Select Committee Opportunity – Click here for details of the House of Commons Education Select Committee inquiry into teacher recruitment, training and retention. NAEE will be making a written submission to this arguing for the importance of including climate / environmental education within both pre- and in-service teacher professional development.
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Are Students ready to take on Environmental Challenges – A new PISA report from the OECD examines the types of education policy and practices that can help students build an environmentally sustainable future. Unsurprisingly, the report finds varying levels of environmental knowledge and skills, attitudes and actions among 15-year-old students around the world. The detail is here.
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UKSSN & Irish Schools Sustainability Network joint meeting – At the start of the spring term, UKSSN held a joint meeting with its sibling network in Ireland which was set up by a founding staff member of the London network, where both groups of students shared about their past and current projects. Click here to read more. To find out more about UKSSN and its member regional networks, visit its website where you can also read recent news and stories.
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Woodland Trust Youth Council – Here is an opportunity for 16–25-year-olds to contribute to project development and decision making. The Woodland Trust wants to ensure representation across all the countries and regions, as well recruiting a diverse group of young people. Applicants don’t have to be experienced in the sector, they just need to have an interest in the environment and an enthusiasm to make change. Support and training will be provided to ensure that they understand the organisation, and feel empowered to contribute in a meaningful way. All information can be found here.
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COP27 and Climate Change Education – In a SEEd blog, Kate Greer and Nicola Walshe reflect on their experience at COP 27 and the importance of ongoing knowledge exchange between researchers, practitioners and policymakers. You can read it here.
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GCSE Natural History – In February, Caroline Lucas MP asked the following written question:
“To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 15 December 2022 to Question 105315 on Natural History: GCSE, if she will provide a timeline for her plans for consulting and agreeing subject content, requirements and guidelines for the proposed GCSE”.
On February 21st Schools Minister Nick Gibb MP replied: “The Department is committed to developing the new natural history GCSE and ensuring it is of the highest standard. The Department continues to work closely with exam boards, subject experts, and Ofqual to develop the draft subject content for the natural history GCSE. The Department plans to consult publicly on this draft content in the coming months, before finalising the high quality subject content later this year. The Department intends for first teaching to be available from 2025”.
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Book review – Year 12 students Daphne from Buckinghamshire and Zoya from Lancashire reviewed Birdgirl by Mya-Rose Craig and co-hosted an online live interview with the author in December. You can read their review here and watch the event here.
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Wild Wear – WWF says that Wear It Wild is a fundraising challenge for the whole family, class, and school. It’s a dress-up day that can make a difference for wildlife and nature. If you register for Wear It Wild, you’ll gain access to an Educator Guide that will help you inspire young learners with learning activities to help them explore and understand nature. Details here.
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Woodland Trust Young trustee – This is an opportunity for 18–30-year-olds to join the Woodland Trust board of trustees to contribute to governance, build skills and gain experience. You don’t need to have previous board experience, but should have experience in conservation, ecology or finance. All information can be found here.
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Coffee & Geography – Tune into the coffee & geography episode of a podcast featuring UKSSN staff lead (and NAEE Fellow) Jess Tipton as co-host. In this, UKSSN students Amitha, Charlotte and Amruta share why they are passionate members of UKSSN and why other students should join too. The podcast is created and hosted by educator Kit Marie Rackley on the Georamblings blog.
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Net Gain – Defra has announced that it will introduce new Biodiversity Net Gain planning rules starting in November 2023. The rules will mandate that all new developments will be delivered in a way which protects and enhances nature. Developers in England will be required to deliver 10% Biodiversity Net Gain when building new housing, industrial or commercial developments. Details here.
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Flood UK – An article for the Lanes Group says that research has shown that the cost of flooding damage in the UK could rise by more than 20% over the next century. The newly published study from the University of Bristol has revealed that the impact of climate change will cause a significant increase in flooding-related damages over the coming decades, with high-risk regions such as the South East of England, South Wales, North West England and Central Scotland set to be the worst affected. These increases are now inevitable but can be limited or mitigated if the world’s nations step up their efforts to meet their climate reduction targets.
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Bye Bye Malaria – An article in Future Crunch says that since the turn of this century, 25 countries, home to more than a billion people, have eradicated malaria, with six of them (China, El Salvador, Malaysia, Iran, Belize and Cabo Verde) doing so since 2019. The next three to join the list will be Nepal, Bhutan and Saudi Arabia. More detail c/o the WHO.
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Debt for Climate – New research shows that deals that allow countries to reduce their debts in exchange for conservation measures could generate over $100 billion for environmental action in low-income countries. Recent deals for Barbados, Belize and the Seychelles show that this old idea is now going from strength to strength. Energy Monitor has the detail.