EXPERIENCE OF IMPLEMENTING THE EDUCATIONAL PROJECT ‘GEOGRAPHICAL FORESIGHT: PERM KRAI-2035’

Abstract

In the context of increasing competition for applicants among universities, early career guidance and comprehensive collaboration between universities and schoolchildren are becoming increasingly important. Simply informing school graduates about study programs, educational programs design, and employment prospects is ineffective. Of paramount importance is systematic, meaningful collaboration between universities, schools, and teachers of specialized disciplines aimed at developing students' research skills and project-based work. The article examines the goals, content, and results of the ‘Geographical foresight: Perm Krai-2035’ project, implemented by the Perm Krai Branch of the Russian Geographical Society in collaboration with the Geography Department of Perm State University in 2024–2025. The project aims to develop and deepen geographical knowledge, cultivate spatial and strategic thinking among the participants (teams of school students in grades 8–11), foster patriotism, interest, and love for their native land. As part of the project, schoolchildren studied the geographic features of municipalities, becoming familiar with their geographic location, natural landscapes, population characteristics, and economic activities. Using Creative Maps Studio, team members mapped the positive and negative features and processes of their municipality's socio-environmental and economic development. Then, using a foresight session format, they developed a vision of the future (by the year 2035) for the selected municipality, identifying key development priorities. At the end of the project, the students proposed their own solutions aimed at improving the municipal territory (human habitat). The team from the village of Yurla was selected as the winners. They proposed a project of the ecological trail named ‘Russian Island’, designed to create a new public space that would address recreational, educational, and cultural needs. The article describes a methodological approach to organizing project activities, analyzes the composition of the project participants, and presents the students' perceptions of the current state of the municipalities and their vision of the future for the municipalities in Perm Krai.