Absolutely. Understanding climate change will be critical to how we navigate and create our future as a society. I was a founding member of a cross-curricular working group in my school which created resources to research climate change globally and locally and implemented learning outcomes based upon action and solution. Together, we integrated climate within our subjects: created new material and lessons that helped make what might seem like an abstract topic real to our students. Other candidates will have written about the obvious connections between climate change and STEM topics, but integrating climate change in other subjects is critical. How can we move forward, if we don’t understand the choices that brought us here, what’s at stake for different countries, how to best express our ideas and understand their implications, recognise our responsibilities and the power-imbalances at play?

Yes, I think it’s key. The scale and impacts of climate change are massive and can be overwhelming. I think there’s a moral duty to ensure that people learning about climate change also learn about what they can do. We can’t afford hopelessness and inaction when there’s so much we need to do, together.

Yes. It’s a complex topic that can feel overwhelming and not everyone will see how they can integrate it into their teaching practice, or how to support learners as they navigate the topic and think about its consequences for their future. Along with training, it’s important that climate change being integrated with teaching isn’t an opportunity for greenwashing lobbyists: teachers should be properly resourced and supported.

"Absolutely. We need to upgrade all our buildings to be carbon neutral wherever it’s possible. With good planning, schools can keystones in making their communities more energy efficient, help embed active travel, and make energy efficiency measures like district heating schemes viable, reducing the cost of living for their communities. But it goes beyond that. I am employed in a school which is a breathing building, fully equipped with solar panels, smart thermostats and which uses collected rainwater. Along with showing what’s possible, my experience teaching there has highlighted that carbon neutral environments are more comfortable and healthy to work in for everyone."

Absolutely. Those skills are part of addressing the climate crisis, they’re something that employers who want to make their work greener are looking for, and they can be put to public and community use. Teaching them won’t just open up opportunities for learners, but for our society as a whole.