The European Commission, through its Directorate-General for Education, Youth, Sport and Culture published Compendium of Good Practices for Learning Environments for Sustainability. This extensive document, completed in May 2025, is the result of a study on the school learning environment for sustainability in EU Member States and aims to support the Commission's efforts to help Member States integrate sustainability into education.

Goal and audience

The compendium serves as an overview of institutional practices and policy initiatives related to sustainable learning spaces in the EU and around the world. It is designed to support policymakers, schools and local stakeholders and encourage the wider community, including parents, to develop sustainable learning spaces.

What are sustainable learning spaces?

In the context of this study, sustainable learning spaces are defined as spaces, places or buildings that support teaching and learning for sustainability. Such a space includes three basic aspects:

• They are sustainable: they follow environmental and bioclimatic principles, for example by integrating green infrastructure solutions that capture carbon and improve air quality.
• They adhere to high-quality interventions in educational facilities: they pay attention to lighting, noise and accessibility.
• They implement a whole-school approach to learning for sustainability: within teaching, operation and management.

These spaces not only contribute to sustainability and quality education – for example, by integrating green infrastructure solutions that capture carbon and improve air quality – but also create opportunities to address multifaceted sustainability challenges and explore what a sustainable future might look like. By embedding sustainability not only in the physical design of schools but also in their operations and teaching support, the impact extends to educational outcomes, sustainability competencies, and student well-being.

Methodology and definition of “best practice”

The compendium was developed through a participatory process and consultation with 33 experts from the fields of education, architecture, landscape architecture, engineering, sustainability education and the environment. Examples were collected through literature searches, online workshops, calls for proposals and additional desk research.

The definition of ‘best practice’ includes both environmental and educational elements, such as green solutions, promoting sustainability competencies, socio-ecological resilience and engaging in participatory design. Best practice does not imply perfection, but provides opportunities for improvement and learning. The examples were selected based on their perceived positive impact on the environment, learning and well-being, taking into account the diversity of initiatives.

Thematic categories and inspiring examples

The compendium organizes good practices into seven thematic categories within three main areas of learning environment implementation:

1. Buildings, grounds and classrooms:
   • Howald School, Luxembourg: this innovative school uses natural materials such as local wood, cork and recycled textiles, ensuring excellent insulation, fire safety and acoustic comfort. It is designed as an inclusive space for all, including the visually impaired.
   • Fuchshofstraße Elementary School, Germany: it was built according to the "cradle to cradle" principle, which ensures that materials such as wood, steel and concrete can be reused or recycled indefinitely.
   • The "Disconnection Room" project in Italy: this room, jointly designed by teachers and students, opens up a space for cooperative learning where mobile devices are put away, promoting concentration, collaboration and environmental awareness.
2. Green spaces:
   • Garden of Arany János Elementary School, Hungary: the school garden, initiated by parent volunteers, has become a community center for nature and learning, supporting outdoor education and environmental education.
   • Green roof on Šime Budinić Elementary School, Croatia: students and teachers created a green roof with plants adapted to the Mediterranean climate, promoting the "3R" principles (reduce, reuse, recycle) and raising ecological awareness.
   • Climate-adaptive playground, Sint-Paulus Primary School, Belgium: an urban school transformed its playground into a dynamic outdoor learning space, planting trees, shrubs and a vegetable garden, improving biodiversity and water management.
3. Political initiatives:
   • Estonian Education Strategy 2021–2035: highlights sustainable learning environments as a key concept, setting the goal of creating diverse learning environments focused on the needs of learners and integrating sustainability, digitalization and well-being.
   • Danish Action Plan for Education for Sustainable Development: invests in teacher training, curriculum development and green infrastructure, ensuring that sustainability is not only taught but also experienced in everyday school life.
   • Learning Investment Programme (LEIP), Scotland: a £2 billion investment programme to modernise and build new schools was launched in 2023, with the aim of creating low-carbon and energy-efficient learning environments in line with zero-emission targets.

These examples show that Learning for sustainability goes beyond curriculum development, requires investing in a high-quality, low-carbon learning environment and community engagement. A well-designed learning environment is fundamental to successful learning and climate resilience. JRi