TSA and Finnish students collaborate on social impact projects
International travel is a privilege that should be more universally experienced. Exposure to different peoples, cultures, climates, and geography is an education that affects a person’s outlook for their whole lives. The Sharon Academy is a small school that values the deeper learning that comes from cultural exchange. This year, eight high school students are having this opportunity. On Monday, February 26, they will depart for almost two weeks in Finland. There they will meet and work with students they have been collaborating with since September.
Back in January 2023, then Middle School teacher Fallon Abel went to Finland on a Fulbright Distinguished Award in Teaching grant to research how schools can better support teen mental health and social-emotional wellness. In addition to her Fulbright project, she teamed up with Finnish teachers Maria Virokannas and Jaana Ikonen to create a yearlong program in which their respective classes would work together on social action projects to address global issues, such as climate change and social inequity.
This multi-faceted, once-in-a-lifetime experience dubbed “Fostering Hope” seeks to inspire and empower students through digital and in-person exchanges that focus on addressing UN Sustainable Development Goals. Working across cultures fosters meaningful relationships and the global perspective needed to tackle these complex problems. Identifying and collaborating on projects with a range of formats (film, podcasts, etc), the students educate and inspire other youth when they present their outcomes at symposiums.
The Finnish and American students have chosen issues affecting their own communities. With a difference of seven time zones, the students have been meeting weekly with their Finnish counterparts via Zoom, often arriving at school at 7:15am for 8am meetings, which is 3pm in Finland. At these meetings, the students have shared their progress, collaborated, and learned about one another’s cultures
Owen Brackett ‘27 shared that the fast fashion industry is responsible for producing over 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions annually and that most of US clothing waste is packaged and shipped to a developing country. “For my project, I am going to turn one of the unused yurts into a free clothing store for TSA High School. For now, it is going to be a place for people who need or want winter clothing and don’t want to spend a bunch of money on clothes and gear when there is plenty that people have just sitting around at home. I am hopeful that I will be able to create a store that truly helps my community and inspire others to do little things getting used clothing so that we can all work towards a better world.”
Abe Dunne ‘26 seeks to help local Vermont communities reduce “charging deserts,” areas where there are limited or no opportunities to recharge Electric Vehicles (EVs). “In 2016, transportation made up 44.5% of the state’s total emissions,” noted Abe. One promising solution is getting schools to install chargers for their buses and trucks as well as student, faculty and visitor vehicles. “ I hope to work with local school boards to help with budgeting, talk with students and teachers to get their side of the story and hopefully their support, and to help the schools pay for any chargers through fundraising and grants. My goal is to help reduce our carbon footprint and increase EV driving in our local communities.”
The UN Sustainability Goals extend beyond issues of the environment. Goal number four calls for efforts to provide Quality Education, recognizing the importance of developing human potential as the basis of solving every other issue of sustainability. Astrid Girdwood ‘27 is one of twenty percent of the population who learns with Dyslexia, a group that represents 80–90 percent of all those with learning disabilities. “I would like to educate people on dyslexia and how it affects people, especially kids. It has been my experience that many teachers do not understand the challenges that dyslexic students face. I would like to change that.” Astrid is working on a documentary about how people with dyslexia learn. She will share her own experiences, interview TSA teachers, and gather information from the Finnish students about learning disabilities in other cultures and languages. Ultimately, she hopes to share her documentary at one of the teacher in-service training days and provide resources for how to better support dyslexic students.
Lucy Proulx ‘26 is also taking a broad approach to moving the needle on climate change. She seeks to get people invested in climate issues by focusing their attention on the outdoors.”I hypothesize that people’s lack of connection to winter and the outdoors is causing less motivation and drive to protect it from climate change. When enough people enact change; “bigger picture change” happens.” Quoting Kurt Kauter, she explained why she calls her project “The Weight of One Snowflake.” “I counted the snowflakes settling in the twigs and needles of my branch. Their number was exactly 3,741,952. When the 3,741,953rd dropped onto the branch, nothing more than nothing, as you say – the branch broke off (Kauter).”
The Finnish students
In addition to their projects, TSA students will learn about Finnish culture by staying at the homes of the Finnish students and attending school with them. From learning about Finland’s public transit systems and education system to experiencing different product packaging and school lunches, TSA students will gain valuable global perspectives.
The school the students will attend is Sibelius-lukio, an upper secondary school that serves grades 10-12 with a special charter to specialize in music and dance. Located in the country’s capital Helsinki, the students will encounter a large city with a population and infrastructure that is in stark contrast to rural Vermont. In addition to attending classes, they will have the opportunity to visit art, history, natural and cultural museums, tour the city, and explore the Nuuksio National Park and other interesting sites. An important part of their experience in Finland will be giving a presentation to Finnish students and teachers about American education and participating in a youth-led symposium where they will teach others about their projects.
When these eight students return from Finland they will have been changed. Not only will they have learned important life skills, grown intellectually, and matured socially, they will have a better understanding of their place in the world and the potential for their ideas and actions to make a difference in the world. They will also have the opportunity to be the hosts for their Finnish counterparts in May, when the Finnish students travel to Vermont to have their own homestay experience and learn about American culture.
This program would not have been possible without the support of several grants and donations. The Transatlantic Classrooms Program sponsored by the Finnish Ministry of Education and the US Embassy in Finland provided the primary grant for this exchange. The collaboration between The Sharon Academy and Sibelius-lukio, one of 20 international collaborations chosen, is one of the few given enough funds to facilitate student travel. Additional funding to ensure that all TSA students were able to travel for free was provided by grants from The Kathryn Wasserman Davis Collaborative in Conflict Transformation, coordinated by the Bread Loaf Teacher Network at Middlebury College, VT’s Most Promising Jobs initiative through the McClure Foundation, the Bethel and Randolph Rotary Clubs, and a private donation.
To learn more about the program, follow the students on Instagram at tsa_goes_to_finland or read their blog