Think Tank on Global Education: Climate Change Edition

"We know that we have to keep fighting. We know that this isn't just about the weather and the environment. It's about justice. It's about knowing that we deserve a safe present, a just present, and a green and a sustainable future." - Mitzi Jonelle Tan, Youth Advocates for Climate Action Philippines

Learn to foster global competence in your school(s) using a proven framework and tactics for organizational change.

Overview

When it comes to climate change, young people around the globe have employed both leadership and passion to propose and demand solutions from the adults in charge. Yet with the support of educators like us, we can empower these young people to be even more engaged and effective in this work. What can we do to better equip our students with the knowledge to deeply understand climate change, so they can help to develop climate solutions? How can we embed climate change across subjects and disciplines, to foster deep knowledge of the topic among young people? How can we help our youth become better communicators — and better advocates for climate action? 

The Harvard Graduate School of Education’s 2023 Think Tank on Global Education invites educators to learn to develop and deliver powerful instruction aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, an inclusive and sustainable vision of a better future for humanity. Reimagining Our Futures Together: A Social Contract for Education, the recent report by UNESCO’s Commission on the Futures of Education, underscores the urgency of reimagining education so that students engage with a curriculum that is authentic, relevant, and meaningful. 

The 2023 Think Tank on Global Education will help you and your students gain the competencies to understand and address some of the most pressing challenges of our time and to participate in building a more inclusive and sustainable future. 

The Think Tank is chaired by Professor Fernando M. Reimers, a leading scholar of global citizenship education and a member of UNESCO’s Commission on the Futures of Education, as well as the architect of several ambitious curricula aligned with the SDGs.

Program Details

During this three-day, in-person institute hosted at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, you’ll hear from thought leaders, researchers, and practitioners who have been innovators in Climate Action Education across school systems and explore frameworks for organizing student learning with a focus on Climate Action. Working in groups, you’ll analyze the levers for change in your setting, create curricula, develop your approaches to assessment, and begin to build a systematic approach to improvement.

Together, we’ll support you in identifying conditions that support or hinder progress toward your goals and experimenting with new concepts and tactics for leading learning with colleagues and students. All of this serves our collective goal of preparing young people to address the urgent challenge of Climate Change.

Learning Goals

• Analyze curricular materials related to Climate Action (SD Goal #13)  to frame and inform the curriculum for your learners.
• Explore “signature pedagogies” in climate change education and learn how exemplary teachers design signature learning experiences for their students.
• Review research on effective approaches to climate change education
• Understand the power of a school-wide strategy for climate action, addressing curriculum, teacher development and operations
• Receive feedback on your current challenges through the Think Tank’s Consultancy—a protocol that facilitates reflection, peer coaching, and application of new ideas from the institute.

Who Should Attend

• K–12 educators invested in climate change education 
• Educators at all experience levels, including those with experience building students’ climate action competencies and those new to this effort
• School teams that comprise a variety of stakeholder roles, such as teachers, curriculum directors, instructional coaches, school leaders, and community members
• District and school network leaders
• Teacher educators
• Nonprofit sector leaders who serve and collaborate with schools

Fees & Policies

Full tuition is due by the indicated payment deadline, which you may find above or on the program’s community page. While a purchase order confirms enrollment, full payment is still required by the payment deadline. Please note that failure to pay by the payment deadline will result in your withdrawal from the program. Click here for more information on payment, refund, and withdrawal policies.

Tuition includes all instructional materials required for participation in the program. The Harvard Graduate School of Education reserves the right to change faculty or cancel programs at its discretion. The school is not responsible for any planning expenses incurred.

Tuition Assistance

Tuition assistance is available for this program on a need- and application-basis. Tuition assistance is granted based on participant and institutional needs. Requests for tuition assistance have no effect on an applicant's prospects for admission. You may access the tuition assistance application after you have submitted your program application.

Closed Captioning and Accessibility

This online course includes live web conferences. For live events, we will arrange for captioning services upon your request. Please contact us via the Professional Education Community if you require accommodations and did not note so in your application. If possible, requests should be made at least a week in advance. Please note: we will make every effort to secure services, but all are subject to availability.