This article responds to the DfE sustainability and climate change education draft strategy that was introduced in November 2021 during COP26. It outlines the approach of one working group to considering what meaningful implementation of such a strategy means for teachers and learners in schools. The authors suggest a number of areas that should…

Schools have a vital role to play in helping young people understand and engage with the pressing issues of our time. More effective and engaging climate education can help prepare them to play their part in combatting climate change. Practical science activities, such as those promoted in the CREST Awards hydrology resources described here, can…

What do we really mean by sustainability and why is biodiversity so important? What is nature-connectedness and how can it be developed? By exploring these questions, the need for education within this context becomes ever more apparent. This article takes you on a journey of sustainability, exploring the term from a variety of standpoints. It…

This article describes how a homework task on climate change is being developed as part of a larger project on sustainability issues -- Urban Science. The ultimate aim of this European project is to improve the teaching of scientific enquiry so that students develop the competences to actively contribute to creating sustainable cities, to…

People use many different products made from plastics every day. But conventional plastics such as polyvinyl chloride (PVC) do not always have a good reputation in society at large. Bioplastics such as thermoplastic starch (TPS) promise to be better alternatives but are they really better than conventional plastics? This article presents a new…

A shared conference presentation describes two ways of bringing education for sustainable development into education. The first part concentrated on putting science into outdoor learning backed up by a series of mind-mapping activities. The second was about linking schools with their surrounding communities to develop ways of working together. An…

Current UK policy is that all schools should be sustainable by 2020. The teaching of science and the scientific approach is fundamental in changing society, its outlook and practices with regard to sustainability. The Earth Charter, a statement of intent for humanity, can be a useful vehicle for developing the sustainability agenda in science…