Various activities have been done in the Climate Change Education (CCE) in Nepal by several agencies, both governmental and non-governmental, development partners and academia. However, the coordination among them is very much limited, reveals the recent mapping report on “Climate Change Education for Sustainable Development (CCESD): mapping of past and present CCESD activities and actors in Nepal” carried out by the UNESCO Office in Kathmandu. Jwala Panday, Consultant, shared the findings of the report in the workshop organized by UNESCO Office in Kathmandu and the Curriculum Development Centre (CDC) of Nepal on 17 July in Kathmandu. The event, “National consultation workshop on CCESD” also gave a platform for various CCE actors to meet and discuss the way forward.
In his opening remarks Hari P. Lamsal, Joint Secretary of the Ministry of Education, emphasized that UNESCO should play a catalyst role in CCE.
On the occasion, B.K. Ranjit, Deputy Director of the CDC, presented the climate change contents being integrated into teaching - learning materials of science classes at secondary level and the technical glossary and teacher’s guide developed. This work, as well as developing the curricula at the academic level have been supported by the Asian Development Bank (ADB). Gyanesh Bajracharya from the Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment gave an overview on the major ADB-supported project on mainstreaming of climate change risk management in development.
The workshop also introduced UNESCO’s CCESD programme in Nepal. Tap Raj Pant, National Programme Officer at the UNESCO Office in Kathmandu, highlighted the main objective of the programme. Through the project UNESCO assists the government of Nepal to strengthen and mainstream CCE in its education system. Together with the CDC, UNESCO will carry out a thorough National Survey on CCE, including a needs assessment, based on which the further capacity building activities will be planned. Two NGOs will be involved in developing CCE practices at local school level.
More than 60 participants from a wide range of agencies and interest groups contributed to this successful half-day event. The MoE and other ministries, I/NGOs, academia including students, several UN agencies and development partners were represented. A more coordinated effort for strengthening CCE and filling in the present gaps is on its way, and UNESCO will support a new gathering in the coming months.
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UNESCO's CCESD program supports mapping of Climate Change Education actors in Nepal