- Welcome Mhlanga told us that ‘school leaders have to lead’. If we want the response to the world’s changing climate to have a high profile in our schools and associations, then the example has to come from the top. It is not an issue to delegate to others. We need to make sure that we are informed and that others can take their lead from the priority that we give to the issue.
- We need to make sure that our young people are informed and give them the best tools possible. Gabriel Rshaid demonstrated a series of powerful applications of AI, based around Chat GPT, which would enable students to better understand how climate is changing. Gabriel also showed us how students would then be able to construct a series of scenarios around particular climate events (for example, could they play sport if the global temperature increased by 2 degrees). All of these tools can be used by young people to help them first understand the potential future and to then seek to change it. As Gabriel reminded us, in the end these are not scenarios for our students, instead they are tools to help them understand what they may be going on to actually experience
- Leanne Otene reminded us that climate education is not just about data, but also about values. Leanne gave a powerful discussion of the Māori principle that we are Guardians of the Earth. Leanne showed how young people were applying this principle in their own response to our changing climate and reminded us that our aim should not to frighten them when discussing climate issues, but instead to offer knowledge and hope.
- Cen Li, an advisor to China’s Special Envoy on Climate Change, told delegates that our seminar had brought home to her that climate education should be seen as part of nurture and care for the whole person and she applauded our emphasis upon leadership, knowledge and hope.
I couldn’t have put it better myself. How powerful that the dominant word emerging from our seminar at COP 28, was ‘hope‘. Please take the chance to view the whole seminar by following this link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dxm9KdKq39A&list=PLBcZ22cUY9RIAVnrFNBEo7pnZfsTc2TLW&index=78
