Kids pave their way to a green, climate-friendly future

Despite growing evidence of the importance of education about climate and nature, there is a lack of national and global strategies to promote knowledge and green skills through primary, secondary and tertiary education, UNICEF’s Relo said.

In Bangladesh, school textbooks already include information related to the environment and climate, but this is not enough to prepare children for the looming crisis, experts and activists told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

Aruba Faruk, a 17-year-old activist attending COP28 representing the voices of Bangladeshi children and teenagers, is running a campaign asking the government to provide effective climate-related education.

He said, “Our schools teach children facts and principles that help them pass tests, but we need multidimensional, action-oriented education taught by well-trained teachers.”

This, she said, means providing opportunities for children to develop green skills and engage in more activities outside the classroom such as cleaning up trash on beaches and river banks and learning how solar photovoltaic systems work on their homes.

Farooq and his colleagues have organized “Climate Olympiad” competitions on climate-related knowledge in high schools, as well as debates, film screenings, and discussions with children and teachers about the climate crisis.

Experts said efforts like these will help prepare children and youth for the work needed to advance the green transition – but much more is needed.

UNICEF’s Relo called for greater investment in climate literacy education and green skills training.

A UNICEF report this year showed that only 2.4% of finance provided by major climate funds globally – an average of less than $71 million per year since 2006 – was spent on “child-responsible activities”, Such as ensuring children have access to clean water or making their schools fit out. To weather the storms, spend very little on education.

The report notes that even when children are considered in climate projects, they are still viewed as vulnerable victims rather than as change-makers.

Yet teen activists like Farooq and young children like Jerin and Fatima believe they are doing their part.

“You can’t imagine the passion that children have for climate action – that can’t be stifled and shouldn’t be stopped,” Farooq said.

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