Shauna Lyons, a Post Primary teacher at Donabate Community College Home – Donabate Community College joined the cohort of educators at SYNAPSES Summer Course in Greece, in 2025, as part of the International Erasmus+ School Heads and Teacher Training Academy on Teaching for Sustainability Citizenship. Drawing on this experience Shauna Lyons implemented a whole-school Swap Shop in her own school using the key approach of Challenge Based Learning (CBL) as introduced to participants at the summer course. Addressing the real-world challenge of ‘Fast Fashion’, this project involved a number of participants including Shauna as facilitator and mentor, students as engaged citizens, as well as the whole school and wider community as stakeholders.

This exciting venture encouraged students to exchange pre-loved items using a ticket system instead of money. The initiative promoted sustainable shopping, reduced waste, and introduced concepts like circular economy and Doughnut Economics, encouraging students to think critically, reflect on consumption, and act responsibly. It promoted a sustainable alternative to fast consumption by encouraging reuse, sharing, and extending the life of products.

This implementation demonstrated how Sustainability Citizenship can bridge the knowledge-action gap by integrating the three dimensions of Thinking-Acting-Being. It encouraged students to think about the environmental impact of overconsumption, understanding how sustainable living balances social needs with planetary boundaries. Participants actively engaged in exchanging items, reducing waste, and modelled a practical, community-based approach to sustainable shopping. Finally, students reflected on their own consumption habits and developed values of responsibility, fairness, and community. The impact of this project was evident as it empowered students to see themselves as sustainability citizens, capable of creating ‘Fast Fashion’ positive change within their school community.