ALEA SCHOOL is growing and thriving: the two founding classes are now together, the temporary Lindenallee campus is taking shape, and the faculty is coming together. Now, the nonprofit ALEA SCHOOL GmbH is announcing a comprehensive educational partnership with the Senckenberg Society for Nature Research. The partnership includes botany project weeks, during which students can take their first steps as naturalists in the field and in Senckenberg’s laboratories. In addition, there will be lectures by Senckenberg scientists at ALEA SCHOOL, as well as a research project on climate change in the Orbwald.
ALEA brings partners with national and international influence to Bad Orb. The renowned Senckenberg Society for Nature Research is an official educational partner of the ALEA SCHOOL. The public is particularly familiar with the famous Senckenberg Natural History Museum in Frankfurt, home to the gigantic Diplodocus and the iconic pterosaur Quetzalcoatlus. Since its founding in 1817, the Senckenberg Society for Nature Research has been dedicated to the “Earth System” – in the past, the present, and with projections for the future. In doing so, Senckenberg has set itself the goal of understanding nature in all its infinite diversity in order to preserve it as the basis of life for future generations and to use it sustainably. The non-profit society ranks among the world’s leading research institutions in the field of biological diversity and employs approximately 300 scientists throughout Germany.
“Every child loves the dinosaurs at the Senckenberg Museum in Frankfurt. These are experiences that spark a spirit of discovery and a thirst for knowledge, and can shape a child’s entire life. At ALEA SCHOOL, we want to teach science in a way that inspires children for life. Senckenberg is the perfect partner for this,” says school administrator Henning Strauss.
As part of the educational partnership, lectures by researchers from the Senckenberg Society for Nature Research will be held at ALEA SCHOOL approximately twice a year. ALEA students will go on field trips and visit Senckenberg laboratories as part of their botany project weeks.
In addition, the forest of Orb will become a new research site for the Senckenberg Society for Nature Research – as part of the research project “The Future of Our Forests in the Face of Climate Change,” observational and satellite data on weather extremes and the condition of the forest will be collected here to help make native forests resilient for the future. The project leader is Prof. Dr. Thomas Hickler, a biogeographer and climate researcher at the Senckenberg Biodiversity and Climate Research Center (SBiK-F) and professor of quantitative biogeography at Goethe University Frankfurt. His research focuses on the impacts of climate change on forests. To this end, he develops complex vegetation and ecosystem models to analyze the effects of global warming on biodiversity and ecosystem services. In addition, Hickler is active in international bodies such as the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) and serves on the board of the German Climate Consortium.
On Thursday, Prof. Dr. Klement Tockner, Director General of the Senckenberg Society for Nature Research, visited Bad Orb to witness the official signing of the educational partnership agreement. “ALEA SCHOOL is an educational project focused on sustainability. I am delighted that Senckenberg will help shape the educational concept and support it as a partner. This also creates exciting synergies for us – the forest of Orb forest will provide us with important insights for the future of our forests,” says Prof. Dr. Tockner.
In addition to Senckenberg, the Frankfurt Palmengarten, the British Theatre School from London, and Liverpool FC will also support the educational program as educational partners during the first ALEA SCHOOL Summer Camp, which will take place during the last three weeks of summer vacation. Furthermore, ALEA SCHOOL is establishing new international partnerships: the bilingual school plans to have partner schools worldwide in the future. Discussions are currently underway with potential partners from Scotland and California. These educational collaborations will include exchange programs, high-quality language courses, and international project weeks. A guest teacher program is also a possibility.
ALEA SCHOOL – IN THE HEART OF EUROPE
Thanks to their central location, Bad Orb and ALEA SCHOOL offer easy access combined with secluded, unspoiled nature. This presents attractive opportunities for infrastructure development in the eastern direction, particularly for the Rhine-Main metropolitan region. Bad Orb is the western gateway to the Spessart. There is a strong historical connection between Frankfurt, the metropolis on the Main, and the spa town: The founding fathers of the Orb Spa Park were from Frankfurt, including Heinrich Siesmayer, who also designed Frankfurt’s iconic Palmengarten. In addition, Frankfurt’s hunting lords valued the Spessart Forest with its ancient beech and oak stands, thereby playing a decisive role in shaping Bad Orb. ALEA is reviving this connection: As a strategic partner of Eintracht Frankfurt, Bad Orb is becoming an important outpost for Frankfurt’s identity. The partnership between the ALEA SCHOOL and Senckenberg is another key element in strengthening this connection.
