By Natalia Kucirkova, Professor of Early Childhood Education and Development, University of Stavanger; and Professor of Reading and Children’s Development, The Open University The intersection of self and nature, a longstanding focus in sustainability studies, is increasingly becoming a prominent topic in discussions about digital education policy and practice. The shift means looking beyond just test scores and focusing on how education interacts with the wider environment. UNESCO refers to this as the ‘green and digital education connection’, embracing a more interconnected understanding of ..read more

By Francesca Borgonovi (OECD), Helke Seitz (OECD) and Ottavia Brussino (J-PAL Europe)* Climate change is a defining challenge of our time. The urgency to address climate change has never been more apparent: 2023 was on course to be the hottest year on record. The consequences of rising temperatures are profound.   The Paris Agreement has been instrumental in increasing climate mitigation ambitions internationally: as of September 2023, 105 countries had pledged a net-zero target, with 90 aiming to reach this target by 2050. The rapid emergence of a new clean energy economy has led th ..read more

By Sukie Yang and Kai Feng, doctoral students at the University of Pennsylvania and 2023 GEM Report fellow Floods killed more than 800 people in Nigeria, Niger, and other nearby countries between June and October, 2022. The floods were deemed the “most devastating” in a decade by the people of Nigeria. Tragically, more than 1.3 million people had to relocate because of the floods, and over a million hectares of farmland were damaged. As people gather for the annual COP summit this week, it seems fitting to highlight the findings of our background paper prepared for the 2023 GEM Report on the i ..read more

By Sheldon Shaeffer, Chair, Board of Directors, and Evelyn Santiago, Executive Director, Asia-Pacific Regional Network for Early Childhood (ARNEC) A better understanding of, and a stronger response to, the impacts of climate change is essential — especially regarding young children. Research results and the related discourse arising out of the recent COP28 conference on climate change have expanded the evidence base for that conclusion. Climate change is only one of the components of the ‘polycrisis’ now facing the world, i.e. the simultaneous occurrence of several catastrophic events – a ..read more

By Justin van Fleet, President of Theirworld, a global children’s charity Investing in early years care and education might not seem the most obvious way of tackling the climate crisis. Why would investment in the world’s babies and toddlers aid efforts to mitigate the disastrous effects of climate change unfolding all around us right now? After all, it’s the very definition of a grown-up problem: urgent, life-threatening and riven with complicated political and diplomatic disputes. The truth, however, is that no matter how great our efforts to address the crisis, the problem is an enduring em ..read more

He Pākehā ahau Nō Airani, nō Ingarangi, nō Kōterani, nō Bohemia, no Moravia hoki ōku tūpuna I whānau mai ahau i Whakatāne I tupu ake au i Rangiora Kei Waiheke tōku kāinga ināianei He whaea ahau He kaiako ahau Ko Sarah Hoult tōku ingoa I am Pākehā. My ancestors came from Ireland, England, Scotland, Bohemia and Moravia. I was born in Whakatāne. I grew up in Rangiora. My home now is on Waiheke Island. I am a m ..read more

By Anja Nielsen, Senior Policy Adviser for Education and Youth, UK Committee for UNICEF The release of AR 6 Climate Change 2021: The Physical Science Basis, the contribution to Assessment Report 6 from Working Group I of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), is a sober reminder of the urgent need for climate action – one brought into stark relief by recent disasters. From extreme heatwaves on the west coast of the United States to famine-causing droughts in Madagascar to deadly floods in China, these past few weeks have shown the devastating impacts of weather-related disasters ..read more

Listen to this blog In the middle of the pandemic, the world’s youth has not lost its focus on the planet’s biggest challenge. School children in Germany are setting up a political party, Klimaliste, standing in local elections. The party has policies aimed at ensuring the Paris agreement climate pledges are not breached. It’s also born out of annoyance at support that the Green party is giving to the local car industry rather than to renewable energy. After years of environmental activism and little change, it seems children’s anger may be the most important and effective campaign for c ..read more

Last year, the Planet chapter from the 2016 GEM Report formed the basis of the keynote presentation that kicked off the Education day at the COP22 in Morocco. UNESCO’s former Director-General Irina Bokova and the GEM Report’s Manos Antoninis were joined by HRH Princess Lalla Hasna of Morocco and the Minister of Education of Morocco to discuss the importance of education in the climate agenda. One year on, at the Education Day at COP23 in Germany, the GEM Report continues to underscore the importance of education as a key element of any solution to climate change as well as a fundamental part o ..read more

By Anna Cristina d‘Addio, Daniel April (GEM Report), Marcia McKenzie, Nicola Chopin and Stefanie Mallow (MECCE Project) A new set of 30 country profiles on climate change communication and education (CCE) was launched today to mark the beginning of the COP27 taking place in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt. bringing the total count to 50*, after 20 profiles were published last year. A third round of profiles will be prepared in 2023. The country profiles respond to the need for better data on CCE progress and result from an ongoing partnership between the GEM Report and the Monitoring and Evaluating Cli ..read more