Following the launch of the European Blue Education Framework organized earlier this year, we are continuing the discussion on blue education, with special focus on teachers’ professional development. This fourth workshop in the BlueLightS Blue Education Framework Workshop Series explored how to strengthen teachers’ ocean literacy and support sustained professional growth through effective training and professional development models.
The session was held on 28 May 2026 and focused on identifying scalable, impactful approaches that empower educators with the knowledge, confidence, and pedagogical tools needed to integrate Blue Education across subjects and levels of formal schooling.
The event was moderated by Rita Silva (Ciência Viva) who provided an overview of the professional development section, as presented in the Blue education framework. Rita underlined the importance of teachers’ role as the most significant school-related factor influencing student learning outcomes and provided examples of compulsory and voluntary activities comprised in teachers’ professional development.
Teresa Vilaca, representing the Association for Teacher Education in Europe (ATEE) and the University of Minho, emphasised the importance of connecting research with classroom practice through international collaboration. She presented the work of the Research and Development Community (RDC) on Health, Environment and Sustainability Education, which brings together researchers, teacher educators, teachers, school leaders and students. The initiative encourages teachers to contribute to research processes from the outset, fostering a collaborative culture where educational innovation is co-created rather than imposed. Additionally, Teresa presented RDC model of teacher professional development, which follows a cycle ranging from investigating school needs to scaling up successful practices through peer mentoring and school networks. She stressed that Blue Education is a transversal educational priority recognised by UNESCO and underlined that empowering teachers with confidence, research knowledge and practical tools is essential for creating meaningful educational change at both national and international levels.
Alessandro Pumpo, Director of Europass Teacher Academy in Spain and Portugal, presented the programme ‘Blue Schools: Where Sustainability and Innovation Meet’ where he showcased how creativity, design, STEAM education, educational innovation and human ecology create opportunities for teachers to explore water-related to The course has attracted interest from schools in diverse geographical settings, demonstrating that Blue Education is relevant far beyond coastal communities. According to Pumpo, artistic expression can inspire empathy, encourage action and support behavioural change. To learn more about the available courses, see here: https://www.teacheracademy.eu/
Following the broader strategic perspective presented by Teresa and backed by pedagogical innovation and forward-looking perspective on sustainability-related topics presented by Alessandro, the third speaker offered examples on how it looks like in practice, for both pre-service teaching and teacher development trainings.
Noirin Burke, Director of Education at Galway Atlantaquaria presented Explorers Education Programme, and shared stories of this programme which has been promoting ocean literacy for over 20 years. Noirin led us through different training formats and reflected on the lessons learned. She also highlighted challenges associated with outdoor learning, including weather conditions, transport logistics and limited confidence among some teachers, particularly those still in training.
Finally, this session raised interesting questions from the audience, among which the topics related to the most engaging teaching methods for teachers, measuring success of the Blue education, and the best practices for addressing teachers’ fatigue and lack of time for the teaching practices.
Addressing these concerns, the speakers highlighted the potential of arts, mindfulness, philosophy and somatic practices to support wellbeing and reduce overstimulation, the importance of involving teachers in the design of professional development activities, and overall, promoting supportive school leadership and fostering community engagement.
With this event, we mark the conclusion of the Blue Education Framework series, but – the conversation does not end here! We invite all interested stakeholders to keep the discussions alive and engage in interesting exchanges by joining our Blue Education Platform and connecting with like-minded professionals!
Watch the recording of the workshop here:
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