climate literacy

Open book with two trees, one alive and one dead

Why we need to COP it, for today and tomorrow

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Prime Minister Anthony Albanese confirmed that if he was re-elected, his party would formally bid for South Australia to host a future International Climate Change Conference in partnership with Pacific Nations.

The recent re-election of the Albanese Labor government in Australia, with a substantial majority in the House of Representatives, marks a pivotal moment for climate policy and education reform. As we at the SWISP Lab (Coleman & Healy) reflect on this outcome, we see a unique opportunity to advance climate education and push for transformative changes in our approach to teaching and learning in the Anthropocene.

The COP31 Opportunity

With Australia’s bid to host COP31 in Adelaide in November 2026, we stand at a critical juncture. This summit presents an unprecedented platform for Australia to:

  1. Demonstrate climate leadership on the global stage
  2. Respond to regional calls for greater climate ambition, particularly from our Pacific neighbours
  3. Accelerate domestic climate policy reforms

To fully realise the promise of COP31, Australia must look beyond policy and infrastructure. It must also invest in cultural and educational transformation. As the climate crisis deepens, the role of education becomes increasingly urgent. This is where SWISP Lab sees a vital opportunity: to align climate action with educational reform that equips the next generation; not just with knowledge, but with the imaginative, ethical, and practical capacities to navigate and shape adaptation and mitigation in a complicated global context.

Educational Reform: A SWISP Lab Perspective

At SWISP Lab, we believe that teacher education in the Anthropocene is central to environmental justice and climate education. Our research indicates that we must reimagine teacher education to prepare educators who can foster multiple futures where children, youth, and families can thrive amidst environmental challenges.

To advocate for justice, SWISP Lab’s philosophy of learner agency and world-centred design, not just in visual arts and design education, but in the core skills of praxis through visual literacy, climate literacy, critical and creative thinking, and digital innovation address environmental inequalities and empower educators to advocate for justice.

As we advocate for educational reform in the context of climate change and COP31, it’s crucial to align our efforts with Australia’s National Cultural Policy, REVIVE. This policy provides a framework that complements and enhances our vision for climate education in partnership with the Asia Pacific Universities Alliance (APUA) COP31 Briefing. As a result, SWISP lab calls on the Australian government, educational institutions, and the broader community to:

1. Invest in Comprehensive Climate Change Education: 

o   Develop and implement climate education programs at all levels of schooling, aligning with the APUA’s emphasis on “building capacity and capability.”

o   Support teacher education programs that emphasise creative climate communication, social justice, environmental justice and creative climate pedagogies.

o   Ensure climate change education reflects diverse Australian experiences and perspectives.

o   Integrate Indigenous knowledge and perspectives into climate education curricula.

2. Foster Multi-Sited Partnerships:

o   Create collaborative networks between educational institutions, climate scientists, artists, data specialists, community organisations, and industry partners.

o   Align with the APUA’s recommendation to “leverage the collective expertise of universities” in addressing climate challenges.

3. Integrate Indigenous Knowledge:

o   Incorporate First Nations’ perspectives, Land pedagogies and knowledge systems into climate education curriculum.

o   Support First Nations-led educational initiatives that combine traditional knowledge with contemporary climate science.

o   Support the APUA’s call to “recognise and respect Indigenous knowledge” in climate action strategies.

4. Promote Interdisciplinary Research and Education on climate change:

o   Develop interdisciplinary curricula that integrate speculative thinking and critical inquiry about the Anthropocene across disciplines.

o   Align with the APUA’s emphasis on “interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary approaches” to climate challenges.

5.   Prioritise Arts and Design in Creative Climate Education:

o   Retain and expand art and design teacher education programs to nurture creativity and interdisciplinary thinking.

o   Develop climate education programs that incorporate artistic and cultural elements, aligning with REVIVE’s emphasis on creativity.

o   Create partnerships between educational institutions and cultural organisations to enhance climate literacy through arts and culture.

o   Encourage the development of climate-themed artistic works and cultural events as educational tools.

o   Develop pedagogical responses to shifts in local Land-technology-human relations.

o   Support the development of innovative communication strategies for climate action, as highlighted in the APUA briefing.

6.  Enhance Regional Collaboration on climate change:

o   Develop educational exchange programs and collaborative research initiatives with Asia-Pacific partners.

o   Invest in digital infrastructure across regional and Asia-Pacific schools that allows for innovative, engaging climate education experiences and connection.

o   Support the APUA’s call for “regional cooperation and knowledge sharing” in addressing climate challenges.

o   Create pathways for students and educators to engage directly with policymakers and contribute to climate policy development.

o   Equip pre-service teachers with the tools to recognise injustice and advocate for social, cultural, racial, economic and environmental equity.

o   Align with the APUA’s recommendation to “bridge the gap between research, policy, and action.”

