Stiftung Offshore Windenergie

Welcome to the website of our wind school!

How can we educate young people about climate change? How can we get these young people excited about renewable energy? And how can we help our students find career opportunities in the industry? Our WIN(D)SCHOOL educational project is dedicated to these three questions.

Climate and education policy background

In order to achieve the goal of climate neutrality by 2045, renewable energies will play a decisive role in the coming years. The aim is to expand the current capacity of 8.5 GW in German offshore wind energy to at least 30 GW by 2030 and 40 GW by 2035. These expansion targets will primarily require qualified specialists along the entire value chain.

This is offset by the current shortage of skilled workers in Germany on the one hand and the social reality and access to education in certain sections of society on the other. According to current calculations, around three times as many skilled workers will be needed by 2050 alone to drive forward the expansion of wind energy in Germany.

Furthermore, research has shown for many years that the educational opportunities of our pupils in Germany are unevenly distributed. Studies show that the educational success of young people in Germany is still linked to their socio-economic background in all areas of education. Other characteristics such as migration background, gender or disability also play a role.

Project goals

WIN(D)SCHOOL aims to arouse and promote the interest of (primarily, but not exclusively) Hamburg district school pupils in STEM subjects in morning school workshops and to highlight opportunities in the offshore wind energy field. As a link between schools and companies in the offshore wind energy sector, at the end of our workshop days we offer concrete contacts to energy companies or even universities in Hamburg and northern Germany to take up training or studies there. Further cooperation with the schools is expressly desired!

Content and offers

As part of the project, various educational activities aimed at different age groups will be implemented. The instruments used to achieve the project objectives are school workshops in conjunction with career information events.

For years 5 and 6, the focus is on a playful approach to the topic, whereby miniature wind turbines from OffshoreWind4Kids are used to arouse the pupils' interest and promote their understanding of scientific relationships. In addition, differentiated teaching material is made available at different levels of ability to familiarize pupils with the scientific way of thinking and working. The OFFSHORE-WINDENERGIE Foundation also has children's book material for the younger age group, which is distributed to teachers and pupils as a reminder of the workshop and for further in-depth study.

In years 7 and 8, in addition to theoretical and practical content to promote scientific thinking and working methods, the workshops are supplemented by demonstrating the variety of job profiles in the field of renewable energies. Experience has shown that young people from educationally disadvantaged households in particular sometimes find it difficult to obtain information. To counter this problem, a mobile website and a social media channel are being developed, which will provide specific information on the topics of the workshops and job profiles. These can also be used for follow-up work in the classroom. Excursions to the Elbe beach or to an offshore training center are also planned, in each case combined with the construction of the OffshoreWind4Kids turbines, which can be tested on and in the water under real conditions.

For years 9 and 10, the focus is not only on climate change and the role of renewable energies, but also on providing support with career guidance and finding apprenticeships. The foundation's own careers station, which is based on an online test, and a touring exhibition are used to present further education and study opportunities. These measures are supplemented by offers on Girls' and Boys' Day and visits to trade fairs with the class, such as the Ideas Expo in Hanover.

Public relations work

In addition to school workshops, offers will be made on Girls' and Boys' Day and at the Ideas Expo in Hanover, where the OFFSHORE-WINDENERGIE Foundation will be an exhibitor. In-school events such as ideas competitions will also be offered. The foundation is supporting the project with continuous press and public relations work. In particular, the offers on Girls' and Boys' Day and the Ideas Expo will be publicized. A dedicated WIN(D)SCHOOL social media channel will provide age-appropriate information about the workshops, extracurricular activities and ideas competitions. The channel can also be used to advertise vacant apprenticeships and internships. Companies in the sector should be given the opportunity to introduce themselves to pupils and present themselves as an attractive employer.

OUR EDUCATIONAL EXPERTISE

With the Offshore Wind INSCHOOL school project co-funded by the DBU and the SchlesWind school project co-funded by the Gesellschaft für Energie und Klimaschutz Schleswig-Holstein GmbH (EKSH), the foundation has been helping to inform young people and teachers about the importance of the energy transition and offshore wind energy since 2015. The foundation is also a founding member of the German Chapter Offshore Wind 4 Kids initiative, which was established in 2022 and aims to arouse the curiosity and interest of children between the ages of 8 and 14 for careers in the offshore wind industry with the help of a construction kit system developed in Belgium, among other things.

Who we are

What makes the WIN(D)SCHOOL project special is the professional expertise of our project manager and engineer Philipp Tremer, who has teaching experience at a Hamburg district school, and our project manager Julia Lange, a qualified teacher with many years of teaching experience at schools in Hamburg and Norderstedt. Most recently, she worked at a Norderstedt community school where she was in charge of a year 7 class.

Period and funding

The project will initially run for three years (February 2024 - January 2027) and is sponsored by both the DBU (German Federal Environmental Foundation) and cooperation partners from German industry.

Are you a teacher and would like to book a workshop for your class? Then please get in touch with the contacts below!

Contact person

Julia Lange, Project Manager
j.lange@offshore-stiftung.de
+49 1522 1769864

Philipp Josef Tremer, Project Manager
p.tremer@offshore-stiftung.de