FYI: TODAY 14:00-15:00 CET UNESCO webinar on Climate change education for social transformation

#2 How climate change knowledge can become action

Background

UNESCO and UNFCCC are launching a series of eight monthly conversations, one every month from April to December, focused on climate change education on the road to COP27, which will be held in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt on 7-18 November 2022. The dates of the other webinars are available here.

The series is dedicated to the goal of greening every education policy and curriculum to ensure that every learner is equipped with the knowledge, skills, values, and attitudes to tackle climate change and promote sustainable development. The series highlights the central role of education in promoting social transformation, which implies a certain level of disruption in individual action intertwined with reorganization of societal structures towards a more just and sustainable direction.

The series is organized in view of the UNESCO global framework on Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) for the period 2020-2030, entitled “Education for Sustainable Development: Towards achieving the SDGs (ESD for 2030)”, as well as Glasgow work programme on Action for Climate Empowerment (ACE) to promote transformative education to tackle the climate crisis, and feeds into the ACE Hub, an initiative launched by UNFCCC and the German Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia in 2022 to foster education and public awareness, training, public access to information and participation in climate change action.

Objectives and key questions for webinar #2

A holistic curriculum and pedagogy that engages across cognitive, socio-emotional and behavioral dimensions is necessary in developing learners who are knowledgeable, competent, skillful and engaged in taking climate action. However, an analysis of country submissions under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change note that cognitive learning is more commonly discussed in relation to climate change education than social and

emotional or behavioural learning, regardless of education level. Similarly, an analysis of educational plans and curricula frameworks in close to 50 countries across all regions note the lack of attention to socio-emotional skills and action-oriented competences that are central to sustainability action.

It is important that education policies, curriculum and pedagogies go beyond focusing on the cognitive knowledge and engage learners in their hearts and hands to lead profound changes in our societies towards sustainability.

The second session investigates what needs to be integrated into curriculum to empower learners as agents of change towards the climate crisis.

The session will address the following questions:

• What knowledge, skills, values, and action need to be enhanced in education policies and curriculum to ensure learners are empowered to address the climate crisis?

• How can learning about climate change be translated into action for climate change?

Agenda

Outline of the second webinar

14:00-15:00 GMT+2 (60 min)

Introduction of the session rules, the agenda, and the speakers

Moderator: Ms Akpezi Ogbuigwe, Founder, Anpez Centre for Environment and Development, Nigeria

[Moderated discussion on the key questions]

• What knowledge, skills, values, and action need to be enhanced in education policies and curriculum to ensure learners are empowered to address the climate crisis?

• How can learning about climate change be translated into action for climate change?

[Panel]

• Ms Christina Kwauk, Gender, Education, and Climate Change Specialist, USA

• Mr Edgar Roman, President of the Kusi Kawsay Association, Peru

• Mr William Spitzer, Executive Director, Hitchcock Center for the Environment, USA

• Ms Shadia Namubiru, Student, Ikira Education Centre, Uganda Closing and outlook of next webinar

Date

The webinar will be held on Tuesday, 31 May 2022 at 14:00 – 15:00 GMT+2 (60 min).

Technical specifications

The webinar will be held on Zoom and a YouTube livestream will be provided. The webinar is conducted in English and live interpretation will be provided in French and Spanish. Written interactions during the session are available in English, Spanish and French.

Organizers and partners

The series of webinars is co-organized by UNESCO and UNFCCC.

Contact

• Section of Education for Sustainable Development, Education Sector, UNESCO at future.esd@unesco.org

• Action for Climate Empowerment team, UNFCCC at ace@unfccc.int. More details will be made available on the UNESCO ESD webpage and UNFCCC ACE Hub.