8.   Foster Climate Data Literacy and Engagement using Revive – A New National Cultural Policy 2024 Pillars:

o   First Nations First: Centre First Nations data sovereignty and ecological knowledges to ensure climate data literacy is grounded in deep time, Country, and custodianship.

o   A Place for Every Story: Foster inclusive climate narratives by equipping all Australians to critically engage with, interpret, and share data-driven stories of environmental change.

o   Centrality of the Educator and Artist: Empower educators and artists as key translators of climate data, making complex information accessible, affective, and action-oriented through creative practice.

o   Robust Data Infrastructure for Culture: Invest in the tools, platforms, and protocols that enable open, ethical, and creative engagement with climate and environmental data across education and the arts.

o   Engaging Audiences through Data Storytelling: Support compelling and participatory forms of climate data storytelling that resonate locally and globally, building public understanding and motivating collective action.

9.   Invest in Climate-Resilient Infrastructure:

o   Support the development of climate-resilient educational facilities and campuses.

o   Utilise cultural institutions as hubs for climate education and action.

o   Contribute to the APUA’s goal of “developing climate-resilient infrastructure” through educational initiatives and research.

10.  Promote Climate Finance Literacy:

o   Integrate climate finance education into relevant critical and creative curriculum to support the APUA’s emphasis on “mobilising climate finance.”

o   Develop programs that prepare students to engage with and innovate in the green economy.

11.   Advocate for a ‘Whole-of-Society’ Approach on climate change:

o   Encourage educational institutions to lead by example in climate change practices.

o   Implement creative research methodologies that develop teachers and student’s climate languages and literacies to be agents of change.

o   Support interdisciplinary collaborations between artists, scientists, and educators.

o   Support the APUA’s call for a “whole-of-society approach” to climate action through educational outreach and community engagement.

The rejection of the Coalition’s nuclear-over-renewables policy signals a public mandate for progressive climate action. This political landscape provides fertile ground for educational reform that aligns with the urgency of our climate crisis.

Call to Action

As we approach COP31, we call on the Australian government and educational institutions to:

  1. Invest in comprehensive climate education programs for all levels of schooling that incorporate artistic and cultural elements, aligning with REVIVE’s emphasis on creativity.
  2. Support teacher education programs that emphasize environmental justice and creative climate pedagogies.
  3. Foster partnerships between educational institutions, climate scientists, and community organizations.
  4. Develop curricula that integrate speculative thinking and critical inquiry about the Anthropocene.
  5. Prioritise the retention and expansion of art and design teacher education programs to nurture creativity and interdisciplinary thinking.

The Anthropocene can and should be integrated and embedded into all subjects in teacher education and in turn school-based learning, emphasising the importance of an interdisciplinary approach. The Anthropocene encourages creative and critical thinking about being in the world, politics, society, culture, colonisation, language, economy, human-land-technology relations, justice, ecosystems, life on Earth, ethics, and sustainability.

Seize the moment

The Labor government’s re-election and the potential hosting of COP31 provide a unique moment to redefine Australia’s role in climate action and education. At SWISP Lab, we stand ready to contribute our research and methodologies to this vital cause. Embracing transformative educational practices can prepare the next generation to navigate and shape our climate future with creativity, critical thinking, and a commitment to justice.

By aligning our educational reform efforts with REVIVE, we can create a more holistic, culturally rich approach to climate education. This integration of culture, arts, and climate action will not only enhance our educational outcomes but also contribute to a more resilient, creative, and sustainable Australia as we approach COP31 and beyond.

This blog post is a call to action from SWISP Lab in the Faculty of Education, University of Melbourne advocating for educational reform considering Australia’s recent election results and the potential hosting of COP31. We invite educators, policymakers, and climate activists to join us in this crucial conversation about the future of education in the Anthropocene.

Kate Coleman (right) is an associate professor in the Faculty of Education, University of Melbourne and co-lead of SWISP Lab with Sarah Healy. Kate is the current President of Art Education Australia and a CI on Learning with the Land SSHRC project. Sarah Healy (left) is a lecturer in the Faculty of Education, University of Melbourne and co-lead of SWISP Lab with Kate Coleman. Sarah serves as a World Councillor for the International Society for Education through Art (2023–2025).

