A visit that inspired dialogue and collaboration – University of Bologna meets University of Crete

In early October, the University of Crete welcomed Professor Olivia Levrini, coordinator of the FEDORAS Academy and professor at the University of Bologna, for a two-day visit dedicated to exchange and co-design.

During her stay, she visited the Science Teaching Lab of the Department of Primary Education at the University of Crete, where discussions focused on the structure and dynamics of the Open Schooling Networks (OSNs) in Greece and Italy. Together, we explored ways to strengthen collaboration among educators across contexts and to shape the content of the upcoming workshops that teachers will implement within their OSNs. These conversations aimed to identify how cooperation can foster change — not only in teachers’ knowledge and practices, but also along the social–relational and institutional axes of school life.

Professor Levrini also conducted a workshop for postgraduate students of the Science Teaching Lab, introducing the core ideas of future-oriented science education. Together, we elaborated on concepts that contribute to futurizing science education — such as complexity, uncertainty, and interconnectedness — and reflected on how these can be meaningfully embedded in classroom practice. She shared experiences and best practices from her team’s work, offering inspiring examples of how teachers can be supported to think and act with the future in mind.

The visit concluded with a lively feedback session, where Professor Levrini engaged with postgraduate students working on teacher education for future thinking and on teacher interactions within OSNs, both among themselves and with other community stakeholders.

Her thoughtful reflections and feedback were deeply appreciated, providing valuable input for ongoing research and practice.

We warmly thank Professor Olivia Levrini for her inspiring presence and insightful contributions. This collaboration continues a long-standing partnership between our teams, rooted in previous EU-funded projects — such as CLIMADEMY and IDENTITIES — which form part of the foundations on which the FEDORAS Academy is built today.