The Ministry of Education has announced the commencement of the 'Educators' Voice' programme in partnership with the Office for Climate Education (OCE) and Alef Education. This effort seeks to highlight the critical role of educators in promoting awareness, tackling climate change, and preparing for its possible consequences. The effort will be highlighted during COP28, which the UAE will host in November at Dubai Expo City. This collaboration with the OCE seeks to inspire educators from all around the world to join and exhibit their climate projects. It also intends to host climate-related side activities at the Education Pavilion, which will be open for the first time in COP history. Furthermore, it wants to provide a distinguished legacy for the post-COP28 age by translating all OCE resources into Arabic and making them widely available in the MENA area.
Dr. Amna Al Dahak Al Shamsi, assistant undersecretary of the Ministry of Education's care and capacity development department, stressed the relevance of the Educators' Voice project in empowering and training educators globally while cultivating their inventive and creative potential. This effort underscores their critical role in preparing the future generation to address and respond to the climate catastrophe. It also allows them to share their views on environmental concerns to legislators and society.
OCE will host the third edition of the TeachersCOP competition as part of the project. This international event aims to raise awareness among global leaders and decision-makers about the important job done by teachers, as well as the role they play in tackling difficulties and improving the global response to climate change.
School teachers of all levels, trainers, principals, and inspectors who have implemented activities or initiatives aimed at raising awareness about climate change and addressing its challenges can apply to participate in the competition by completing the form available on the website www.oce.global/teacherscop before September 30. By October 9, an expert team will assess the applications and pick 30 projects. The winning teachers will then be asked to present their initiatives in person at Expo Dubai during the COP28 meeting. OCE will conduct regional online seminars in Arabic, French, Spanish, and English in partnership with its partners. The goal is to increase the number of initiatives and stimulate worldwide teacher engagement.
In preparation for COP28, the UAE Ministry of Education has established the Green Education Partnership Roadmap. This plan encompasses the UAE Green Education Partnership, a significant project aimed at enhancing education's role in achieving sustainable development goals and integrating the climate issue into the country's educational system.