COP this right now: why the next generation can’t make miracles on its own

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Climate change education is becoming increasingly prominent both as a research focus and a teaching focus, with young people often being the target of climate change education initiatives. However, while efforts to build critical climate literacies with young people are important, care must be taken not to perpetuate the idea that today’s young people will miraculously solve a crisis brewing for centuries. 

Everyone has a role to play in thinking about and acting on climate change because no single group of people or technological advancement is going to save us.

The science is clear. The world is burning, quite literally. But as the world media turns its attention to COP27, icons like Greta Thunberg have argued that these conversations are ‘not working’. The future of the planet appears to be decided in ethically questionable and far-away places, often behind closed doors. Closer to home, we can feel excluded and unheard. If expectations are already low for COP27, it may be that the path to a sustainable future can only be found from the ground up. For each of us, this starts with reaching out, turning up, and getting involved. 

What might happen if those who are often left out of the debates and conversations such as artists, educators, social scientists and humanities researchers came together to talk, activate, play, create and discuss for 3 days post-COP. What might they achieve? Could their playful and artful responses lead to change? 

  • Conversations also need to be creative, artful, playful even, and include knowledges and ways of being and seeing the world that have so far been ignored.
  • even if the change is getting to grips with our anxieties over the future and helping us re-engage with this dire ecological moment.

To create space and flip the narrative on its head, we co-designed The Climate, Art, and Digital Activisms 4-day Festival of Ideas. The festival program will be held over 3 days (21-23 November) at studioFive (UNITWIN partner and UNESCO Observatory of the Arts Education) in Melbourne, with the fourth day (27 November) to be held at the University of South Australia (preceding the AARE 2022 Conference) in Adelaide. 

The festival program consists of 12 carefully curated acts which bring invited keynote speakers and practice-based facilitators into conversation with each other. Invited keynotes are purposefully paired and discussion will be facilitated by the convenors as a decolonising act. ECR and HDR are welcomed into the conversation via Pecha Kucha sessions.

We know that taking action is better than giving in to the polarising morass of misinformation and disinformation on social media.

Reports ahead of COP27 have made it clear that we are on the path to 1.5°C or worse. Pledges backed up specious action, or worse, contradictory actions, add up to political theatre, no more, no less. These faux struggles keep us hoping that our leaders will save us, or that the political class can be shamed into action, but they also leave ordinary people feeling disconnected and disenchanted. Yet, if some doors are closed, there are others open, right under our noses, where conversations can lead to change, even if the change is getting to grips with our anxieties over the future. If there is one thing that works, it’s getting in the game. So, instead of feeling sidelined by COP27, simply reaching out, turning up, and getting involved will put you on the path to something better. 

Acknowledgement: The festival is made possible by a University of Melbourne Dyason Fellowship, competitive SIG funding from Australian Association for Research in Education (AARE) and Partnership Development Grant from The Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC). 

From left to right: Kathryn Coleman is a neurodivergent, feminist, artist, researcher and teacher who lives and works in Kulin Nation. Her work focuses on the integration of digital pedagogies and digital portfolios for sustained creative practice, assessment and warranting of evidence across education sectors. Kate’s praxis includes taking aspects of her theoretical and practical work as a/r/tographer to consider how artists, artist-teachers and artist-students use site to create place in digital and physical practice. Sarah Healy is committed to inter and intra-generational justice and is concerned with creating the conditions for reparative futures to take place. In her role as Melbourne Postdoctoral Fellow, Sarah is actively engaged in research located at the intersection of affect theory, digital childhoods, creative methods and a/r/tographic approaches to metho-pedagogy. Sarah’s expertise is underpinned by a background in art education and keen interest in close-to-practice research and teaching. George Variyan is the Course Leader for the Master of Educational Leadership in the Faculty of Education at Monash University. His background includes teaching, learning and leading in schools in Australia and overseas. George’s engagement in research is based on a critical sociology, which explores human agency in the relationship between education and society. Key interests include educational leadership, boys’ masculinities, climate activism and social justice, and ethics. Brad Gobby is a senior lecturer in the School of Education at Curtin University. His research is widely published and includes critical inquiry into education policy, educational subjectivities, and politics. Brad is co-editor of Powers of Curriculum: Sociological Aspects of Education.

Beyond koalas, UN organisations work to put climate change education on the agenda

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How UN organisations work to put climate change education on the agenda

Climate literacy is the biggest educational challenge of our time. Even as the Australian government’s recent action signals productive steps toward climate action, there is still much work to be done in addressing climate change and climate literacy can help with this. 

