Can Climate Change Education save the planet? European perspectives

This November, the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) was due to take place in Glasgow, UK but was postponed until 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, climate change is still a burning issue that cannot be put on hold  because of other current  societal challenges. The Royal Irish Academy, Ireland’s leading body of experts in the sciences and humanities, and ALLEA, the European Federation of Academies of Sciences and Humanities believe  that it is vital to keep  Climate Change Education on the research and political agenda.  To this extent, this webinar will address the role and importance of climate change education within both the European and the Irish context.  The event will hear from a number of international experts and will feature discussions of the key issues facing Climate Change Education.

Findings from a recently published ALLEA report “A snapshot of Climate Change Education Initiatives in Europe: Initial findings and implications for future Climate Change Education”  will be a starting point for discussing  climate change education initiatives in Europe which will consider successes, challenges and the future of Climate Change Education throughout Europe. A recent Royal Irish Academy Briefing Paper prepared by Dr Cliona Murphy, Chair of ALLEA’s Science Education Working Group and the Royal Irish Academy’s representative, discusses this report and its implications for Ireland and will be included in the discussions.

• Welcome and Introduction – Professor Gerry McKenna MRIA, Senior Vice President of the Royal Irish Academy
• Introduction to ALLEA – Professor Paweł Rowiński, Vice-President of the Polish Academy of Sciences and ALLEA Board Member
• The importance and the role of Climate Change Education – Prof Pierre Léna, Emeritus Professor at the Université Paris-Diderot,
• Climate Change Education Initiatives in Europe: findings and implications for future Climate Change Education, and what it means for Ireland– Dr Cliona Murphy, Dublin City University and ALLEA Science Education Working Group Chair
• The European Commission’s response to the ALLEA report – Dr Philippe Tulkens, acting Head of the Climate and Planetary Boundaries Unit in Directorate “Healthy Planet” of the European CommissionPANEL DISCUSSION
  • Dr Agata Gozdzik, Head of the Science Communication and Education Unit, Polish Academy of Sciences
  • Dr Michael John O’Mahony, Director of Environmental Education Unit, An Taisce – The National Trust for Ireland
  • Dr Philippe Tulkens, acting Head of the Climate and Planetary Boundaries Unit in Directorate “Healthy Planet” of the European Commission
  • Prof Pierre Léna, Emeritus Professor at the Université Paris-Diderot
  • Dr Cliona Murphy, Dublin City University and ALLEA Science Education Working Group Chair
• Conclusions from the Chair