“In Concarneau, there is a real dynamic around educational areas. The territory has been identified, at the regional level, as particularly active,” observed, Tuesday October 15, Anne Bertin-Renoux, postdoctoral student at the École Normale Supérieure of the University of Rennes (35). The researcher in educational sciences made the trip to the town hall of Concarneau to discuss, at the end of the afternoon, with around twenty actors involved in this project (teachers, nature education associations , elected officials and town hall services). As a reminder, an educational area is a small natural territory managed in a participatory manner by the students of a school. In 2023, 76 marine educational areas and 40 terrestrial areas were labeled in Brittany.
Local actors who work in synergy
“The first educational area in Concarneau, that of Sables-Blancs beach, was created seven years ago. Since then, three other schools, Rouz, Keramporiel and Lanriec, as well as the Porzou college and the Pierre-Guéguin high school, have joined the movement. The City wanted to support this dynamic,” said Éric Malléjacq, education assistant. With renowned sponsors, such as Roland Jourdain, François Gabart, Nadia Ameziane and Jean-Pierre Nicolas, local structures with national influence, such as the Explore fund, Mer Concept and the Marine Station have also integrated these projects.
“By working on the retreat of the coastline, at Sables Blancs beach, the students were able to understand the risk of marine submersion in Concarneau. With a simulation of a one-meter rise in water levels, they came up with solutions. In addition to the dissemination of knowledge, educational areas also serve to prepare future citizens for the challenges of tomorrow,” concluded Nathalie Delliou, of Esprit Nat’ure and representative of several educational areas.
