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If you have recently subscribed to our mailing list, we hope you enjoy this fortnightly selection of information and links relating to climate education. 

It feels like we are in a period of change - not just with the increasing number of election signs and sound-bites, but with the longer days and garden activity of Koanga | Spring. With nature buzzing we can feel positive, and through the content below we hope that we can share some reasons to be inspired.

Announcements:

General Comment No.26 announced August 29th

The United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child’s 'General Comment 26' outlines why and how children are compromised by climate change - including the very basic right to life, and what governments should be doing about it.

The document specifically affirms the children's right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment. It is a result of two years' consultation with more than 7000 children from 103 countries, as well as governments and relevant experts, and is intended as a practical "how-to" guide to action that can help children, young people and their advocates hold governments and others accountable. 

• The Conversation wrote this article about it.

• A young Samoan climate activist, Aniva Clarke, says the guidance is "the first step to global change".

• And you can read more on the official website here.

Rights of young people in Montana, USA

This continues a theme building on the rights of young people, with a judge last month ruling in favour of the plaintiffs in the landmark Held vs Montana climate change lawsuit, the first youth-led climate case in America.  In her ruling, Judge Seeley said Montana's greenhouse gas emissions have been proven to be "a substantial factor" in causing climate impacts to Montana's environment, harming the young plaintiffs. Read more in this RNZ article.

Articles and Reports:

Sea Change: Effective Communications for Climate Education Policy, NAAEE, January 2023

This research was undertaken by the Coalition for Climate Education Policy in America and aligns with the thinking that our Coalition is doing in terms of strategies to get more priority given to climate education. This project applied a strategic communications lens to the accomplishments of New Jersey, Maine and Montgomery County, Maryland, in developing, securing approval of and implementing climate change education policy. 

Common Threads were:

• Listen to student voices, then make space for them to lead

• Centre Equity

• Engage stakeholders early, authentically and often

• Find (or build) and activate networks

• Us positive messaging frames to inspire with what is possible

• Be part of a larger movement

Download the full report.

Gems from Climate Club this week

Our friends at Climate Club continue to be upbeat and informative about how we can respond individually to climate change. If you are not already a subscriber to their Tuesday email, you can sign up here.  

They reminded us of the work of Professor Kim Nicholas, who has used this ‘climate haiku’ when teaching about climate change:

1. It's warming

2. It's us 

3. We're sure

4. It's bad

5. We can fix it ​

Each point comes with footnotes, and she has developed more of a curriculum framework around them, which has been applied in many ways, for example as outlined in this article. 

Climate Superpowers website

Climate Club also shared this great website developed by young people in Melbourne, looking at Climate Superpowers.

It’s a fun way of breaking down the often-daunting challenges that we face. Take the quiz and get some reminders about the positive action that we can be taking. This would be great done with a class, and for community groups.

Climate at Work

If you are looking for tips that are more specific to work, have a look at Project Drawdown’s Climate At Work, a how-to guide for employees looking to make every job a climate job.

Events:

Auckland Climate Festival is underway

There are many events that you can get involved with. Check out the programme. It includes the event we promoted last newsletter: Climate Action Workshop for Sustainability Professionals, delivered by Climate Club using the international Climate Fresk model. 1-4pm, Ellen Melville Centre. Book here.

Global Citizen Education Forum 11-13 September 

Hosted by the Centres of Asia Pacific Excellence (CAPEs), a consortium backed by four New Zealand universities: the University of Auckland, Te Herenga Waka-Victoria University of Wellington, University of Otago, and the University of Waikato, the forum will take place at the Auckland University of Technology and online and is free to attend.

The forum will underscore the significance of global citizenship education for navigating and addressing complex global issues, as a nation and as individuals. It aims to inspire and empower New Zealanders to think critically, transform their teaching methodologies, and equip them with practical tools and strategies to address the challenges of a rapidly changing world. Register here.