What is climate literacy? It’s an understanding of how climate change works, but also includes feeling motivated and able to participate in meaningful change for the planet. Where climate literacy is established, political will for action will follow.

We can achieve this through education – as we rapidly approach catastrophic ecological thresholds and tipping points, education is increasingly being considered a key component in our response to climate change. Young people are acutely aware of—and are taking action against—the unfolding climate crisis, with research capturing their experience and its emotional toll.

Intergovernmental bodies, such as the United Nations (UN), play an important role in progressing social causes through education, and action on climate change education is an ongoing focus for UN organisations. This includes the development of UN policy programs with a focus on climate change education, which impact national education policies globally. 

The work of these UN organisations is impacted by a lack of resourcing and isolated organisational structures. Observing the ways that UN organisations work together to advance their common agendas is of crucial importance to understanding how they meet their climate action goals. 

The UN & climate action

There are an increasing number of UN international organisations (IOs) developing programs in relation to climate change education (CCE): 

These UN policy programs aim to guide policy decision-making by UN member states until 2030. 

These initiatives are promising, given the urgent need for escalated action on climate change globally, and considering the impact previous UN policy programs have had on national and regional education systems, as well as other development goals. However, there is concern about the influences on policy programs and their effects on program quality. 

A lack of transparent decision-making weakens the work of the UN and impacts the quality and effects of work intended to address climate change. The UN’s policy programs are also up against other political forces that challenge their ability to fulfil their goals.

In light of these factors, it is important to consider the impact that those who work for and within policy programs (policy actors) do across networks and through relationship-building in order to deliver the UN’s work.

How UN networks advance the climate agenda

Environmental concerns have not always been seen as a core policy agenda in the education sector, just as education has not previously been significant on the environmental policy agenda.

The UN IOs introduced above bridge this gap with their dual focus on environment and education. However, both UNESCO-ESD and the UNFCCC-ACE are small, under-resourced subunits, doing important and far-reaching work with minimal resourcing.

The lack of focus on climate change education creates incentive for UN organisations to seek support across programs and networks. These relationships help to increase the profile of the climate work being done, and strengthen each policy program.

UNESCO’s ESD and UNFCCC’s ACE coordinate activities that bring together government and non-government representatives to do climate policy work. Our study finds that there are several points of connection between ESD and ACE, including writing joint reports, and meeting formally and informally to make connections.

The joint writing of policy documents, such as the Action for Climate Empowerment: Guidelines for accelerating solutions through education, training and public awareness and Integrating ACE into Nationally Determined Contributions: A Short Guide for Countries provided opportunities to work together on similar aims.

Meetings are also a key aspect of the shared work of UN organisations. Both ACE and ESD host regular high level events, attended by national governments and other intergovernmental staff, as well as staff who work across these UN IOs. Meetings often provide opportunities for cross-organisational work to unite in the interest of shared climate agendas. 

These co-network policy arrangements help UN organisations to overcome their limitations (such as limited resources) and link up with another organisation that does have the mandate and resources for an outcome they both would like to achieve (e.g. producing/publishing climate change education reports).

This tells us that the work involved in achieving the aims of climate change-oriented UN programs relies on networks of shared interest, and relationships bridging across organisations.

What does this tell us about the UN’s work on climate change education?

Climate change is a matter of critical importance to present and future generations around the globe. Our research indicates that advancing climate change education is not limited to siloed organisations or policy writers; it is a responsibility that is shared across multiple organisations and groups.

It also tells us that two of the UN’s international organisations tasked with addressing climate change, ACE and ESD, do not necessarily have the mandates or resources that are required to deliver the work required in advancing climate change education.

By better understanding the interactions across these policy programs, this research helps our understanding of how organisations might work together, outside and across their scope and jurisdictions, in order to gather adequate resources to promote and fulfil climate agendas. 

Marcia McKenzie is Professor in Global Studies and International Education in the Melbourne Graduate School of Education, University of Melbourne. Her research includes both theoretical and applied components at the intersections of comparative and international education, global education policy research, and climate and sustainability education, including in relation to policy mobility, place and land, affect, and other areas of social and geographic study. This research will be the focus of Marcia’s forthcoming papers at the 2022 AARE conference in Adelaide. 

Stephanie Wescott is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Melbourne Graduate School of Education, University of Melbourne. Her postdoctoral research studies the network relationships between UN policy programs and climate change education.