Why island schools?

Working together on a European level to create sustainable education for Europe's island communities

De Jutter is a school on the Dutch island of Vlieland, about two hours by ferry from the mainland. It is now the only school on the island after the primary and secondary schools were merged due to the dwindling number of school-age children in the island’s one village. This is a unique situation in the Netherlands, but my no means an exception when you zoom out to a European level. From Scotland to Greece, Finland to Croatia, island schools across Europe are finding ways to provide quality education in spite of their isolated locations and small size. But what could they achieve if they work together?

This became the Island Schools project (originally called iSHRINK) which in August 2020 was approved a three-year grant under the EU’s Erasmus+ programme. The Island Schools project will connect Europe’s island schools with one another to create innovative education based around sustainability challenges. With project partners from Iceland, the Netherlands, the UK, Spain and Greece, the project will have top universities working on education and sustainability work with island schools to co-create learning materials which place the emphasis on pupils’ active citizenship and the sustainable future of their islands.