Erasmus Maris week 2025

Since September 2024, a team of 9 dedicated students, including us, alongside our educator, Mr. Baranowski, has been researching microplastics in bodies of water around Belgium. We met each Wednesday after school, where we would participate in experiments related to microplastics and their impact on our environment. As part of this Erasmus Maris project, we were offered a trip to Burriana, Spain, where we took part in many nautical activities and experiments for a week.
We departed from Brussels Airport, Sunday, the 14th of September, early in the morning. We arrived in Valencia around noon and spent the rest of the day checking in at the “Escuela del Mar” (the school that provided the accommodations and aquatic activities) and at the beach. Alongside EEB1, other European schools also participated in the Erasmus Maris week. These included: the European Schools of Brussels (II), Varese, Frankfurt, Munich, Karlsruhe, and Mol. For the nautical activities, we were mixed with other people from different schools. Four groups were set, allowing us to meet new people and for new friendships to be made.

Monday, 15th September,
We took part in different nautical activities with our designated group. This first activity depended on your group; however, they could have varied from: Stand Up Paddle, Kayak, Dragon Boat, Goleta, and Lab/Manta Net (We went with a speed boat with the manta net, where we collected microplastics and then in the lab we investigated them.) On this day, we also presented our presentations to the different schools, displaying our research and experiments done throughout the year.

Tuesday, 16th and Wednesday, 17th of September
We continued the nautical activities until the afternoon of Thursday, the 18th. We also began our UNESCO training online (which consisted of reading and quizzes regarding microplastics), so by the end of the week, we could receive our diplomas and certificates.

Thursday, 18th of September
We finished the UNESCO training, and a ceremony was held to thank us for the Erasmus Maris week, and we were given our certificates by the organizers and congratulated by the Mayor of Burriana.

Friday, 19th September
This was our last day in Burriana. We left the “Escuela del Mar” and visited the city of Valencia, where we were given free time to wander off and explore the central market.
Overall, the Erasmus Maris week was very well organized, we loved team-working with the other schools and getting a first-hand look into how real-life scientists work. We found this whole project fun and very interesting. We hope that all new members of the Erasmus Maris team will love this experience as much as we did!

We welcome all intrigued and invested S4 students to join the Erasmus Maria team, Wednesdays after school at 13:30 in SCB6.

Karolina Larsen UCC S5DAA & José Manuel Rodríguez Escalada UCC S5ENB