The Effects of Climate Change on Children’s Education Attainment
Abstract
:1. How Climate Change Affects Access to Education for Children
2. Climate Change Adaptation among Children
3. Methods
4. Results and Discussion
5. Conclusions and Outlook
5.1. Climate Literacy Interventions
- *
- Understand the essential principles of Earth’s climate system,
- *
- Know how to assess scientifically credible information about climate,
- *
- Communicate about climate and climate change in a meaningful way, and
- *
- Make informed and responsible decisions regarding actions that may affect climate.
5.2. Climate Education Interventions
Author Contributions
Funding
Institutional Review Board Statement
Informed Consent Statement
Data Availability Statement
Acknowledgments
Conflicts of Interest
References
- Cissé, G. Food-Borne and Water-Borne Diseases under Climate Change in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: Further Efforts Needed for Reducing Environmental Health Exposure Risks. Acta Trop. 2019, 194, 181–188. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Mann, M.E.; Rahmstorf, S.; Kornhuber, K.; Steinman, B.A.; Miller, S.K.; Coumou, D. Influence of Anthropogenic Climate Change on Planetary Wave Resonance and Extreme Weather Events. Sci. Rep. 2017, 7, 45242. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- Markkanen, S.; Anger-Kraavi, A. Social Impacts of Climate Change Mitigation Policies and Their Implications for Inequality. Clim. Policy 2019, 19, 827–844. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- Gibbs, L.; Nursey, J.; Cook, J.; Ireton, G.; Alkemade, N.; Roberts, M.; Gallagher, H.C.; Bryant, R.; Block, K.; Molyneaux, R.; et al. Delayed Disaster Impacts on Academic Performance of Primary School Children. Child Dev. 2019, 90, 1402–1412. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- Luetz, J.M. Disaster-Resistant Schools for Disaster-Resilient Education. In Quality Education. Encyclopedia of the UN Sustainable Development Goals; Leal Filho, W., Ed.; Springer: Cham, Switzerland, 2020; pp. 1–17. [Google Scholar]
- Rao, N.; Ranganathan, N.; Kaur, R.; Mukhopadhayay, R. Fostering Equitable Access to Quality Preschool Education in India: Challenges and Opportunities. Int. J. Child Care Educ. Policy 2021, 15, 9. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- International Institute for Population Sciences. India Report 2018/2019. In National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5), 2019-5) 019-21: India: Volume I; International Institute for Population Sciences: Mumbay, India, 2022. [Google Scholar]
- UNICEF. The Impact of Climate Change on Children in Bangladesh Vulnerability Profile; UNICEF: Washington, DC, USA, 2016. [Google Scholar]
- Statista Number of Extreme Weather Events in India in 2021, by Type. Available online: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1289784/number-of-extreme-weather-events-india-by-type/ (accessed on 25 February 2023).
- Hari, V.; Dharmasthala, S.; Koppa, A.; Karmakar, S.; Kumar, R. Climate Hazards Are Threatening Vulnerable Migrants in Indian Megacities. Nat. Clim. Chang. 2021, 11, 636–638. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Plan International. We Stand as One: Children, Young People and Climate Change. 2015. Available online: https://www.srhr-ask-us.org/themencode-pdf-viewer-sc/?file=https://www.srhr-ask-us.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/YP_Climate-Change.pdf&settings=001101111&lang=en-US#page=&zoom=auto&pagemode= (accessed on 25 February 2023).
