Children and Climate Change UN CC:e-Learn course

• Level: Introductory
• Time commitment: 2 hours
• Learning product: online self paced course
• Sector: multiple
• Language: English, Español,Français, Tiếng Việt
• Certificate available: on UN CC:e-Learn

This course is hosted on UN CC:e-Learnfunded by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation – see the SDC Climate Change and Environment Network on weADAPT for more information. Please find the Climate change and children short course, where you can download the syllabus and enrol for full access.

Introduction

This specialized short course introduces the theme of children and climate change, with the aim of providing a child’s perspective on how to deal with the global crisis of climate change. The course covers the ways in which children are, and can be, impacted by climate change.

It looks at how children’s resilience to climate change can be strengthened, and examines the benefits of proposed mitigation measures. It also considers solutions to this issue, focusing on the empowerment of children as actors of change and on the key role of governments in the area of child protection. Examples are provided to illustrate the concepts covered by the module.

*This article provides an overview of the course. The full course Children and Climate Changewith all quizzes plus learning material can be accessed with multiple other courses on the UN CC:e-Learn site.

Institutional background and trainer

The course was developed and peer-reviewed by UN CC:Learn (www.uncclearn.org), in close collaboration with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).

Who would find this useful?

The module provides clear, concise and up-to-date information for those interested in examining climate change from a child’s perspective. It is of particular interest to the following audiences:

• Civil servants in national ministries, provincial departments and local authorities working in the field of climate change, children/youth and development;
• Private sector managers, practitioners, and representatives of development partners active in the area of climate change and/or children’s protection;
• Faculty, researchers and students; and
• Citizens/youth/students.

Training material

This specialized course has five sections:

1. The Impact of Climate Change on Children
2. Strengthening Children’s Resilience to Climate Change
3. The Benefits of Climate Change Mitigation for Children
4. Empowering Children to Act on Climate Change through Education
5. A Climate Change Agenda for Children

Learning outcomes

Upon completion of this specialized module, participants will be able to:

• Explain how climate change can affect children;
• Describe how measures to build climate resilience and mitigate climate change can benefit children;
• Illustrate key instruments and good practices for empowering children to act on climate change;
• Identify opportunities for protecting children’s rights in a changing climate.