Call for proposals

The ISGA goes ULOS-UT-OUT programme is built collaboratively, combining the organisers’ own contributions with proposals received through an open call. The organising committee selects proposals during the call and by February 2027 at the latest. The theme of the event is the enchantment of nature, movement and learning – how school grounds and local environments support the learning, movement and well-being of children and young people, from the perspectives of school ground design and construction, biodiversity and outdoor pedagogy.

How to submit a proposal

The call for proposals is open 26 October 2026 – 31 January 2027. Please read about the programme days and formats below and submit your proposal using the application form (the form opens on 26 October 2026). Proposals can be submitted in English, Finnish or Swedish.

Programme days

Wednesday 1 September: presentations and keynote – practice and research from around the world
Thursday 2 September: workshops and round tables
Friday 3 September: excursions

Programme formats

Presentations last about 15 minutes. You can present your own research, a method you have developed, a school ground you have built, a successful pilot, an ongoing project, an upcoming campaign, and so on.

If you wish, you can pre-record your presentation as a video or audio file. Please pay special attention to sound quality: we recommend a headset microphone rather than the built-in microphone of your phone or computer. Recorded presentations will be added to the event recordings, where they reach a wider audience and remain available after the event.

Workshops use hands-on, active methods and take place primarily outdoors in the school grounds or in the forest. A limited number of indoor spaces is also available.

Deep Dive workshops: a group works continuously for 1–1.5 hours, guided by a facilitator. In addition to practical work, the workshop may include an introduction, discussion and a pre-assignment.
Non Stop workshops can include, for example, building, crafts, games or other activities that participants can drop in on for a shorter or longer time. These workshops last 3 hours, leaving time to build something larger that participants can join for as long as they like.

If your workshop materials are online or in PDF format, we encourage you to add them to the MAPPA.fi service. We will collect workshop materials from MAPPA into the event recordings, giving them extra visibility.

Round tables look for joint solutions to desired changes: identifying barriers to change and finding ways past them. Round tables last 1.5 hours and are held outdoors or in a classroom. Their outcomes can be compiled and added to MAPPA.fi, from where we will collect them into the event recordings for extra visibility.

You can also propose other programme content, such as topics and speakers for panel discussions, or keynote presentations. You can also propose your own school ground, kindergarten or nature school in the Helsinki metropolitan area as an excursion site.