- Bicego, G.; Rutstein, S.; Johnson, K. Dimensions of the Emerging Orphan Crisis in Sub-Saharan Africa. Soc. Sci. Med. 2003, 56, 1235–1247. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Steele, F.; Sigle-Rushton, W.; Kravdal, Ø. Consequences of Family Disruption on Children’s Educational Outcomes in Norway. Demography 2009, 46, 553–574. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Cusick, S.E.; Georgieff, M.K. The Role of Nutrition in Brain Development: The Golden Opportunity of the “First 1000 Days”. J. Pediatr. 2016, 175, 16–21. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed] [Green Version]
- Victora, C.G.; Adair, L.; Fall, C.; Hallal, P.C.; Martorell, R.; Richter, L.; Sachdev, H.S. Maternal and Child Undernutrition: Consequences for Adult Health and Human Capital. Lancet 2008, 371, 340–357. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed] [Green Version]
- Kumala Dewi, L.P.R.; Dartanto, T. Natural Disasters and Girls Vulnerability: Is Child Marriage a Coping Strategy of Economic Shocks in Indonesia? Vulnerable Child. Youth Stud. 2019, 14, 24–35. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Randell, H.; Gray, C. Climate Change and Educational Attainment in the Global Tropics. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 2019, 116, 8840–8845. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed] [Green Version]
- Philipsborn, R.P.; Chan, K. Climate Change and Global Child Health. Pediatrics 2018, 141, e20173774. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed] [Green Version]
- Internal Displacements Monitoring Centre Internal Displacements Monitoring Centre. Available online: https://www.internal-displacement.org/ (accessed on 13 January 2023).
- Baez, J.; de la Fuente, A.; Santos, I.V. Do Natural Disasters Affect Human Capital? An Assessment Based on Existing Empirical Evidence; Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit: Bonn, Germany, 2021. [Google Scholar]
- Grewenig, E.; Lergetporer, P.; Werner, K.; Woessmann, L.; Zierow, L. COVID-19 and Educational Inequality: How School Closures Affect Low- and High-Achieving Students. Eur. Econ. Rev. 2021, 140, 103920. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Blaskó, Z.; Schnepf, S.V. Educational Inequalities in Europe and Physical School Closures during COVID-19; European Comission: Brussels, Belgium, 2020. [Google Scholar]
- Berse, K. Climate Change from the Lens of Malolos Children: Perception, Impact and Adaptation. Disaster Prev. Manag. Int. J. 2017, 26, 217–229. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Chatterjee, S. Climate Change Risks and Resilience in Urban Children in Asia: Synthesis Report for Secondary Cities: Da Nang, Khulna, and Malolos; IIED, The Rockefeller Foundation, Save the Children and ACCCRN: 2015. Available online: https://resourcecentre.savethechildren.net/document/climate-change-risks-and-resilience-urban-children-asia-synthesis-report-secondary-cities-da/ (accessed on 13 January 2023).
- UNICEF; Plan Internacional. The Benefits of a Child-Centred Approach to Climate Change Adaptation Children Are One of the Largest and Most Vulnerable Groups at Risk from Climate Change; UNICEF: Washington, DC, USA, 2011. [Google Scholar]
- Treichel, P. Why Focus on Children: A Literature Review of Child-Centred Climate Change Adaptation Approaches. Aust. J. Emerg. Manag. 2020, 35, 26–33. [Google Scholar]
- Amponsem, J.; Kemeh, S.D.; Schudel, L.; Italo, A.; Toledo, S. Adapt for Our Future: Youth And Climate Change Adaptation; Washington, DC, USA. 2019. Available online: https://gca.org/reports/adapt-for-our-future-youth-and-climate-change-adaptation/ (accessed on 17 December 2022).
