Join us for our nature loving "Sustainability Mindset with Design Thinking" (SMDT) camps and programs. This program is for kids aged 5-12 during school holidays, and in partnership with schools (Rietberg Montessori and Serendipity Montessori). Children explore their local city, learn empathy, collaboration and resilience and generally have a blast! We adventure through field trips, games and projects around Zurich.
SMDT is the fruit of a beautiful partnership with STEAMED Playground.
Camp details
- Timings: 8:45 to 17:00
- Venue: City of Zurich with a number of locations!
- Pick up/drop off locations:
> Cafe Rumi, Weinbergstrasse 1, Kilchberg 8802
> NEW! Enge Bahnhof drop off at 8:45 am, pick up at 5:00 pm
- Pricing: CHF 650/week or CHF 150/day. Siblings discount available.
- Food: Twice a day snacks included!
- Language: English, however our facilitators can help children with German, Portuguese, Hindi and Korean.
*subject to change but will remain close by.
Don't live in Switzerland?
You kids can still attend our day camp! We support families who want to have a "Workation" or a good old fashioned vacation in Switzerland! We partner with one of the premier travel agencies in Switzerland to help you plan a trip tailored exactly to your family's needs.
Write to us at smdt@makethechange.education for more information.
Fun fact - Our last camp had over 50% returning participants!
April 28th to May 2nd 2025 (Week 2 ZH Holidays)
This spring, we have an exciting journey to explore the question: “What do we need to live in harmony?” Through cultural games, a visit to a lively farmers market, and hands-on street art, we’ll celebrate the richness of human diversity and acceptance. Then, we step into the wild on a private tour of Wildnis Park, exploring connections between cultural diversity and biodiversity. Through play, creativity, and exploration, we’ll discover how nature and communities thrive together and what it means to live in harmony with the world around us
July 21st to 25th 2025 (Week 2 ZH Holidays)
This summer, we dive into the questions: “How can art protect the Earth?” and “How can art connect communities?” Using sustainable techniques, we create our own natural paints and explore art’s power to inspire change. Building on our Living in Harmony camp, we take creativity outdoors - enjoying the lake, visiting the Kunsthaus, exploring a Graffiti Park, and discovering the Enea Tree Museum in Rapperswil. We celebrate the connection between art, nature, and community.
August 11th to 15th 2025 (Week 5 ZH Holidays)
We celebrate nature’s genius by exploring biomimicry (how solutions in the natural world inspire human innovation). From aerodynamic birds to water-saving desert plants, we’ll uncover nature’s smartest strategies and apply them to real-world challenges. Through hands-on engineering projects, outdoor explorations, and creative problem-solving, our campers discover how nature can be the ultimate designer.
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October 6th to October 10th 2025 (Week 1 ZH Holidays)
What does healthy food mean for us and for the planet? In this deliciously fun camp, kids will explore where food comes from and how our choices impact health and sustainability. Through farm visits, a food forest adventure, and hands-on farm-to-table learning, they’ll discover the journey from soil to plate. With plenty of fresh treats along the way, children will also budget, plan, shop, and cook a healthy meal to share with the community!
What is SMDT?
Hear Diya and Austina, the Co-Founders of SMDT explain it.
Outcomes:
Want our Children...
To develop:
Respect, Resilience, Empathy, Humbleness, Integrity, Curiosity, Open-Mindedness, Equality, and Responsibility
By being:
Honest, Peaceful, Part of a Community, Trusting, Positive, Tolerant, Caring and Kind
“Heard all about earth care, self-care, and fair share today! They have learned so much in a couple of days. Thank you so much. So valuable what you have created.”
“He is very inspired, it was an amazing experience. Thank you all for the wonderful atmosphere and for new friends and family whom we want to see again and again!!!”
“The program was so varied and inspiring, the boys loved it. How wonderful they came away with so many new learnings and friends.”
About Design Thinking
Design thinking refers to the set of cognitive, strategic and practical procedures used by designers in the design process - basically to solve problems! It encourages us to look closely at how people reason when engaging with these problems. It exposes us to different perspectives, building empathy and encourages creativity in innovation. These are some of the reasons why we love it for building a sustainable mindset.
Design thinking is iterative (it can keep going!) and non-linear , which also helps children build resiliency in solving problems.
Source: John Spencer
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