While preparing the URBACT Biannual report, we came upon an interesting innovative educational tool – ATLAS OF DIVERSITY. Composed of a network of schools, the ATLAS uses mutual collaboration to generate one of the most important and world extensive database on cultural diversity.

The ATLAS creates a virtual space that, with the sense of judgement and subjective point of view of its participants, aims to bring together the particularities of each place. It is also a meeting place for reflection and collaborative learning, supported by ICT (Information and Communication Technologies) such as the Internet, geolocation and social networks.

Students create cards and pieces of knowledge that are available to the rest of the community. These cards can relate to different topics: geography, literature, cultural traditions, languages, musical instruments, architecture, gastronomy… Thanks to the active participation of students, teachers and family members, a large multimedia library linked to different fields of study is generated.

The use of geolocation, an innovative technological resource, allows linking the cards to specific geographic locations. The process not only enriches the participants as creators of knowledge, but also teaches them to appreciate other cultures, realities and ways of life. Thus, ATLAS is a meeting place for reflection and collaborative learning.

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Credits: the first photo was taken by One Leptop per Child | License: CC BY 2.0
The second photo was taken by San Jose Library | License: CC BY-SA 2.0