DOI: 10.11118/978-80-7701-087-0-0234

INTERGENERATIONAL LEARNING AS A TOOL FOR ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION AND SUSTAINABLE LANDSCAPE CONSERVATION

Lenka Kamanová¹, Kateřina Pevná²

¹ Department of Social Science, Institute of Lifelong Learning, Mendel University in Brno, Zemědělská 3, 613 00 Brno, Czechia

² Department of Senior Education, Institute of Lifelong Learning, Mendel University in Brno, Zemědělská 3, 613 00 Brno, Czechia

This paper analyses the potential of intergenerational learning (IL) as a specific tool in the field of environmental education and sustainable landscape conservation. The theoretical framework of the article responds to current demographic changes and the weakening of traditional bonds, which require new models of experience-sharing. The paper synthesises findings obtained from the analysis of 20 case studies from the Czech Republic and Slovakia (e.g. the MENDELU Intergenerational University or the Three-Generation Nature School in Prievaly), which were identified as part of the ‘Intergenerational STEAM University’ project.
The results show that environmental programmes taking place in authentic settings (arboreta, school forests, wetlands) effectively link scientific knowledge with the historical memory of the landscape. Intergenerational interaction in these “living classrooms” leads to a strengthening of environmental responsibility among the younger generation, whilst simultaneously reducing the social isolation of older people by restoring their role as bearers of traditional knowledge. The article concludes that the integration of intergenerational dialogue into public recreation activities represents a sustainable model of environmental education that contributes to social cohesion and more sensitive care for the landscape heritage.

Keywords: intergenerational learning, environmental education, landscape conservation, social cohesion, sustainable development

pages: 234-237, Published: 2026, online: 2026