Teach the Future Student Staff - National Organiser Reflections

Teach the Future is a campaign hosted by SOS-UK (Students Organising for Sustainability), as a result, the campaign is able to hire a small team of 'student staff' to work for each nation. The 'student staff; contacts are designed to be flexible and can be done alongside other work or studies. As education is a devolved matter in the UK each nation has power over its own curriculum and implementation. That is why we have a dedicated National Organiser for each nation, we believe in the power of lived experiences. We asked our current National Organisers to share their reflections on working for Teach the Future.

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Charlie | 16 | he/him | England National Organiser

Charlie has been a part of the campaign since March 2022.

Tell us a bit about yourself?

I am a student currently in my final year of secondary school, based in Oxfordshire, England, with a passion for the environment. Outside of Teach the Future, I enjoy studying maths and foreign languages, along with programming in my free time.

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What inspired you to get involved with Teach the Future or climate action in general?

The climate crisis and educating students to face our changing worth has always been something I care deeply about, but before joining Teach the Future, I had no idea where to direct those feelings. It was a family member who ended up reaching out to me after attending Teach the Future England’s parliamentary reception last year, and I haven’t looked back since.

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What are the biggest skills you’ve learned and developed?

- Policy engagement

- Organisation and coordination

- Public speaking

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How are these relevant and applicable in other areas of life?

Since joining the campaign, I’ve become more confident as a person, and I’m better able to lead and communicate in other areas of my life, such as at extracurricular activities at school.

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If you had to summarise your experience of the role for another young person, what would you say?

I’ve had the opportunity to become part of an extremely supportive and welcoming team, to gain new skills and grow as a person, but also to take part in meaningful action. It’s extremely rewarding to be able to see how my work and the work of the campaign as a whole leads to clear policy change and better climate education.

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Ellen | 17 | she/her | Northern Ireland National Organiser 

Ellen has been a part of the campaign since August 2023.

Tell us a bit about yourself?

‍Currently, I do Spanish, History and Politics at A Level, and I also did Maths as an AS Level. I have a wide range of interests - I do acting, singing, triathlons and lots of volunteering and activism outside of Teach the Future. I’m from the middle of nowhere, near a historic town called Downpatrick in County Down, Northern Ireland.

What inspired you to get involved with Teach the Future or climate action in general?

Someone I met through volunteering, Django, was also involved with Teach the Future and recommended that I should apply for the role! It sounded like a great fit for me, so I gave it a go and was delighted to be offered the job.

What are the biggest skills you’ve learned and developed?

- Policy

- Time Management

- Responsibility

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Alyson 24 | she/her | Scotland National Organiser 

Alyson has been a part of the campaign since July 2021

Tell us a bit about yourself?

I’m from the North East Highlands of Scotland, I studied Sustainable Event Management at the University of Stirling and now live in the central belt of Scotland. I’m very passionate about climate change being a social and environmental issue, I live by the mantra “nothing about us without us”, and that’s part of why I think the Teach the Future student lead approach is so important!

What inspired you to get involved with Teach the Future or climate action in general?

In 2021, while working for my university's Students’ Union, I came across the Teach the Future campaign and looked into how to get involved. At the time applications were open for student staff roles, so I took a chance and applied! The role at the time was for Volunteer Coordinator, and it was really interesting to be a part of adapting the role to better fit the campaign, which lead to the creation of the National Organiser roles. I was involved in climate justice groups through primary, high school and university and through Teach the Future that's continued. It was a great opportunity to build on my connection and work in climate justice and education once my degree had finished. 

What are the biggest skills you’ve learned and developed?

- Political engagement

- Social media/communications

- Policy

How are these relevant and applicable in other areas of life?

Being part of the campaign has allowed me to learn while I work. I’ve been passionate about climate justice for many years now, Teach the Future has given me a valuable insight into policy. It's been a really good way to develop existing skills and pick up new ones, all of which I know will support any future campaigns I work on.

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If you had to summarise your experience of the role for another young person, what would you say?

This is a unique opportunity to be a part of the conversations and development of education policy in the UK. If you feel unfulfilled by your climate education, then you can be a part of making sure future generations are given the resources and information needed for a better world - we can teach the future! I also want to note that the whole SOS-UK team have been extremely empowering and helped me to grow professionally and personally. The kind of people you work with make a huge difference to how enjoyable that work is. I'm very grateful to the staff I've worked with over the last couple years, climate justice work can be very overwhelming but working with such a fantastic group makes all the difference!

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Interested in working for Teach the Future?

The Teach the Future campaign and roles within it are always adapting to the needs of our campaign and our team. We will be hiring new student staff roles across all four nations in 2024. The team are working on updating the roles and all information will be shared soon online. While we do not currently have a National Organiser for Wales this role will re-open with the other nations in 2024. Follow us on social media and check out the SOS-UK jobs section for future vacancies.