Georesources, finding the perfect mixture between science and dissemination in PCTO activities

The critical role of georesources and the environmental footprint of human activities in shaping the current and future society are sometimes overlooked by the public, especially by the youngest generations. Mining is often associated with environmental threats and dangers while the importance of georesources is greatly underestimated or, worse, neglected. This despite the fact that responsible exploitation of georesources is a pivotal requirement to reshape the current economic model into a more environmentally friendly while still maintaining a sustainable economic growth. In the framework of PTCO (Paths for Transversal Skills and Orientation) activities we have organized a 15-hours project aimed to sensibilize students to the needs and risks of mining activities. Laboratories, movies, frontal lectures, thought experiments and the interactive visits to the Earth Sciences facilities have been organized attempting to keep an informal context to obtain high levels of engagement and participation. The project has so far been presented to 19 high school classes and over 360 students. Following each cycle, students were invited to fill a three-minute anonymous questionnaire to evaluate the project offering valuable insights for further improvement and development of the activities. Not surprisingly, the most appreciated activity was at the lab facilities at the department, which was deemed by the majority “too short”, highlighting the need to produce more active-oriented environments to engage the students.