In response to COVD-19 and with 1.5 billion children currently unable to go to school, UNEP and TED-Ed have come together with more than 50 collaborators to produce “Earth School”, which takes parents, students and educators on an adventure consisting of 30 interactive quests to help them re-connect with nature.
UN Environment Programme (UNEP)
Nairobi, Kenya
International or regional organization
Established : 1972
Education and COVID-19 Response
https://ed.ted.com/earth-school
Objectives
Flagship
UNEP has been focusing on reaching teachers all over the world in order to empower them to utilize Earth School’s environmental education materials which are hosted on TED-Ed's platform.
Given the challenges we face preserving and protecting the natural world and keeping the planet beneath 1.5 degrees, bringing nature-focused learning across curricula is key.
For many educators, knowing where to find reliable content can be difficult, which is why Earth School aims to build out a richer set of lessons with the goal of reaching over a million people.
Already, countries including India, Kenya, UK and UAE have agreed to use the material and share it as a resource with their teachers. The next steps will be to explore how we can work with a wider range of partners so that we can collectively provide the best environmental education content on the planet and work to inform the minds of future generations.
Regional Focus
Global
Countries of Interest
Kenya, India
Commitment
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic and with 1.5 billion children unable to go to school, UNEP and Ted-Ed launched “Earth School”, an online education platform for parents, kids and teachers to engage in. This platform is laid out as a 30-day adventure. Each quest focuses on a nature-related topic and engages students by providing videos, quizzes and interactive material for learners to engage with. As many children are currently learning from home, this platform provides parents and educators with the material to keep their kids engaged while also encouraging a re-connection with nature. The material teaches how interconnected we all are, with nature and with each other, and fosters a deeper understanding of and celebration of our natural environment. The content of Earth School was curated by a long list of volunteers and more than 50 collaborators including National Geographic, BBC Ideas, WWF, Earth Day Network and Conservation International.
This initiative advances the Global Education Coalition’s mission as the Earth School material has been translated into over 30 languages and is available globally. We are also exploring how we can engage those without internet access as well as refugee communities in order to ensure equitable access of the material.
Action areas
Learner Wellbeing
Digital Learning Content
Advocacy and Communication
Contacts
Primary Contact
Ms. Carina Mutschele
