Education is crucial to addressing climate change, as it enables people to acquire the knowledge, skills, values and attitudes needed to mitigate the impact of global warming and contribute to sustainable development.

The secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), in collaboration with UNESCO, is organizing the 8th Dialogue on Action for Climate Empowerment – a round of discussions that will feed into COP 26, the next major conference of the parties to the Convention scheduled for 2021.

The Global Launch Event of the 8th Dialogue on Action for Climate Empowerment will take place on June 8th 2020 at 12:00 (Paris time) through a virtual webinar.

The objective of this one-hour event is to officially launch the 8th Dialogue on Action for Climate Empowerment and to raise awareness on the role of Action for Empowerment for accelerating climate action.

The event will be open for participation by Parties, representatives of relevant bodies established under the Convention, relevant experts, practitioners, and stakeholders, including intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations, in particular women, indigenous peoples, youth-focused organizations, the private sector and the media. 

The launch will be followed by a series of regional webinars, with the aim to provide background and knowledge sharing among stakeholders of each region, bringing all onto the same page regarding the current status of Action for Climate Empowerment (ACE) implementation. An online global closing event and an in-person session in conjunction with the 52nd session of SBI (October 2020) will also take place.

UNESCO and Climate Change Education

UNESCO has been providing capacity building for Member States through its Education for Sustainable Development programme to make education more central element of the international response to climate change. It encourages innovative pedagogical approaches to integrate Climate Change Education in schools, including through interdisciplinary practices and science education, among others.

UNESCO has also been working closely with the UNFCCC, the secretariat of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, to ensure that education and learning – formal, non-formal and informal – is fully mobilized to address climate change. This contributes to the implementation of Article 6 of the Convention, which concerns Action for Climate Empowerment (ACE).

Action for Climate Empowerment (ACE) focuses on six priority areas which have been recognized as crucial to counter climate change and adapt to its impacts: education, training, public awareness, public participation, public access to information and international cooperation.

• More on UNESCO’s work in Education for Sustainable Development