Since this year, Télécom Saint Etienne’s teaching modules have included elements of training in corporate social responsibility, sustainable development and quality of life at work. These training elements are incorporated throughout the different years of the course, the aim being to ensure that these issues are taken into account globally and not just to be satisfied with a “cyclical veneer”. In this context, students in the Télécom Saint-Etienne engineering course were able to take part in several sustainable development actions, with a view to respecting the environment and protecting nature.
Revegetation of rural landscapes
On the afternoon of 19 November 2020, the students were able to work on the restoration of rural landscapes in Saint Maurice en Gourgois, through the planting of various plants. This initiative was organised by the Syndicat Mixte d’Aménagement des Gorges de la Loire (SMAGL). Let’s discover together the testimonies of two participants.
Jérémy, a first-year engineering student:
“We went to help an association for the preservation of the environment of the Loire and a farmer who had a common objective: the protection of nature. Our mission was to plant different types of trees, shrubs and hedges. This vegetation creates and preserves a microclimate on the whole plot by protecting it from the wind and the sun”.
Amandine Sueur, SMAGL project manager:
“The project went very well. The 11 students enrolled were all highly motivated and met the objectives set. A large amount of work was carried out in the afternoon. The work site started at about 2pm after a quick explanation of the process to be followed and ended at about 5.30pm. The farmer for whom we had carried out the planting then presented the ecological interests of the hedge so that they knew why this planting was important and useful.”
Restoration of natural environments
Then, at the end of November 2020, the students went to Périgneux, to take part in the restoration of natural environments. This action was led by the association France Nature Environnement Loire (FNE), to preserving and enhancing the natural environments of our region
The aim of the two-day work camp was to manually restore a large pond and several small peripheral ponds, all of which were overgrown with rushes and had no free water. The purpose of these operations is to recreate favourable habitats for two endangered species that have been identified in the immediate vicinity or on the site itself: the Crested Newt and the Dryad’s Pondmussel.
The work site was carried out under excellent conditions, both from a climatic and technical point of view and in terms of the involvement, energy and strong motivation of all the participants. All that will remain is to verify, during the rise of the water level next spring, that the Crested Newt and the Dryad Pondmussel have succeeded in colonising the restored environments.
New projects await our students between now and March 2021. We will be sure to share their next sustainable development project with you.