Greening Education Partnership

Getting every learner climate-ready

The Greening Education Partnership is a global initiative that takes a whole-of-system approach to support countries to tackle climate crisis by harnessing the critical role of education. As a collaborative platform for governments and other stakeholders including inter-governmental organizations, civil society, youth, academia, and private sector, Greening Education Partnership aims to deliver strong, coordinated and comprehensive action that will prepare every learner to acquire the knowledge, skills, values, and attitudes to tackle climate change and to promote sustainable development.

Did you know?

The earth’s average global temperature

has risen by 1°c with most of the warming occurring in the past 35 years

Around half of the 100 countries reviewed

had no mention of climate change in their national curriculum, UNESCO findings reveal

While 95% of surveyed primary and secondary teachers

felt that teaching climate change is important, less than 30% expressed a readiness to teach it.

70% of young people cannot explain climate change

or can only explain its broad principles or do not know anything about it.

Greening education

Education enables learners of all ages with the agency to address interconnected global challenges including climate change, loss of biodiversity, unsustainable use of resources, and inequality. It empowers them to make informed decisions and take action to change society and care for the planet. Drawing upon ESD’s holistic approach to learning, the Greening Education Partnership aims to inspire action from countries to empower learners with the skills required for inclusive and sustainable economic development within the context of the transition toward digital and green economies.

The practices monitored by members of the Partnership adopt an interdisciplinary approach across all subjects, not only looking at the scientific facts of climate change, but addressing the social economic and behavioural facets of climate justice, eco-anxiety, action-based solutions and ensuring that it is contextualized to learners’ real-life experience and aspirations.

Declaration on the Common Agenda for Education and Climate Change at COP28

Climate change education at COP28

UNESCO events

Four pillars of transformative education

The Greening Education Partnership is structured around four key pillars of transformative education

Vision
From early childhood through adult education, work to ensure that all schools achieve green school accreditation, including teacher training and higher education institutions.

Goal
All countries will have adopted a green school accreditation scheme with at least 50% schools, colleges, and universities with green accreditation and are operating sustainably.

More on greening schools

Vision
Embrace a life-long learning approach that integrates climate education into school curricula, technical and vocational education and training, workplace skills development, teaching materials, pedagogy, and assessment.

Goal
The number of countries which include climate education in school curricula at the pre-primary, primary, and secondary levels will have at least doubled from the current ~45%.

More on greening every curriculum

Vision
Support teachers and policy makers through the integration of climate education in pre-service and in-service teacher training, building the capacity of school leaders and key education stakeholders.

Goal
All school leaders and at least 1 teacher per school will have been trained on how to integrate climate education into teaching and learning throughout the school.

Vision
Engage the entire community by integrating climate education in life-long learning, in particular through community learning centres and learning cities.

Goal
All countries will be able to report at least 3 different ways learning opportunities are made available for adults outside the formal education system to develop the skills, attitudes, and actions that will foster community resilience to tackle climate change.

Interested in joining the Partnership?

Here is how you can commit

Member States, key stakeholder organizations and individuals can express their interest and willingness to join the Partnership through the expression of interest form linked below. Further details will be made available in due course for those who have shown interest.

For questions, please reach out to UNESCO Section for Education for Sustainable Development at esd@unesco.org

Progress is regularly monitored and the global network ‘ESD-Net 2030’ will provide a platform to exchange experiences and showcase good practices.

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