Building capacity through the UN CC:Learn platform
Introduction
Funded by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, UN CC:Learn is a partnership of more than 30 multilateral organizations supporting countries to design and implement systematic and results oriented climate change learning. With partners across the UN system and in partner countries, UN CC:Learn promotes capacities to ensure continuous and strategic approaches to the provision of knowledge and skills.
At the global level, the partnership supports knowledge-sharing and the dissemination of common climate change learning materials. It also coordinates training interventions through collaborations with UN agencies and other partners. Together, these are contributing to a growing critical mass of professionals and individuals with the necessary understanding of the basics of climate change to inform their decisions and take effective action.
At the national level, UN CC:Learn supports countries in addressing learning priorities relevant to their National Determined Contributions (NDCs) and National Adaptation Plans (NAPs), through the development and implementation of climate change learning strategies, in collaboration with national education and training institutions.
Thematic focus areas of UN CC:Learn include: climate change science; climate finance; international climate negotiations; adaptation planning; climate change and health; climate change and forests; and climate change education for children.
Funding for UN CC:Learn is provided by the Swiss Government through the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) and UN partners. The Secretariat for UN CC:Learn is provided by the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR).
UN CC:e-Learn
An initiative of UN CC:Learn, UN CC: e-Learn is an online platform open to any user who wants to engage with and learn more about climate change. It offers a number of climate-related courses in up to 8 languages.
The courses are separated into: self-paced courses, which generally take more than 10 hours to complete; short courses, which take between 2 and 3 hours to complete; tutorials, which take less than an hour to moderated courses, which require application and are more in-depth, lasting between 6 and 12 weeks.
Course descriptions and links are now available for many UN CC:eLearn courses in the Climate Adaptation Training Theme with quick introductions to guide students.
Current courses available on UN CC:eLearn site:
- Climate change from Learning to Action – available in English, عربى, Español, Français, Português, 简体中文
- Open Online Course on Gender and Environment – available in English
- REDD+ Academy e-Course – available in English
- Advancing on REDD+ – available in English, Español, Français
- Fundamentals on REDD+ – available in English, Español, Français
- Children and Climate Change – available in English, Español, Français
- Cities and Climate Change – available in English, Español, Français
- Human Health and Climate – available in English, Español, Français
- Climate Information and Services – available in English, Français
- Climate Policy and Public Finance – available in English, ខ្មែរ, ไทย
- Climate Response Budgeting – available in English, ខ្មែរ
- National Adaptation Plans: Building Climate Resilience in Agriculture – available in English
- Climate Change International Legal Regime – available in English
- Climate Change: From Learning to Action – available in English
- Introduction to Green Economy – available in English, Español
- Introduction to Sustainable Finance – available in English
- Sustainable Diet – available in English
- Finding the Money – financing climate action – available in English, Español, Français, عربى
- Making the Right Choices – Prioritizing Adaptation Options – available in English, Español, Français, عربى
- International Aviation: Intro to States’ Action Plans to Reduce CO2 – available in English
- Keeping the Taps Running in a Changing Climate – available in English, Español, Français, عربى
- Building climate resilience through Ecosystem-based adaptation planning – available in English
- Mastering National Adaptation Plans: from start to finish – available in English
- An introduction to climate change and human rights – available in English
- Climate change negotiations and health – available in English
Other resources available through UN CC:Learn
In addition to their e-Learn website, UN CC:Learn operates through three focus areas:
1. Knowledge sharing and management
A wealth of training and learning materials concerning climate change exists within the UN system. The UN CC:Learn knowledge-sharing platform has been established as a ‘one-stop-shop’ to access learning materials, activities and services offered by the UN.
The first component of the site focuses on making the UN’s wealth of information available to everyone. A searchable library contains over 2,000 entries and curated video playlists cover a range of topics. A calender indicates upcoming learning events, which range from face-to-face workshops in cities around the globe, to longer courses. A map of case studies of good learning practices and links to other useful learning resources and platforms for practitioners to reference are also provided.
2. One UN Climate Change Training
UN CC: Learn provides climate learning materials that are produced jointly among their partners. Products include a series of introductory modules and a self-paced e-course that provides “everything you need to know about climate change in a nutshell”, as well as resource guides for advanced learning that direct users to specific learning materials and courses that match their learning needs.
The materials draw on the specialized expertise of global UN CC:Learn partners. In combination with UNITAR’s know-how in learning methodologies, UN CC: Learn has worked with the World Health Organization (WHO) in the area of health and with the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) in the area of climate change science.
Climate Change: From Learning to Action on climate change is a self-paced, free-of-charge online course that provides clear, concise and up-to-date information for anybody interested in acquiring essential knowledge about climate change. The course helps you understand what climate change is, how it affects you and others, and what can be done to address it.The course is based on six introductory learning modules. Each module takes an average of two to three hours to complete.
3. Human Resource, Learning, and Skills Development in Partner Countries
UN CC:Learn supports partner countries in developing national climate change learning strategies through multi sectoral and multi-stakeholder collaboration. UN CC:Learn also provides support for early strategy implementation actions.
Country projectS
National climate change learning strategies systematically examine learning and skills development needs in key sectors concerned with climate change. UN CC:Learn is working in Benin, Burkina Faso, the Dominican Republic, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Malawi, Niger and Uganda, as well as the central American integration system.
UN CC:Learn actively fosters South-South-North collaboration through international knowledge sharing events and bilateral advisory arrangements.
Guidance Note
The guidance note provides methodological and organizational guidance to countries interested in taking a strategic approach to climate change learning and skills development.
It explains how to develop national or regional climate change learning strategies that help countries make progress in their nationally determined contributions and national adaptation plans. The strategies aim to spur cross-sectoral and multi-stakeholder collaboration and engage national education and training institutions.
It is a step by step guide to support the development of a National Climate Change Learning Strategy. Also available in French,Russian(2nd edition) andSpanish (1st edition).
UN CC:Learn Good Learning Practices
A selection of good learning practices is available on our good learning practices map.