- Schoch, C.; Treichel, P. Child-Centered Climate Resistance: Case Studies from the Philippines and Vietnam; Plan International, Save the Children: Fairfield, CT, USA, 2015. [Google Scholar]
- Banerjee, B.K. Natural Hazards in Indian School Education and the Tsunami Experience. Int. Schulbuchforsch. 2005, 27, 407–424. [Google Scholar]
- Lawler, J.; Patel, M. Exploring Children’s Vulnerability to Climate Change and Their Role in Advancing Climate Change Adaptation in East Asia and the Pacific. Environ. Dev. 2012, 3, 123–136. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Senanayake, M.P.; Jayamanna, M.D.C.J.P. Children Affected by Severe Drought in a Rural Community in the Central Highlands of Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka J. Child Health 2014, 43, 23–26. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- Sheffield, P.E.; Uijttewaal, S.A.M.; Stewart, J.; Galvez, M.P. Climate Change and Schools: Environmental Hazards and Resiliency. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2017, 14, 1397. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed] [Green Version]
- Bidassey-Manilal, S.; Wright, C.Y.; Kapwata, T.; Shirinde, J. A Study Protocol to Determine Heat-Related Health Impacts among Primary Schoolchildren in South Africa. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2020, 17, 5531. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Estrada Guillén, M.; Monferrer Tirado, D.; Rodríguez Sánchez, A. The Impact of COVID-19 on University Students and Competences in Education for Sustainable Development: Emotional Intelligence, Resilience and Engagement. J. Clean. Prod. 2022, 380, 135057. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Hu, Y.; Cheng, J.; Liu, S.; Tan, J.; Yan, C.; Yu, G.; Yin, Y.; Tong, S. Evaluation of Climate Change Adaptation Measures for Childhood Asthma: A Systematic Review of Epidemiological Evidence. Sci. Total Environ. 2022, 839, 156291. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Mitchell, P.; Borchard, C. Mainstreaming Children’s Vulnerabilities and Capacities into Community-Based Adaptation to Enhance Impact. Clim. Dev. 2014, 6, 372–381. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Rodriguez-Llanes, J.M.; Ranjan-Dash, S.; Mukhopadhyay, A.; Guha-Sapir, D. Looking Upstream: Enhancers of Child Nutritional Status in Post-Flood Rural Settings. PeerJ 2016, 4, e1741. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed] [Green Version]
- Ratnayake Mudiyanselage, S.; Davis, D.; Kurz, E.; Atchan, M. Infant and Young Child Feeding during Natural Disasters: A Systematic Integrative Literature Review. Women Birth 2022, 35, 524–531. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
- Nguyen, Q.A.; Hens, L.; MacAlister, C.; Johnson, L.; Lebel, B.; Tan, S.B.; Nguyen, H.M.; Nguyen, T.N.; Lebel, L. Theory of Reasoned Action as a Framework for Communicating Climate Risk: A Case Study of Schoolchildren in the Mekong Delta in Vietnam. Sustainability 2018, 10, 2019. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- UNICEF. Voices from the Climate Frontlines. Available online: https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/blog/2014/09/voices-from-the-climate-frontlines-unicef/ (accessed on 27 July 2022).
- United Nations Act Now. Available online: https://www.un.org/actnow (accessed on 27 July 2022).
- Kabir, M.I.; Rahman, M.B.; Smith, W.; Lusha, M.A.F.; Milton, A.H. Child Centred Approach to Climate Change and Health Adaptation through Schools in Bangladesh: A Cluster Randomised Intervention Trial. PLoS ONE 2015, 10, e0134993. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [Green Version]
- Li, Y.; Sun, B.; Yang, C.; Zhuang, X.; Huang, L.; Wang, Q.; Bi, P.; Wang, Y.; Yao, X.; Cheng, Y. Effectiveness Evaluation of a Primary School-Based Intervention against Heatwaves in China. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19, 2532. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Climate-ADAPT Social Vulnerability to Heatwaves—From Assessment to Implementation of Adaptation Measures in Košice and Trnava, Slovakia. Available online: https://climate-adapt.eea.europa.eu/metadata/case-studies/social-vulnerability-to-heatwaves-2013-from-assessment-to-implementation-of-adaptation-measures-in-kosice-and-trnava-slovakia (accessed on 27 July 2022).
- Save the Children International. Save the Children Signs Deal to Lead on Climate Change Adaptation in the Pacific Where Children Bear the Brunt of Extreme Weather. Available online: https://www.savethechildren.net/news/save-children-signs-deal-lead-climate-change-adaptation-pacific-where-children-bear-brunt (accessed on 27 July 2022).
