We then decided to explore the building by visiting each floor, starting with the fifth floor which is an interdisciplinary space with social and science researchers. We said hello to my colleague, Hyab, from UNESCO RIELA office, and came up With the idea of creating a zine afterwards. Walking through the corridors, we spoke about the possible experiments at the science labs and looked at some on-going experiments!

On second floor, we visited the ‘Makers’ space, learning about crafts and 3D printing. Going back to fifth floor, we decided to create a zine about our visit to ARC and anything else everyone found interesting. At the end, everyone took the zine away to share with the classroom. Being present in one of the meeting rooms, we decided the next meeting would be about the sun!

To catch these pulses of nature, we are happy to share with you a sneak peak of our wind chimes. Designed by children across three primary schools and led by our ceramics artist Louise McVey, the wind chimes will travel to the schools’ gardens and add sound, story, colour, and light to the school communities. The pieces of the wind chimes have all been created in school by the crafty hands of our learners who share through their creations their imagination and knowledge of nature, as well as their words and languages that weave into their natural environment:

wind breeze           буря         cyclone        l’ ouragan    凍   tornado     windy        

     zephyr        makani        derecho         gale           le vent     

    windstorm             viento     आंधी तूफान      la brise   thunderstorm      رياح    مطر        adiere     chuva   風    

We hope to see you back as we document the journey of the wind chimes and the impact they have on our schools.

The exhibition launched during Languages Week Scotland 2026 at the University of Strathclyde, where the children’s logo designs were proudly displayed in the Lord Hope building. Parents, children, teachers and colleagues gathered for the special launch event on Monday 2nd February, marking an inspiring start to the exhibition’s journey. Guests were invited to leave a comment in the visitors’ book in a language of their choosing, creating a wonderful tapestry of multilingual messages to accompany the artwork.

Following its successful debut, the exhibition travelled west to the University of Glasgow, where it has been on display at the Advanced Research Centre (ARC) since the launch event on Monday 23rd February. Visitors there were also invited to contribute by writing words on wooden shapes, adding their own languages and voices to this growing celebration of diversity and creativity.

But the journey doesn’t stop there….

If you didn’t manage to catch the exhibition in February, we’re delighted to share some exciting news! From 9th March to 7th April, the full collection of children’s designs will be showcased at the iconic Glasgow City Chambers. We are absolutely thrilled to bring this vibrant display to the heart of the city and to highlight the remarkable artistry, imagination and multilingual voices of the young learners. We warmly invite you to pop along, explore the inspiring designs, and read the multilingual quotes shared by children about their experience of the project. Be sure to sign the visitors’ book and add a word in a language you know to the language tree on display.

We are now moving into Year 2 and we are looking for a diverse range of 10 primary schools to work with us. Participating schools will:

• take part in professional learning for teachers
• trial arts-based activities with learners to support languages taught and represented in their classrooms
• collaborate to co-create learning framework
• support learners in developing their language skills and global citizenship

Each school involved will receive £5,000 to support their participation in the project.

Register interest by close of business on Friday 27 March 2026.

Photo by Monica Sedra on Unsplash

Louise is bringing to the project wonderful concept ideas that materialise and integrate permaculture design principles and a passion for interactive artistry. Her creations set up beautiful dialogues with nature and one of her most recent projects is a Living Bench. The short video below (4 min.) created by Paul McConnach gives you an insight into the creative process, starting with the concept idea, moving into action, and leading towards the completed bench design now awaiting nature to contribute to the Living Bench.

The Living Bench is a wonderful example of how art integrates into nature’s rhythms. It is also a call for all of us working interdisciplinarily to pay attention to the edges of our professional trainings, to open up to new fields and ask questions anew, to move more into the life of communities that surround us. In these ways, we will be able to discover new solutions that our current environments really need. If you’re interested in knowing more about what Louise is currently working on in our project, follow our upcoming blogs where we will soon share stories about our school windchimes.

At the launch event, you will also have the opportunity to meet some of the SDLL team and find out more about this exciting, innovative, and collaborative research project, and its aims for shaping sustainable and multilingual learning environments.

The video below shows entries at the judging panel.

One of the activities delivered across schools was Plant Detectives. In this session, children explored their school grounds and nearby outdoor spaces equipped with magnifying glasses, transforming familiar surroundings into landscapes of discovery. Children carefully examined leaves, stems, and tiny organisms, often expressing surprise at the complexity and beauty revealed through close observation. The act of slowing down and looking closely encouraged patience and curiosity, helping children realise how much is happening just beneath the surface of everyday environments. Alongside practical exploration, teachers and the research team facilitated reflective conversations, prompting the learners to think more deeply about what they were seeing. Questions such as how plants adapt to their surroundings, what conditions support growth such as the importance of sun and shade prompted further discussion.

Another activity focused on observing an element that is often invisible yet constantly present: the wind. Through the creation of clay wind chimes, children discussed how wind moves through environment. They spent time thinking about the wind, noticing where it travelled, and how it interacted with buildings, trees, and open spaces. These observations informed their designs as they shaped clay pieces intended to respond to movement and sound. Working with clay encouraged a mindful, hands-on approach to making. Once installed outdoors, the wind chimes will become an ongoing tool for observation, allowing children to listen to and reflect on the presence of wind over time.

The impact of these activities has been strongly felt by teaching staff. Reflecting on the project, Lynne McGinn, Head Teacher at West Primary School, shared: “Taking part in the Learning for Sustainability project is helping to transform the way our children see the world. Through hands-on workshops and meaningful real-life experiences, our pupils have grown in confidence, curiosity, and compassion. As teachers, we have seen pupils take ownership of their environment, ask deeper questions, and recognise the power they have to create positive change—both in school and beyond.”

Across all schools, the work so far has established observation as a shared practice between researchers, artists, teachers, and pupils. Next term we will move on from observation as we start to think about the next stages of permaculture design: analysis and design.

Sustainable Designs for Living and Learning gives children and their teachers a creative lens through which to explore the natural world around them, finding vocabulary to describe their environment, their experiences, and their place within it. We know that the ability to communicate in more than one language brings profound benefits for individuals and society, developing empathy, curiosity, and global awareness. By adopting multilingual approaches  that enable all children to thrive, our hope is that is they grow into responsible, sustainable global citizens, confident in their voices and empowered to reach their full potential.

Photo by Francesco Gallarotti on Unsplash