. Plan for sustainability and plan for the future Plan for sustainability: In order for our Urban Vertical Farm to be sustainable we must take conventional farming methods and adapt them to our situation. It will not be just a case of sow-feed-harvest again and again. In order not to affect soil properties and quality we must rotate our crops every six months. Certain vegetables will thrive on potassium rich soils but once the soil becomes exhausted of that potassium then it would not be possible to produce that particular type of vegetable. Another type of vegetable may release potassium into the soil as a byproduct which is something we need to study and learn about as our project progresses. It would not be sustainable or eco-friendly to just keep replacing the soil and compost in our farm every time the mineral content had become exhausted. Often is the case in conventional farming that a field is left “fallow” for a growing cycle. The fact that the field is rested aids in its recovery and reproduction of minerals, this is another possibility we could look to, it is not necessarily a case of much gets more. It might be that we need to allow recovery time to get the best out of our grow sticks in the way of production.

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Plan for the future: In the Community: Our main plan for the future is to work with the communities in Vientiane City and the surrounding districts that are now blanketed by mass urban development. I have mentioned previously that we will approach Village Chiefs to obtain their permission to expand our project and to educate local communities on the importance of Global Citizenship through a sustainable future. The structure of the communities in Lao PDR is that each district has a Village Chiefs (Nae Ban) office. All residents use the office to communicate any problems within the village and to air any grievances to the district department. The Nae Ban is in a position to find solutions so as the district and its residents have a harmonious life. Our plan is to speak with the Nae Ban and present our project to him in the hope he will come on board with the idea of Urban Vertical Farming in the community. We will provide free equipment to him and educate his department on the positive influences people obtain as Global Citizens. The next step is to involve the residents and teach them how to vertical farm. With funds raised through our harvest sales and hopefully some minor funding from the district office we hope to make Urban Vertical Farming a success story in our local communities. Nationally: Our intentions for the future on a National scale once we have ironed out any creases in our present Programme is to then introduce the Programme to our Luang Prabang Campus of Kiettisack International School. Luang Prabang is situated in the very Northern part of Laos. The area has not been urbanised in the same way as Vientiane and we hope that we can take our message of being good Global Citizens to the people and outlying communities in order to educate and prepare them in the methods of Urban Vertical Farming. Internationally: We are working towards a date in the future when our programme is perfected to introduce the project through a presentation by Students from Kiettisack International to JBAC School in Nong Khai, North Eastern Thailand. Nong Khai is very close to the border crossing into Thailand from Vientiane. We have approached Teacher John Warren from JBAC and he has agreed that the presentation would be very beneficial to the Students there and that after the presentation he would work towards putting a Programme together with his own students so as to assist the Community around Nong Khai Province in moving towards good examples of Global Citizenship. 14. List of attachments such as a copy of the school operational plan, learning/ teaching materials,

samples of student worksheet, manual, etc. If the attached materials are in the local language, please provide a brief description in English language.

Attachment 1) Introduction to Global Citizenship Attachment 2) Oxfam Teachers Guide Attachment 3) Urban Farming Report

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15. Photos related to the activity/programme (Maximum of 6 photos with captions in English) Photo1

Seed Trays With Basil and Okra Seedlings 1 week old. Photo 2

Transplanting from Seed Trays into pots.

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Photo 3

Selection of seeds we received from one of our Teachers after a visit to U.K. Photo 4

Cutting holes in the Grow Sticks.

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Photo 5

Beans, Cucumbers and Chillies growing in our Urban Vertical Farm.

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Photo 6

Our Urban Vertical Farm Facebook Social Media Page.