- Chapman, S.; Birch, C.E.; Marsham, J.H.; Part, C.; Hajat, S.; Chersich, M.F.; Ebi, K.L.; Luchters, S.; Nakstad, B.; Kovats, S. Past and Projected Climate Change Impacts on Heat-Related Child Mortality in Africa. Environ. Res. Lett. 2022, 17, 074028. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Bright Generation Ghana Bamboo Bikes in High Demand. Available online: https://ghanabamboobikes.org/ghana-bamboo-bikes-in-high-demand/ (accessed on 25 February 2023).
- UNFCCC. Building Cross-Cutting Skills and Effective Youth Participation: Tree Planting-Ethiopia. Available online: https://unfccc.int/topics/education-and-outreach/good-practices/youth-engagement/building-cross-cutting-skills-and-effective-youth-participation-tree-planting-ethiopia (accessed on 25 February 2023).
- UNFCCC. Community Based Recycling Programme—Production of Biodiesel from Used Vegetable Oil with The Lester Vaughan Secondary School. Available online: https://unfccc.int/climate-action/momentum-for-change/activity-database/momentum-for-change-community-based-recycling-programme-production-of-biodiesel-from-used-vegetable-oil-with-the-lester-vaughan-secondary-school (accessed on 5 December 2022).
- Forests Trees and Agroforestry Wildlife Clubs Teach Children in Guyana’s Rupununi about Life and Livelihoods. Available online: https://www.foreststreesagroforestry.org/news-article/wildlife-clubs-teach-children-in-guyanas-rupununi-about-life-and-livelihoods/ (accessed on 8 December 2022).
- ReliefWeb. Green, Cyclone-Resistant Schools for Madagascar—Madagascar. Available online: https://reliefweb.int/report/madagascar/green-cyclone-resistant-schools-madagascar (accessed on 25 February 2023).
- UNESCO Sandwatch. Available online: https://www.unesco.org/en/sids/sandwatch (accessed on 25 February 2023).
- Earth Child Institute Earth Child Institute. Available online: https://www.earthchildinstitute.org/?lang=es (accessed on 15 December 2022).
- FAO YUNGA for Youth (Youth and United Nations Global Alliance). Available online: https://www.fao.org/yunga/resources/youth-guides/en/ (accessed on 15 December 2022).
- Wildlife and Environmental Conservation Society Of Zambia (WECSZ) Unite 4 Climate & Conservation. Available online: https://conservationzambia.org/ (accessed on 18 December 2022).
- World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts Girl-Led Action on Climate Change. Available online: https://www.wagggs.org/en/what-we-do/girl-led-action-on-climate-change/ (accessed on 2 December 2022).
- United Nations. United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change; United Nations: New York, NY, USA, 1992. [Google Scholar]
- Catrambone, R. Subgoal Learning. In Encyclopedia of the Sciences of Learning; Springer: Boston, MA, USA, 2012; pp. 3230–3233. [Google Scholar]
- National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) What Is Climate Science Literacy? Available online: https://www.climate.gov/teaching/what-is-climate-science-literacy (accessed on 25 February 2023).
- Tsiligkiris, V.; Ilieva, J. Global Engagement in the Post-Pandemic World: Challenges and Responses. Perspective from the UK. High. Educ. Q. 2022, 76, 343–366. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Lawson, D.F.; Stevenson, K.T.; Peterson, M.N.; Carrier, S.J.; Strnad, R.L.; Seekamp, E. Children Can Foster Climate Change Concern among Their Parents. Nat. Clim. Chang. 2019, 9, 458–462. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- Lowell School Climate Literacy: Protecting and Preparing Our Children. Available online: https://blog.lowellschool.org/blog/what-is-climate-literacy-protecting-and-preparing-our-children (accessed on 13 January 2023).