Rangatahi workshop - Climate and Community - 29 September from 9am-5pm, Wellington

Enviroschools, Generation Zero and Let’s Talk Climate Taiohi have joined together to host a workshop for rangatahi in years 11-13 to feel supported within the climate space, to connect with both other taiohi and mentors. Register here or contact grace.cowley@gw.govt.nz if you have any further questions.  

By Māori for Māori in-person symposium on community-led retreat and adaptation

This symposium is a collaborative and exploratory process by Māori for Māori. The

intention is to gather those active in this space to share, co-learn, find solutions, and strategise. Held at Whakaue Marae, Maketu, attendees can then take information and ideas back to their own communities. Find out more and register here.

Tertiary Education for Climate Empowerment (TECE) Summit - 2 Nov (12-4)

The International Universities Climate Alliance (IUCA) together with Monash University and University of New South Wales (UNSW) invite you to join them for this online half-day Summit, ahead of COP28 in Dubai.

Hear perspectives from government, industry, youth, communities and tertiary institutions across Asia Pacific and learn about opportunities for regional cross-sector collaboration. This inaugural Summit focuses upon building awareness and developing collaborations involving:

• Sharing insights on climate empowerment - What is climate empowerment (ACE) and how does it relate to regional climate action? 

• Forming a network of diverse stakeholders to support future collaboration - What are the different stakeholders’ perspectives and bodies of work relevant to the region?

• Stimulating dialogue about the role of Tertiary Education - How can Tertiary Education institutions support climate empowerment across the region?

• Discussing opportunities for collaboration in relation to COP28 - Where are the regional synergies and opportunities?

More details soon but this is going to be a great event!

Campaigns:

Climate Action Week 18-24 September

Run by the School Strike 4 Climate who will be “unleashing a tidal wave of action” during the week. We (ACEC) will be getting involved too, planning events and action to demonstrate the importance of climate education for everyone, and the positive impact that this can have.

If you are attending any Candidate meetings

As shared in the last newsletter, we have prepared some questions for candidate meetings that relate to climate education, which you can access via the button below.

Websites:

Vote for climate action website launched

This website provides a simple outline of ways to vote or get involved.

Policy.nz site launched

This website allows voters to compare different political parties positions on key issues this election, as well as providing a way of comparing local candidates. Topics that are compared include:

• Community and Inclusion

• Education

• Environment

• Te ao Māori

• Transport and infrastructure

The school learning page is a fantastic resource. There are a number of one-page Activity Plans, developed by teachers and educators across a number of electoral issues, which focus on the values, priorities and impacts that policies have on different groups of people. The plans are aimed at Curriculum Level 5, but designed to be simplified or advanced for students from year 7 to year 13.

Triple the Vote 

This campaign has been created by ActionStation and helps people to choose three people who care about people and planet, but are unlikely to vote, or undecided on who to vote for. As well as encouraging a conversation, they will remind you when voting opens to follow up with them.

Other news:

Generation Zero - Chip in to a campaign aimed at young people

Generation Zero planned an election campaign, but the money fell through at the last minute. They have planned a positive, educational, climate justice campaign that supports young people and first time voters to get out to vote with our climate and communities in mind. They are seeking support to deliver the campaign and are seeking donations. 

“Our goal is to reconnect young people with the power of hope in this election. We know that a lot of young people don’t see voting as an effective way to shape their hopes for a safe climate and for their communities.

Hope is not naive. Young people have hopes for the future that need to be heard in this election. We need to be able to imagine a thriving world, and to see politicians taking this seriously.”

Vacancies at the NZ Climate Action Network

The NZCAN Board is now recruiting for a Node Coordinator, and also for a short term systems-building contract role. 

The job ads are linked below:

Node Coordinator - 8 hours a week, until the end of 2024.

Systems Builder - help build our finance, fundraising and admin systems to sustain NZCAN's work into the future. 

Questions about either role can be directed to me at newzealandcan@gmail.com 

Applications for both roles close at 5pm on Friday 15 September 2023.