Climate Change Education

On Earth Day 2019, National Public Radio reported that 4 out of 5 parents are interested in more climate education in school. Despite 74% of educators feeling that teaching about climate change is important, only 42% include the topic in their courses. In November 2019 students from across Vermont came together to demand climate leadership from our government officials. The document they created, the Young Vermonters United Climate Declaration, included this specific plea to educators: “Incorporate Climate Justice into the existing Vermont public school curriculum related to climate change and require this to be enforced in grades K-12.” These young Vermonters know that climate change is impacting their future and they want their education to prepare them for that reality.

I plan to organize my project in two phases: (1) Learning and Connecting; and (2) Practice and Implementation. During phase one, I would learn from Burr and Burton students and colleagues, and from the statewide network of educators and youth involved in climate issues. Working with colleagues and department chairs, I plan to identify materials and trainings needed to teach about climate change while meeting their discipline specific goals. Working with students, I hope to learn what they already know, and what they need to know in order to prepare for a climate resilient future. With this insight, I would use the school-wide curriculum maps to identify places to engage students with topics in climate change across disciplines and departments. Outside of my school, I will engage with students from the Youth Lobby about their climate education goals, the sustainability educators professional learning community in Montpelier, and the statewide Climate Resilience Education Network based at Shelburne Farms. Beyond Vermont, two national conferences provide the most current developments in climate change education: the Bioneers Conference and the Drawdown Learn initiative. Through connection and collaboration I hope to gain ideas and inspiration that will prepare our school to teach about climate across any of our courses.

Phase Two of the project would be direct work with faculty and students to incorporate climate education in our school curriculum. This could be through collaborative, interdisciplinary project based work or through targeted lessons that fit within existing teaching structures. The goal of phase two is to create vigorous and engaging educational experiences related to climate change. The work aims to ready both students and schools to tackle the opportunities and challenges of their future. The climate crisis will reshape all sectors of society: our biological environment, our political systems, and our economic priorities. In the face of this great challenge there is hope and potential for emergent solutions. By including creativity and resilience as key components of climate education, joy can be found in each other and in the changing world. An integrative understanding of changing realities will help students thrive as problem solvers working to increase justice, communication, and economic opportunity in ways that are good for all people and the planet.