- Secretaría de Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales; UNICEF. El Cambio Climático y Mis Derechos. Manual Para Estudiantes; UNICEF, Ed.; UNICEF: Mexico City, Mexico, 2019. [Google Scholar]
- Ohio State University Climate Literacy in the Elementary Classroom. Available online: https://beyondpenguins.ehe.osu.edu/issue/climate-change-and-the-polar-regions/climate-literacy-in-the-elementary-classroom (accessed on 5 December 2022).
- Cordero, E.C.; Centeno, D.; Todd, A.M. The Role of Climate Change Education on Individual Lifetime Carbon Emissions. PLoS ONE 2020, 15, e0206266. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed] [Green Version]
- Boyko, M.; Desak, T.; Fleming, C.; Diplock, K.; Pons, W. Climate Change Education: The Need for Comprehensive Climate Change Education in Environmental Public Health Curriculum. Environ. Health Rev. 2020, 63, 114–120. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef]
- UNESCO. Educación Sobre El Cambio Climático Para El Desarrollo Sostenible; UNESCO: Paris, France, 2011. [Google Scholar]
- UNICEF. 1.000 Millones de Niños Expuestos a Los Efectos Del Clima. Available online: https://www.unicef.org/es/comunicados-prensa/1000-millones-ninos-gravemente-expuestos-efectos-crisis-del-clima (accessed on 25 February 2023).
- Organización de Estados Americanos. Manual Operativo Para La Protección Integral de Niños, Niñas y Adolescentes En Situaciones de Emergencia o Desastre; RET-Protecting Through Education: Washington, DC, USA, 2019; ISBN 9789589933572. [Google Scholar]
Category | Country/Region | Aim | Reference |
---|---|---|---|
Health-related issues | Sri Lanka | To evaluate children’s health and explain the coping initiatives to deal with water shortage at family and community level | [31] |
United States | To explore the consequences of low prioritization of funding and resources to promote environmental health in schools and absence of clear regulatory oversight | [32] | |
South Africa | Analyse the effects that heat will have on the health, wellbeing, and academic performance of learners | [33] | |
Several | To detect the data for the evaluation of the efficacy and viability of multi-sectoral climate adaptation for food security and malnutrition | [34] | |
Several | A systematic review of literature regarding climate change adaptation measures to cope with childhood asthma. | [35] | |
Needs and challenges | Several | Explore to what extent mainstreaming children’s needs and capacities into wider adaptation initiatives can generate more sustainable results that can contribute to build long-term community-level adaptive ability | [36] |
India | To measure the effect of maternal and parental education and other risk factors on stunting and wasting in children from households living in repeatedly flooded areas | [37] | |
Several | Assess challenges and supportive approaches for infant and young child feeding throughout natural disasters | [38] | |
Behaviour, attitudes, and action | Vietnam | Explore the usefulness of the theory of reasoned action (TRA) to influence children’s climate change behaviour intentions | [39] |
Global | UNICEF’s campaign on YouTube to show what climate change means to children from around the World | [40] | |
Global | App for mobile phones to enhance individual action on climate change and sustainability | [41] | |
Strategies and campaigns | Bangladesh | To assess the usefulness of a school manual designed to increase the understanding of the school children regarding climate change and health adaptation | [42] |
China | Assess the efficacy of a school-based intervention against heatwave and climate change | [43] | |
Slovakia | Local strategy of tree planting, construction and restoration of water features, and actions designed to modify behaviour throughout heatwaves in an area with housing prone to overheating and where a high proportion of children live | [44] | |
Vanuatu and Australia | Support 282 communities through advancing access to knowledge; delivering technical help and equipment to support climate-resilient agriculture and fisheries; and increasing livelihood chances for rural and remote communities | [45] |
Action/Project | Setting | Aim | Reference |
---|---|---|---|
