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Globeducate Spain Schools Work With ENDESA X on Extensive Solar Power Project

Globeducate Spain Schools Work With ENDESA X on Extensive Solar Power Project

Globeducate, one of the world´s leading K12 education groups, has joined forces with Endesa X, an innovative renewable energy company in Spain and Portugal, to install photovoltaic solar panels to allow Globeducate schools in Spain to work towards self-sufficiency for energy, covering 30% of energy needs and reducing their environmental footprint.

The initiative will help the schools on their path towards sustainability and to achieving their targets to address some of the UN Sustainable Development Goals by 2030, and the schools will be advised by energy experts from Endesa X. The company´s target is total decarbonisation by 2050.

As part of Globeducate´s Eco-Week, students in Globeducate Spain schools took part in training sessions to ensure students are fully aware of the significance and impact of these installations.
 

 

From an educational perspective, the aim is to raise awareness of the environment and sustainability so that, over time, today's children and adolescents can pass on their commitment and motivation to live sustainably, from generation to generation. This educational project that goes all the way from the classrooms to the rooftop. Students will participate in this project in all phrases, from its design to implementation and impact measurement.

Overall, more than 2,040 photovoltaic modules will be installed on the flat roofs of the educational centres, which represents a total power of 1.1 MWp and is expected to produce around 1.200 MWh/year for self-consumption. This will cover 30% of the educational group's energy needs in these buildings and will enable it to move firmly towards sustainability, as it will reduce its carbon footprint by 293 tonnes of CO2 per year, the equivalent of the absorption capacity of 1,755 trees/year.

This initiative will not only reduce traditional energy consumption, reducing the environmental impact, but will also raise awareness in the educational community of the importance of adopting measures that generate a real impact on environmental protection, both locally and globally, while opening a new educational channel by involving the students in the installation of the panels and in monitoring the impact that the project will have on their local environment.

"Our mission, Shaping the World, is about changing the world, and our students can and should be at the centre of this change, empowering them to take charge. A clear example is the initiative that has resulted in the development of this ambitious and pioneering project", explains the CEO of Globeducate Spain and Andorra, Carolina Rodríguez Inciarte. "This is a complete initiative that combines soft skills - so necessary to face the challenges of the world we live in today - with more academic scientific content, such as measuring energy consumption to design the project and analysing data to subsequently measure its impact", adds Rodríguez Inciarte.

 

Endesa X´s  Head of B2B Sales Channels, Jose Carlos Fernández Rey, began working with students on the topic of solar energy las week, with two interactive face-to-face sessions at Agora Granada College International School, for primary and secondary phases. More than 3,600 students and 100 students from other eight other Globeducate schools in Spain, including seven Agora International Schools in the group participated remotely. The sessions had both theoretical and practical content, considering renewable energies with a focus on photovoltaic installations.

"The most enjoyable part of the workshop was when we presented two case studies to the students: first we imagined that we were installing photovoltaic solar panels in their homes or in one of their surroundings and, from there, and with the tools and knowledge we provided them with, they had to study how many panels could be installed to generate 30% of the energy we need at home. We also did the same exercise, sizing the photovoltaic plant for their schools and we asked them several questions to solve", explained Fernández Rey. The students have explored how much power the solar installation should have, which is the best orientation, how much clean energy it will produce and the level of CO2 emissions it will save, among other things.

The challenge of installing solar panels in the group's schools in Spain during this school year arose from the Globeducate student community, led by the Eco Committees of the Eco Schools programme in each school, aware of the importance of playing their part in this great challenge to curb the impact of climate change on our planet.

Last October, eight of the 12 Globeducate schools in Spain and Andorra officially received the Green Flag for sustainability awarded by ADEAC (the Association for Environmental and Consumer Education), in recognition of all the environmental awareness-raising work carried out both inside and outside the classroom by the schools' educational communities. The award was an incentive to continue working for the care of the environment and the sustainability of our surroundings. The installation of solar panels that will now be carried out by Endesa X is an example of this commitment and student-led action for positive change.

Read more about the Globeducate Eco-Schools project here.