DEPARTMENT FOR BUSINESS, ENERGY & INDUSTRIAL STRATEGY

Transforming Universities for a Changing Climate

Project disclaimer

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Description

Climate change is widely recognised as the most critical challenge of our age, with the recent Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report suggesting that to avoid devastating effects, the world must move entirely to renewables by 2050. This project aims to strengthen the contribution of universities in lower-income countries to addressing this challenge. The role of research and innovation in this task is widely acknowledged, and universities around the world are closely involved in the tasks of monitoring, interpreting and responding to the process and effects of global warming. Yet the broader role of universities in addressing the climate crisis is as yet under-researched. How do courses provided by universities address the question of climate change, and what forms of climate-related learning do students engage with on campus and beyond? What impacts do universities have on climate change through community engagement activities, in fostering public debate on the issue and in the way they embody the principles of sustainability in their own institutional forms? These roles of universities beyond knowledge production are critical in addressing climate change, given the deep social, political and economic roots of the crisis, and the need to engage with professional development, civic action and public awareness. At the same time, it is clear that despite the potentialities of universities in this regard, much more could be done. This is particularly the case in low and middle-income countries in which there is disproportionate impact of the most devastating effects of climate change. This project addresses these questions in the context of the higher education systems of Brazil, Fiji, Kenya and Mozambique. These countries have been selected on account of the vulnerability of their populations to climate-related disasters, but also because of the potentialities of their higher education systems for responding to the challenges, and in generating learning that can be utilised in other contexts. The countries have distinct features in relation to their culture, politics, economics and geography, as well as in their higher education systems, which will allow for significant possibilities of learning across the four countries and with the UK. The research will start with a survey of the state of play as regards universities' coverage of climate change issues within their teaching, research and community engagement. Participatory action research groups will then be created in 12 universities across the four countries, including representatives of students, lecturers, senior management and local communities. These groups will design, implement and monitor initiatives to address local challenges, in line with their own priorities. Interventions may include new modules for students, training workshops for local professionals working with environmental issues, community based projects on disaster preparedness, or developing a carbon neutral campus. The learning generated from these diverse experiences will contribute to theory building and understanding of the relationship between education and sustainable development, and of the role of higher education in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). There will be a strong emphasis on South-South collaboration and learning, and insights generated from interaction and comparison across high/middle/low income countries, between Anglophone and Lusophone higher education systems, and between Africa, the Pacific and Latin America. While most acknowledged that education has some role to play in achieving the SDGs, much closer attention is needed to the institutional forms and practices that are most conducive. This project grapples with this question in the context of four low and middle-income countries, with significant lessons for the broader global community.

Objectives

The Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) supports cutting-edge research to address challenges faced by developing countries. The fund addresses the UN sustainable development goals. It aims to maximise the impact of research and innovation to improve lives and opportunity in the developing world.

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Location

The country, countries or regions that benefit from this Programme.

Brazil, Fiji, Kenya, Mozambique

Disclaimer: Country borders do not necessarily reflect the UK Government's official position.