Calls for net-zero goal in school curriculums

15th October 2020


Web school istock 1165363081

Related Topics

Related tags

  • Skills ,
  • Training ,
  • Sustainability ,
  • Education

Author

James Johnson

The UK needs to embed sustainability and its net-zero emissions goal across school curriculums and teacher training standards to plug a glaring low-carbon skills gap, the Aldersgate Group has said today.

In its latest briefing, the Aldersgate Group explains how the COVID-19 crisis has amplified skill shortages and regional inequalities that were already evident prior to the pandemic, with 91% of businesses having said they face a skills deficit in 2018.

It calls for a new low-carbon skills strategy, arguing that urgent action is needed to address the deficit in skills that currently undermines the growth of low-carbon supply chains across the UK economy.

This would embed sustainability across school curriculums and teacher training, support higher and further education to better meet the needs of local employers, and align apprenticeship standards and mid-career reskilling qualifications with the transition to net-zero emissions.

“Skills policy has been a missing link in the UK's clean growth ambitions for too long, said Nick Molho, executive director of the Aldersgate Group.

“Government must prioritise the development of an ambitious and carefully co-ordinated low-carbon skills strategy, and ensure that education institutions across the country are supported in this process.“

The proposed strategy is based on five key recommendations, which include:

1. Environmental sustainability and the net-zero goal should be fully embedded in the national curriculum across all stages of the education system from primary to tertiary education. 2. This focus on sustainability should be fully reflected in teaching qualifications and the governance of the education system. 3. Higher education and further education institutions should be supported and encouraged to tailor courses, training and qualifications that more closely match the needs of local employers and low-carbon job creation. 4. Funding, research and development support, and business partnerships need to be increasingly targeted to educational institutions that are not located in the 'Golden Triangle' between Oxford, Cambridge and London.

5. To have an effective net-zero education system, the UK needs to reform its approach to apprenticeship standards and mid-career reskilling.

The briefing also calls for a clear suite of policies to grow demand in low-carbon infrastructure, goods and services, and for local bodies to be better empowered to support low-carbon investment, job creation and skills provision.

“The Aldersgate Group highlight the vital work that is required to upskill the UK workforce to ensure it is resilient to the changes that are coming over the next three decades,“ said professor Aled Jones, director of the Global Sustainability Institute at Anglia Ruskin University.

“By transitioning our economy to net zero the UK will unlock a swathe of opportunities that we will only be able to realise if we have the skills needed to deliver.“

Image credit: iStock

Subscribe

Subscribe to IEMA's newsletters to receive timely articles, expert opinions, event announcements, and much more, directly in your inbox.


Transform articles

Facing the climate emergency challenge in local government

It’s well recognised that the public sector has the opportunity to work towards a national net-zero landscape that goes well beyond improving on its own performance; it can also influence through procurement and can direct through policy.

19th March 2024

Read more

Dr Julie Riggs issues a call to arms to tackle a modern-day human tragedy

15th March 2024

Read more

Disgraced environmental consultant Peter Lovebrother is another month nearer retirement…

13th March 2024

Read more

The UK government’s carbon capture, usage and storage (CCUS) strategy is based on optimistic techno-economic assumptions that are now outdated, Carbon Tracker has warned.

13th March 2024

Read more

The UK’s new biodiversity net gain (BNG) requirements could create 15,000 hectares of woodlands, heath, grasslands, and wetlands and absorb 650,000 tonnes of carbon each year.

13th March 2024

Read more

The UK government’s latest Public Attitudes Tracker has found broad support for efforts to tackle climate change, although there are significant concerns that bills will rise.

13th March 2024

Read more

Multinational corporations are undermining their net-zero commitments with excessive air travel and no plans to reduce ‘the low hanging fruit’ of carbon footprints, a study by Transport & Environment has found.

13th March 2024

Read more

The UK government’s climate adaptation plans are ‘inadequate’ and falling ‘far short’ of what is required, the Climate Change Committee (CCC) has warned today.

13th March 2024

Read more

Media enquires

Looking for an expert to speak at an event or comment on an item in the news?

Find an expert

IEMA Cookie Notice

Clicking the ‘Accept all’ button means you are accepting analytics and third-party cookies. Our website uses necessary cookies which are required in order to make our website work. In addition to these, we use analytics and third-party cookies to optimise site functionality and give you the best possible experience. To control which cookies are set, click ‘Settings’. To learn more about cookies, how we use them on our website and how to change your cookie settings please view our cookie policy.

Manage cookie settings

Our use of cookies

You can learn more detailed information in our cookie policy.

Some cookies are essential, but non-essential cookies help us to improve the experience on our site by providing insights into how the site is being used. To maintain privacy management, this relies on cookie identifiers. Resetting or deleting your browser cookies will reset these preferences.

Essential cookies

These are cookies that are required for the operation of our website. They include, for example, cookies that enable you to log into secure areas of our website.

Analytics cookies

These cookies allow us to recognise and count the number of visitors to our website and to see how visitors move around our website when they are using it. This helps us to improve the way our website works.

Advertising cookies

These cookies allow us to tailor advertising to you based on your interests. If you do not accept these cookies, you will still see adverts, but these will be more generic.

Save and close