Climate change - developing social science teaching for advancing knowledge, action and hope

The climate change concerns of modern youth are manifested in the Greta Thunberg movement #FridaysForFuture, and a recent report shows that youth want political action (UNDP, 2021).

Additionally, ‘constructive hope’ is important to meet the challenge of climate change as it leads to engagement and willingness to act (Ojala, 2015).This project seeks to meet three educational challenges on climate change: i) education has privileged natural science subjects; ii) has not focused on understanding of interconnectedness between society and nature, and iii) has not addressed action and hope.

We acknowledge that economic literacy enables students to evaluate alternative possibilities, and the assumptions necessary for the acceptance of proposals on economic polices (e.g. flight taxation) (Mansbridge 2004).

This is the rationale for looking to social science education in compulsory schooling, and develop teaching in economic, political and legislative domains, that builds students’ knowledge concerning which choices merit action and hope. Interventions will be designed together with teachers and implemented using a Design Research approach.

Results will be shared in multiple ways; through workshops with social science teachers in the City of Stockholm, teacher unions and the Swedish Society for Nature Conservation communication and collaboration with the Swedish National Agency for Education and other stakeholders, and international publications.