International activities

Our students will live and work in a globalised world and thus, we strive to make the world a part of their education on a daily basis. This page is dedicated to the most important of several initiatives at Espergærde Gymnasium and HF, which connect the school with other parts of the world.

EGMUN

Once a year, the students at Espergærde Gymnasium and HF host their own version of the global UN simulation, Model United Nations. The event is an extra-curricular activity about international politics, a role play that mirrors a UN conference. Schools from all over Europe participate every year. The conference lasts for 5 days and takes place in November every year. Each conference has a topic - the topic of 2018 was ‘Ensuring a stable and sustainable world for future generations’. All the participants are divided into teams, which represent a certain country and through debates, they fight for the interests of their country.

The event is also very much a social event where the students engage across countries and cultures. Many of the visitors are privately accommodated and new friendships are formed. A big party for all students marks the end of the conference, where the polite conference etiquette is substituted with dancing, music and laughter. Two teachers assist the planning, however, the students are the driving force behind the event.

Read more about EGMUN here.

Study trips

A study trip is a unique opportunity to experience many exiting and fun activities with class mates, but at the same time view academic subjects from new perspectives. At EG we prioritize the academic curriculum, which means the trips must contain events and experiences that the given subjects relate to. Usually, two subjects work interdisciplinary on a certain topic. As an example, social studies and English have visited Washington DC to work with American politics, English and Spanish have worked with Hemingway’s Andalusia, and biology and physical education have looked into the physiological possibilities and limitations of biking in Corsica.

Exchange

Students at Espergærde Gymnasium & HF have the opportunity to experience life as a student in a foreign country. We cooperate with high schools in Germany and France primarily. Often the working language is English, hereby giving more students the opportunity to participate in exchanges. Students are accommodated privately and act as hosts themselves, when exchange students visit Espergærde Gymnasium and HF. This is a great way to experience everyday life in another country.

Virtual exchange

We have virtual partnership classes in several European countries, but also the French island La Rèunion in the Indian Ocean. This is a new contact which has the French language, geography and history as a starting point. We work together on topics like slavery and cultural differences, carry out field work, research and debate through digital platforms. This initiative gives the students the opportunity to meet challenges and create solution in an international perspective outside the walls of EG.

The CO2 Committee

At Espergærde Gymnasium and HF the environment plays a decisive role. Sustainability, a green profile and the CO2 committee are the essential elements of an environmentally friendly everyday life at Espergærde Gymnasium & HF. The CO2 committee consists of students, teachers and a janitor.

Since 2009, the committee has carried out multiple energy and resource-efficient projects, which have benefitted not only the environment, but also the school’s economy. For example, LED lights, solar cells, recycling of paper, collection of rain water for toilets, heat pumps, ventilation and several other projects have been carried out. These projects have awarded Espergærde Gymnasium & HF with several major prizes, among others, EnergiForum Danmarks Energi and environmental prize 2016, which has helped us with fossil free electricity and heat consumption today. Furthermore, we are part of ‘Green Flag’, which is a network focusing on environment and sustainability. This provides us with many contacts, also globally, and it gives us the opportunity to be invited to climate events internationally.

The International Corps

The International Corps is a committee with a strong international focus. Their objective is to get a wider cultural understanding of the surrounding world, as well as themselves. The students arrange and participate in international activities in the local community and in Copenhagen, they host exchange students, and arrange study trips. They meet with people from different cultures, for example through a collaboration with Krogerup Folk High School and their 'Crossing Borders'-course. The committee has visited Ukraine, England, Turkey, Finland and this year, a trip to Amsterdam is coming up.

EG Speech and Debate

A club for students who like to learn more about formal debate and public speaking, the members meet once a month and practice debate, learn about rhetorics and often go on field trips to the University of Copenhagen, the Danish Parliament, or engage in workshops with other schools. They participate in ESU’s (The English Speaking Union) Public Speaking Contest and have had students advancing to the national finals several times. Furthermore, the club arranges a debate competition every year, where 7-8 schools visit EG to compete in formal debate. Everything is in English, of course!