I cannot help but think about the world we are likely to leave behind for our children and grandchildren.
The latest tragedy I hear is the melting of the glaciers in Uttarakhand, resulting in the flooding and destruction of nature, infrastructure, lives, and livelihood. It is believed that the Swiss Alps are melting faster than the Himalayan ranges. The ice sheets of the Polar Regions and Iceland are also melting and breaking into pieces that float away.
Rising oceans will mean submerging of habitable land, and a shortage of fresh drinking water. Ironically, while oceans are rising, freshwater sources are drying up, groundwater levels are depleting, and the forests are disappearing. All gloomy? Definitely serious enough to be worried.
So, what can we do about it? Is there a significant climb-back on climate change we can hope to see in the next decade? Maybe not. But the efforts are on, and they are getting intensified.
The efforts should start by creating awareness about climate change, global warming, and its impact on nature and living. The media is doing a great job in educating the people. However, the impact can be maximized when we integrate the concepts of climate change and its cause-effect situations in our education system. NEP 2020 has dwelt in detail on the transformation that the school education system has to undergo. The implementation is planned to begin in the 2021-2022 academic year, which is heartening.
The challenges will be about changing teachers’ mindset, training them, keeping them updated about current affairs, general knowledge, and the changing pedagogy.
In fact, it is about influencing all key stakeholders of education: the government, policymakers, educators, parents, and the community we live in.
