Climate Literacy Course a hot topic in Cork County Schools

Mayor of the County of Cork, Cllr. Frank O'Flynn with students from Coláiste Fionnchua announcing our second collaboration with social enterprise, Education for Sustainability, bringing an 8-week Climate Literacy Course to eight additional schools in the county.

Cork County Council is excited to announce its second collaboration with social enterprise ‘Education for Sustainability’ bringing an eight-week climate literacy course to eight additional schools in the county.

This year's initiative involves training eight teachers to deliver the course directly to 192 students. The comprehensive program includes eight visits from a facilitator to train the teacher and provide resources, lesson plans and a digital workbook. Each week, a new topic is explored, covering climate change, sustainable development, climate justice, plastics, fast fashion, sustainable transport, biodiversity, food soil, and taking action.

Mayor of the Count of Cork, Cllr. Frank O’Flynn said

It’s wonderful to see schools in the county taking part in such worthwhile initiatives to promote climate literacy among students, empowering them to become informed and active participants in building a sustainable future. This course is action based and is designed to be interactive, informative, engaging, and most importantly, fun. Well done to the 192 students taking part this year.

The schools taking part in this course include Loreto Secondary School Fermoy, Coláiste Treasa Kanturk, Scoil Mhuire Kanturk, Coláiste Fionnchua Mitchelstown, CBS Secondary School Mitchelstown, CBS Charleville, Presentation Secondary School Mitchelstown and Davis College Mallow.

Speaking about the programme, Mary Kate O’Callaghan, teacher at Coláiste Fionnchua said, “When we were given the wonderful opportunity to become involved in the Climate Literacy Programme, we grabbed it with both hands. As a school, we feel it is essential that our students become climate literate and are aware of their role in improving our environment. The students thoroughly enjoyed the programme and our facilitator Máire Boyle made the programme both interesting and engaging for students. Students benefited greatly from their participation in this programme.”

Education for Sustainability’s CEO Sue Adams said ‘’As we embark on our second collaboration with Cork County Council, we are fuelled by the shared commitment to cultivating a generation of environmentally conscious leaders. Together, we believe in the transformative power of education to drive sustainable change. This partnership not only underscores the success of our previous endeavours but also highlights the vital role education plays in shaping a future where climate literacy is not just a course but a way of life."

Environmental Awareness is one of a series of climate action activities undertaken by Cork County Council. The Council’s Draft Climate Action Plan 2024-2029 has recently completed public consultation and is due to be adopted by the Council in January 2024. A specialised Climate Action Team has recently been appointed to co-ordinate and support the Climate Action Plan and the Community Climate Action Fund. This will help Cork County Council deliver climate policy and climate action locally and empower and support communities to deliver community climate action projects and initiatives.