Gibraltar pledges to put climate change at heart of education policies

Gibraltar will enshrine in legislation a commitment to include learning about the climate emergency and climate justice as fundamental principles in its education policies.

The commitment was made on Friday by Dr John Cortes, the Minister for Education and Environment, during a meeting at the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow.

The meeting, titled Together for Tomorrow, was a joint initiative by the UK Department for Education, Italy, UNESCO, Mock COP and Youth4Climate, and was chaired by Professor Daniella Tilbury, Gibraltar’s Commissioner for Sustainable Development and Future Generations.

It brought together education ministers and ministers responsible for climate change from countries around the globe, alongside young people to discuss the crucial role of education in enabling positive climate action.

Education and learning are increasingly seen as key means for addressing climate change.

All participating countries were encouraged to pledge commitments to education for climate change and sustainability and to closer collaboration and alignment of policies between Education and Environment ministries.

“Her Majesty's Government of Gibraltar recognise fully that climate education is a crucial component in the fulfilment of a pupil's rights to quality education,” Dr Cortes said in a video statement.

“Transformative learning for people and planet are now a priority.”

“We recognise that teachers need training, support and resources, and we commit to providing all of these so that they're able to effectively and inclusively integrate sustainability and climate education into their areas of responsibility.”

“Her Majesty's Government of Gibraltar believes that learning about the climate emergency and climate justice have to be fundamental principles of education policy, and so will enshrine this in legislation in the coming months.”

“At the same time, we recognise the professional expertise of educators and commit to relying on them in the development of climate education.”

“We pledge to connect information technology, digital literacy, critical thinking, teamwork and real world engagement so that our young people can be empowered and enabled to make a difference in the fight against climate change.”