Bamboo bikes | Ghana | The aim is to promote an alternative, healthy, and non-polluting form of transport to respond to the growing needs for mobility in adolescents while addressing problems such as climate change, environmental degradation, and the high unemployment rate among young people in Ghana. The young participants received technical advice to plant and maintain bamboo. | [47] |
Tree planting campaign | Ethiopia | UNICEF engaged 50,000 school children to plant 50,000 trees in the Addis Ababa region. Tree planting is both a mitigation and adaptation measure. | [48] |
Production of Biodiesel | Barbados | A secondary school in Barbados with 1100 students launched a project to raise awareness among adolescents about using biodiesel as an environmentally friendly alternative fuel for diesel vehicles. | [49] |
Protection of Tropical Forests | Guyana | The aim was to ensure the continued protection of forests as a means of mitigating climate change. Thus, an educational project was designed to engage children so that they feel ‘custodians of the tropical forest region’. | [50] |
Green, Cyclone-Resistant Schools | Madagascar | New classrooms, built with support from the UNICEF, mean that the students can study while being sheltered from the rain and sun. | [51] |
Sandwatch | Global | “Sandwatch” is an educational process through which school students, teachers, and local communities work together in the field to monitor their coastal environments; identify and evaluate the threats, problems, and conflicts facing them; and develop sustainable approaches to address them. | [52] |
Earth Child Institute | Brazil, Cameroon, Ghana, Uganda | More than 300 children engage with others from all continents and time zones on environmental issues in their country through the Earth Child Institute’s Global Classroom for Action program, coordinated in collaboration with the New York University Environmental Conservation Education Program. | [53] |
Campaign on food security and climate change | Global | Youth and United Nations Global Alliance (YUNGA, under the auspices of FAO) launched the Food Security and Climate Change Badge in 2010, designed to raise public awareness of climate change, motivate children and youth, especially girls, to carry out adaptation and mitigation activities, and introduce better food security strategies. | [54] |
Unite4Climate | Zambia | This program has trained over 1600 children and youth as climate ambassadors in Zambia. The students are also trained on conservation issues such as deforestation and waste. The ambassadors gain not only an awareness of climate change but also skills in leadership and communication to be lifelong leaders for change. | [55] |
Girl-led action on climate change | Global | Through the curriculum, girls and young women learn about how to adapt to and mitigate climate change through practical interactive activities. They also learn about its gender dimension and apply what they have learnt to their own lives and their families’ lives, contributing to greater community resilience to climate change. | [56] |
Disclaimer/Publisher’s Note: The statements, opinions and data contained in all publications are solely those of the individual author(s) and contributor(s) and not of MDPI and/or the editor(s). MDPI and/or the editor(s) disclaim responsibility for any injury to people or property resulting from any ideas, methods, instructions or products referred to in the content. |
© 2023 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Share and Cite
Leal Filho, W.; Balasubramanian, M.; Abeldaño Zuñiga, R.A.; Sierra, J. The Effects of Climate Change on Children’s Education Attainment. Sustainability 2023, 15, 6320. https://doi.org/10.3390/su15076320
Leal Filho W, Balasubramanian M, Abeldaño Zuñiga RA, Sierra J. The Effects of Climate Change on Children’s Education Attainment. Sustainability. 2023; 15(7):6320. https://doi.org/10.3390/su15076320
Chicago/Turabian StyleLeal Filho, Walter, Muniyandi Balasubramanian, Roberto Ariel Abeldaño Zuñiga, and Javier Sierra. 2023. "The Effects of Climate Change on Children’s Education Attainment" Sustainability 15, no. 7: 6320. https://doi.org/10.3390/su15076320
APA StyleLeal Filho, W., Balasubramanian, M., Abeldaño Zuñiga, R. A., & Sierra, J. (2023). The Effects of Climate Change on Children’s Education Attainment. Sustainability, 15(7), 6320. https://doi.org/10.3390/su15076320