Manifesto Launch – NAEE is launching its Young People’s Learning and the Environment Manifesto on April 28th by zoom: 1700 to 1800. Please use this link to the launch event registration page to reserve a place. The Manifesto sets out 16 commitments that we think will help guide institutions to become more sustainable, and improve the education that pupils and students receive. We also set out four principles on which the Manifesto is based which we think are at the heart of what is important for schools and colleges to do in relation to young people’s learning and the environment. We’ll look forward to seeing you at the launch and discussing what the Manifesto says.
.
On the Streets again – LiveScience reports that on Friday March 25th thousands of young people across the world once again marched to demand that world leaders take action to curb the environmental abuses driving catastrophic climate change. A number of these were in the UK according to FFF.
.
Tuscon Arizona – The North American Association for Environmental Education is calling for “compelling proposals” for its 2022 Conference and Research Symposium in October in Tuscon. The deadline is April 29. Details here.
.
COP27 – The first season of UNESCO-UNFCCC’s Webinar Series, On the Road to COP27, is dedicated to the goal of greening every education policy and curriculum to be “climate ready”. Each episode will explore the critical role of climate change education,and how to harness its transformative power in leading up to COP27. The first webinar – Why Climate Change Education for Social Transformation? – is on 26th April, 1000 GMT +2. Registration is here.
.
Everyday Plastic – Greenpeace and Everyday Plastic are encouraging schools across the UK to count the true scale of the plastic waste crisis and encourage real action. From 14th March to 31st May, they want to empower children to have their voices heard. Schools can get involved here.
.
Earth Month – The Dirt Is Good Schools Programme is dedicating April to celebrate and take action in support of Earth Day. Free resources are available for schools, youth groups and parents including a short PowerPoint to introduce the concept and activity, an action pack, and a worksheet. You can find out more here.
.
Time to Invest in the Planet –The theme of Earth Day 2002 (on April 22nd) is Invest in Our Planet. A full report of the 2021 campaign is here.
.
No Monopoly of Ideas – Climania is a board game that was developed by Birmingham City University in partnership with The GAP (among others) and with local young people. The game is based on Birmingham’s Balsall Heath neighbourhood. It’s here.
.
ESD 2030 – A comparison of ESD curricula in Australia, Denmark, Japan, New Zealand, Scotland and Sweden was commissioned by the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment in Ireland to provide insights into interpreting and managing the UNESCO vision for ESD 2030. You can read it here.
.
Bath Bristol Wildlife – This year’s Festival of Nature is from 10 to 18 June. There will be a programme of nature walks & talks, family activities, wildlife workshops, and digital events across the Bristol and Bath region with about around 50 events planned. Kicking off with Action Day on Friday 10 June, individuals, businesses, schools and community groups will be encouraged to take positive action to help their local wildlife.
.
Eat your Greens – Researchers at Johns Hopkins Children’s Center report evidence from lab experiments that a chemical derived from a compound found abundantly in broccoli and other cruciferous plants may offer a potentially new and potent weapon against the viruses that cause COVID-19 and the common cold.
.
Psychogeography – Philippa Holloway from Staffordshire University says in The Conversation that a walk can give you fresh eyes to see forgotten or ignored aspects of your local area.
.
Ecological Tidiness Disorder – Over the next decades, the UK is likely to lose between 60% and 90% of its Ash trees. Rather than removing the dead wood and buring it, as happened with Dutch Elm Disease, Lynne Boddy, professor of fungal ecology at the University of Cardiff, argues that they should be left where they are. As the InkCap Journal notes: “If left to rot naturally, deadwood offers lodgings to many different creatures. In the UK, up to a fifth of woodland species, many of which are nationally threatened, depend on dead or dying trees. For example, of the 771 scarce woodland invertebrate species listed for the UK, one in three require deadwood habitats.”
.
40 Degrees Warmer – The Economist has graphs to show that this year parts of Antarctia have been 40 degrees C warmer that the March average. It argues, however, that it’s warming in the Arctic that we need to worry more about.