Climate change education at COP28

30 November - 12 December 2023

UNESCO is actively involved in accelerating climate change education and will showcase its efforts at the global stage during this year's United Nations Conference on Climate Change (COP28) in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, from 30 November to 12 December 2023. This international event provides a valuable platform for securing commitments and actions from countries regarding climate change education. 

 hroughout the 13-day event, UNESCO will co-host a series of events highlighting the essential role of education in getting every learner climate-ready. In collaboration with the UAE Ministry of Education UNESCO as secretariat to the Greening Education Partnership will establish the first historical Greening Education Hub, featuring over 200 sessions organized to promote concrete actions and solutions through education. Youth members of the Partnership will also play a leading role in the dialogue and paving the next steps. 

Objectives 

• To mobilize and strengthen political commitment on greening education; 
• To share good practice and solutions on climate change education; 
• To generate opportunities for synergetic action on greening school, curriculum, the capacities of teachers and systems and communities. 

The following is an overview of UNESCO-related events taking place at COP28. 

Greening Education Hub

30 November-12 December, Green Zone, Expo City, Dubai, UAE 

The inaugural Greening Education Hub, known as the Greening Education Hub: LEGACY – إ ث from the Land of Zayed, will be set up in the green zone. The hub is hosted by the UAE Ministry of Education, co-organised with the Greening Education Partnership, supported by its UNESCO secretariat. The space and the corresponding events will emphasize education's pivotal role in addressing the climate crisis. 

The hub is designed around the four action pillars of the Greening Education Partnership: greening schools, greening curriculum, greening teacher training and education system's capacities, and greening communities. 

The programming will include:  

• National programming, showcasing the work undertaken by UAE government and national partners to greening education in UAE.   
• International programming, showcasing international activities undertaken to green education globally.  

The Greening Education Partnership Annual Meeting – 3-part event

8 December 2023, Green Zone, Expo City, Dubai, UAE  

• High-level session on greening education 

On the occasion of Youth and Education Day, UNESCO in partnership with the Ministry of Education of UAE will organize a session focusing on youth-based action to green education.  Key stakeholders will engage in discussions on accelerating green education across the world. The objective of this event is to secure political support and strengthen the global commitment on the common agenda for education and climate change at COP28 and beyond.  

During the event, The Declaration on the Common Agenda for Education and Climate Change at COP28, which was drafted on input from the GEP members countries, will be presented. It aims to strengthen and renew the country commitments and actions at COP28 and beyond on the role of education in adapting and mitigating climate change and the need for more investment to accelerate greening education globally.  

• Technical meetings on boosting Greening Education Partnership 

The high-level session will be followed by technical concurrent sessions on boosting the objectives of the Greening Education Partnership and accelerating action on the four pillars. Members working on each pillar will gather to discuss next steps and activities for achieving the Partnerships’ mission. 

• Working group meetings on way forward and action through the four pillars  

9 December 2023, Green zone, Expo City Dubai, UAE

This session will focus on reflections on the achievements of the member groups working on the four pillars and discuss the way forward, highlighting elements in the annual report and key data and evidence from the baseline survey report. 

Greening schools: Where do we go from here? - Post-COP28 UNFCCC- UNESCO webinar

12 December 14:00-15:00 UTC+1 

This session marks the end of the second season of UNFCCC-UNESCO webinars. It will review COP28, discussing what we've learned, achieved, committed to, and where we go next in promoting climate change education, with a focus on greening schools. 

In the previous webinars, we explored how schools can go "green" by incorporating Education for Sustainable Development into their teaching, facilities, governance, and community engagement. Building on the commitments made at COP28 by governments and others, the discussion will revolve around how to encourage cooperation across different sectors and among various stakeholders, bridging governments and society to support global efforts in making education and schools more environmentally conscious. 

This session will tackle these questions: 

• What did we accomplish in making schools more eco-friendly during COP28? 
• What's the plan for turning these commitments into action? 

Visit the official page including all the information.