Call to change educational practices to allow future generations to tackle climate change

For the remainder of the 21^st century and beyond, climate change poses an existential threat to humanity.

Under the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement, the world’s nations agreed to keep global temperature rises to within 2 degrees above pre-industrial levels. One degree of that rise has already occurred. However, in the recent COP23 meeting held in Bonn, Germany, we are still heading towards 3 degrees rise, and possibly more.

The Paris Agreement also states “Parties should take measures ... to enhance climate change education” (Paris Agreement, Art.12).

“Decisions on how to tackle the effects of climate change need to be based on sound science and rational judgement,” says Krishan Lal (India), co-chair of IAP for Science. “They will also need to be made through the coming years – so it is the younger generation, currently in schools and learning about science, who will need to make those decisions.”

Unfortunately, in many countries, science education is often poor and does not develop the rational thinking or provide the inter-disciplinary study required to learn about climate change.

IAP and its member academies have a long track record in improving science education in many countries through the promotion of inquiry-based science education (IBSE), whereby children learn teamwork and rational thinking through the scientific process of developing hypotheses, designing and carrying out experiments to test them, and evaluating their results to develop conclusions. Currently, however, even the best science education tends to be taught in traditional silos – biology, chemistry, physics, etc, whereas climate change education requires a more inter-disciplinary approach.

The IAP ‘Statement on Climate Change and Education’ recognizes this and, to start the process of revitalizing education, lays out a series of recommendations on how effective climate change education can be promoted in schools around the world.

Among the specific recommendations of the Statement are the wider uptake of IBSE in schools around the world; the need to provide teachers with adequate training and resources; and that the periodic Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) ‘Assessment Reports’ and accompanying ‘Summaries for Policy Makers’ can be used as the basis for producing ‘Resources & Tools for Teachers’.

"We believe that climate change is a real threat to humanity, but also could be a formidable opportunity for all of us to modify the current unsustainable way of living, as recently outlined by more than 15,000 scientists in their call to the humanity. During major civilization changes, education has played a capital role to prepare the youth and convey the new ideas. Our goal in releasing this Statement is to contribute to this process,” says Pierre Léna of the Académie des sciences, France, who chaired the working group that produced the IAP Statement.

“We hear everywhere pessimistic statements about the future of our planet,” adds Marie-Lise Chanin, also of the French Académie des sciences, who co-chaired the development of the Statement with Pierre Léna. "but engaging the young generation in this issue and empowering students as ‘agents of change’ will bring hope and optimism.”

The IAP for Science ‘Statement on Climate Change and Education’ will be released on 12 December in Paris, France, at the One Planet Summit, being held under the auspices of the President of France, Emmanuel Macron.

“This Statement on Climate Change Education builds on IAP’s track record in promoting science education,” says Volker ter Meulen (Germany), the other co-chair of IAP for Science. “And by releasing it during President Macron’s One Planet Summit we hope that it will reach the eyes and ears of governments and decision-makers worldwide and convince them that they need to take both individual and collective action on this existential issue.”

The preparation IAP Statements is led by one of its member academies (in this case the Académie des sciences, France). A working group of experts nominated by IAP member academies is established to develop and refine the Statement. A Statement is released only when it has been approved by the IAP for Science Executive Committee and more than half of IAP members have endorsed its contents. Thus, the contents of this IAP Statement is supported by the credibility and independence of the majority of the world’s academies of science.

About IAP

The InterAcademy Partnership (IAP) was formally launched in South Africa in March 2016 and brought together three established global networks of academies of science, medicine and engineering.

Under the InterAcademy Partnership, more than 130 national and regional member academies work together to support the special role of science and its efforts to seek solutions to address the world's most challenging problems. In particular, IAP harnesses the expertise of the world's scientific, medical and engineering leaders to advance sound policies, promote excellence in science education, improve public health, and achieve other critical development goals. 

IAP for Science (founded in 1993 as the InterAcademy Panel) brings together a sub-set of 113 academies from among the 130-plus members of the InterAcademy Partnership.

IAP and its member academies have a strong track record in trying to improve science education by promoting inquiry-based science education (IBSE) through its Science Education Programme, which has been active since 2003, including through a prior ‘IAP Statement on Science Education’ signed by 69 member academies.

Copies of the Statement are available for download from: http://www.interacademies.net/10878/32036.aspx