Given the current environmental crisis, an innovative training project has recently been implemented in schools to teach sustainable development among young students. The aim is to transform students' attitudes by learning from communities committed to achieving sustainable development. Small organic producers, consumers, farmers, organic companies, environmental NGOs and several environmental policymakers were appointed to interact with students both in schools and in visits to farms and companies over three years (from 2016 to 2018). Seven criteria were developed among 389 young students, namely, waste management, transport, energy, climate change, biodiversity, water and citizenship. Students were asked about their willingness to transform their environmental attitudes to protect nature through experiential learning. The hypotheses were validated through SmartPLS path modelling, and the results have shown the efficiency of this method when raising environmental awareness in young students. (C) 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.