CRESCENDO was a European Union Horizon 2020 Research Project that worked towards further developing computer models that can be used to understand and predict the future of the Earth’s climate.
Earth System Models (ESMs) developed and used by CRESCENDO´s scientists are the cutting-edge scientific tools used to predict how the global environment will change in the future in response to the increasing amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.
Our scientists are also strongly committed towards engaging with society through communication and outreach activities. With these we aim to explain the science behind Earth system modelling, how future projections are developed and analysed, as well as communicating future changes in the Earth system and the likely consequences of these changes.
Through CRESCENDOschools the students explored the science of global change and the scientific modelling techniques CRESCENDO’s scientists use to understand and predict climate change.
Students proactively worked with researchers, but mostly among themselves, to develop resources suitable for use by science students at similar stages in their education. In doing this our aim was to both increase the scientific understanding of global climate change across this age group and increase awareness of the urgency of the problem and potential solutions for future generations.
The overall aim was to help define and develop an appropriate suite of education resources, such as web-based documents, online videos, serious games, social networking, etc. on the science of climate change and climate modelling, targeted to the needs and interests of science students in the approximate age range 16-19 years old. While developing these resources the students learned new skills, benefited from the experience and also had fun.
CRESCENDOschools involved five schools from four different countries: Sweden, UK, France, Sweden and Albania.