Developing a guide to climate & health justice education: Process and content

Area of Science:

• Environmental Health
• Public Health Education
• Climate Justice Studies

Background:

• Climate change disproportionately affects minoritized communities, leading to significant health inequities.
• Existing educational frameworks often fail to center the experiences of those Most Affected People and Areas (MAPA).
• There is a need for accessible, actionable resources to bridge climate change, health, and social justice education.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce the "Envisioning Environmental Equity Educator's Guide to Climate and Health Justice."
• To provide a framework for educators, activists, and health professionals to teach climate and health justice.
• To center the experiences of MAPA in climate and health education using an anti-racist, anti-colonial approach.

Main Methods:

• Collaborative stakeholder meetings were held in Brazil, the Philippines, and Uganda.
• Needs and priorities regarding climate and health were assessed with policymakers, doctors, activists, and students.
• The educator's guide was developed based on these stakeholder consultations and principles of engaged pedagogy.

Main Results:

• The educator's guide offers a lesson framework with concepts, examples, and activities for primary and secondary learning settings.
• It explores climate and health justice dynamics through an anti-racist and anti-colonial lens.
• The guide promotes educational approaches that center MAPA experiences for diverse audiences.

Conclusions:

• The educator's guide is an innovative resource for climate and health justice education.
• It provides a strategy for climate justice communication targeting diverse audiences.
• The resource fosters critical thinking and consciousness on climate-related health inequities.