PROGRAMMES from the University of Reading has helped more than 10,000 schools, nurseries and other education settings to take climate action.
A number of initiatives from the university, funded by the Department for Education, have seen 10,725 schools sign up to take more action on combating climate change.
Among the initiatives is the Climate Ambassadors programme, in which co-leads Professor Andrew Charlton-Perez (University of Reading) and Charlotte Bonner (The Environmental Association of Colleges and Universities) visit educational settings to help develop climate action plans.
More than 1,000 experts have signed up to be a part of the Climate Ambassador programme.
On Thursday, September 18, Professor Charlton-Perez returned to his old secondary school, Thomas Clarkson Academy in Wisbech.
During his visit, Andrew and colleagues from the Climate Ambassadors and Department for Education worked with 40 young people from the Thomas Clarkson and Wisbech Academies to write draft Climate Action Plans for each setting
Professor Andrew Charlton-Perez said: “Coming back to my old school as a climate scientist rather than a student was just brilliant.
“My love of the natural world and understanding how it works started here at Thomas Clarkson. Seeing young people have the same passion to make a difference to the world and their own community is hugely inspiring.
“By taking some of the positive steps we outlined today, teacher and young people in the school can work together to address climate change.
“We’re not just teaching about climate change—we’re creating the leaders who will solve it.”
As part of the government’s sustainability and climate change strategy, education settings have been prompted to produce climate action plans in an effort to reduce environmental impacts in wider communities.
Schools and nurseries that have already engaged with the Climate Ambassadors scheme have been supported to develop solutions to improve biodiversity, reduce their carbon footprint, improve climate education for young people, as well as better prepare for the kind of extreme weather experienced in England over the summer.
