What is GreenComp?
GATE for School Managers
What is GreenComp?
The GreenComp framework defines what it means to be competent in sustainability, not only as individuals, but as institutions. It supports you as a school leader, administrator, coordinator, or part of a school’s governance team in driving sustainability through strategic planning, organisational culture, and everyday school practices.
A well-developed overall competence in sustainable action enables you to lead processes that restore and maintain the health of ecosystems, while also contributing to long-term social and cultural justice. These foundations support a future where schools are not only places of learning, but models of responsible, resilient, and inclusive communities, preparing young people for life, work, and civic participation in a changing world.
GreenComp is built around four interconnected areas, each with three competences, twelve in total. Every competence includes three core components:
Attitudes
Fostering care, responsibility, fairness, and long-term thinking in school culture and leadership .
Knowledge
Understanding sustainability challenges and opportunities at institutional, systemic, and community levels
Skills
Enabling change through planning, collaboration, policy-making, and capacity-building
These dimensions – attitudes, knowledge, and skills – must work together. Sustainability is not an isolated policy goal. It is embedded across curricula, operations, infrastructure, partnerships, and professional practices.
You demonstrate competence in a specific area when you are both willing and able to lead and support consciously, responsible action for sustainability, in the way your school is managed, in how decisions are made, and in the culture you co-create with staff, students, families, and community partners.
About the recommendations in this tool
The examples of good practice presented in the recommendations of this self-assessment are drawn from previous research conducted within the GATE project. They are based on European case studies and focus group findings that explored how schools are already embedding sustainability in meaningful and effective ways.
If you would like to gain a deeper understanding of the broader conceptual and strategic foundations behind this work, we encourage you to consult the GATE Framework Guidelines. The Guidelines are designed to support educators, school leaders, and policymakers in integrating sustainability competences into secondary education, providing a shared orientation and evidence-based starting point for action.
You can access the GATE Framework Guidelines here: