A Diary Date – NAEE is writing a Manifesto for young people’s learning and the environment. Its purpose is to build on existing work in schools and colleges and further stimulate change in thinking and practice, so that young people can be even better prepared to meet the social and environmental challenges they will face through their lives, and be ready to contribute to solving them. The manifesto is aimed at leaders and governors, teachers, pupils and students, and is relevant to policy makers, administrators, inspectors, teacher educators, and NGO education teams. It will be launched via a webinar on Thursday April 28th [1700 to 1800]. Registration details will follow.
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A Model Curriculum – Last year, the DfE published a model music curriculum, and a history one is being developed. An article in The Times said that such model curriculums can go into more detail than the national curriculum does and set out what schools are advised to teach in order to reach the highest quality of lessons. It has the status of non-statutory guidance. Our Chair notes that there will not be a model curriculum for the environment / sustainability because it’s not a subject, and only subjects can have models. He wonders if anyone else will do it.
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Student Learning – Did COP26 influence student’s views of climate change and the COP26 negotiations? Pre and post-COP26 research surveys by SOS-UK showed that following COP26, there was an increase in the number of students who said they knew about what it was trying to achieve, as well as the number knowing more about the UK’s approach to tackling climate change. The detail is here.
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IPCC Update – The latest IPCC report from Working Group II does not make for happy reading. It concludes: “The vulnerability of ecosystems and people to climate change differs substantially among and within regions (very high confidence), driven by patterns of intersecting socio-economic development, unsustainable ocean and land use, inequity, marginalization, historical and ongoing patterns of inequity such as colonialism, and governance (high confidence). Approximately 3.3 to 3.6 billion people live in contexts that are highly vulnerable to climate change (high confidence). A high proportion of species is vulnerable to climate change (high confidence). Human and ecosystem vulnerability are interdependent (high confidence). Current unsustainable development patterns are increasing exposure of ecosystems and people to climate hazards (high confidence).”
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IOC Update – The latest bulletin from UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission contains information on: The One Ocean Summit – a Rare coral reef discovery, The Odyssey Project, Elephant seals becoming animal oceanographers, and a New Blue Curriculum: Toolkit for policy-makers.
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Elephant Times – The latest issue of the Elephant Times (Vol 2.3) is now available. Its theme is Commonwealth Connections ‘Three people – Three life stories’. It features articles from Rohini Corfield, Vipin Chauhan, and Sue Rees who examine issues relating to migration and suggests strategies for use with learners of all ages.
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30 U 30 – The North American Association of Environmental Education [NAAEE] is on the look out for 30 people under 30 years old who are using environmental education to build a sustainable and just future for all. The EE 30 Under 30 Class of 2022 will receive global recognition, join a growing community of inspiring EE leaders, and receive ongoing opportunities for professional development and networking, including scholarship opportunities to attend the 2022 NAAEE conference. NAAEE welcomes applicants from across sectors and disciplines. You can submit applications here.
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It’s a Wrap – This week (7th – 13thMarch) is National Food Waste Action Week. WRAP is leading this campaign with the theme Food waste is feeding climate change. You’ll find further details here, and resources such as press releases, posters, banners etc. can be accessed here.
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Plastic Treaty – UN member states have agreed on the adoption of a mandate for an International Negotiating Committee to develop a legally binding UN Treaty on plastic pollution that the Ellen MacArthur Foundation says takes us closer to a circular economy for plastics becoming a reality. There’s more detail here. Dame Ellen MacArthur, founder and chair of trustees of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation said “This is a key moment in the effort to eliminate plastic waste and pollution on a global scale. The mandate … opens the door to a legally binding treaty that deals with the root causes of plastic pollution, not just the symptoms. Critically, this includes measures considering the entire lifecycle of plastics, from its production, to product design, to waste management, enabling opportunities to design out waste before it is created as part of a thriving circular economy.”
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Where Eagles Dare – The South of Scotland Golden Eagle Project has moved seven birds aged between six months and three years old from nests in the Outer Hebrides, where there is one of the highest densities of golden eagles in Europe. The five female and two male eagles were caught under licence from NatureScot, transported and then satellite-tagged and released. This brings the number of golden eagles in the South of Scotland to ~ 33, the highest number for about 200 years.
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Wild Live – On the latest episode of Wild LIVE the topic was species reintroduction. Chaired by Craig Bennet, CEO of the Wildlife Trusts, the panel discussed how the reintroduction of species lost to the UK could play a vital role in nature’s recovery. You can watch it here.
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That Other COP – There’s a new edition of IIED’s biodiversity newsletter which looks forward to COP15 on the Convention on Biological Diversity later this year. IIED is carrying out a survey to capture views on the impacts of biodiversity loss on women and girls, the policy gaps, and the barriers to participation in decision making. The survey should take around 20 minutes to complete.
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Hedgehog Loss – A new State of Britain’s Hedgehogs 2022 report has been published. The headline findings are that rural hedgehog populations have declined by between 30-75% nationally since 2000, but there is a glimmer of hope as urban populations appear to be stabilising and may even be starting to recover. The report is published by the People’s Trust for Endangered Species (PTES) and the British Hedgehog Preservation Society (BHPS).
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Blocked Toilets – Every day in the UK about 700,000 panty liners, 2.5 million tampons and 1.4 million pads are flushed down the toilet – many of which block our sewer systems before getting into rivers and seas. Rethink Periods provides 2-hour training sessions for schools that explores the issues surrounding period products. There are sessions on Thursday 10th March 2022 10-12pm and Wednesday 23rd March 2022 4-6pm. Further details here.