FEE at Education Day at COP16 in Cali, Colombia

FEE had the pleasure of joining an important Education Day event at the 16th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP 16). During this session our Senior Director of Education, Pramod Kumar Sharma, provided some key insights into how FEE sees meaningful biodiversity action and offered some recommendations.

For meaningful biodiversity action, perhaps it's time for a shift in mindsets. Rather than short-term projects, we should think long term and invest in programmes. Conserving biodiversity and healthy ecosystems calls for supporting ongoing action, and by focusing on the long term, we can build on what's working. The Greening Education Partnership (GEP) presents an exciting platform for alignment - not only to create synergies but also to support schools with aligned goals. A critical mass of schools working together and strengthening each other's efforts is need of the hour to demonstrate impact.

Lasting change, as we know, thrives on teamwork. Collaboration - not competition - could be our guiding light. There's great potential for synergy among educational initiatives, allowing us to support each other while easing the burden on our education systems. By focusing on shared goals, we can harness a collective impact that makes tackling biodiversity loss feel more manageable, as something we're all tackling together rather than in isolation.

Finally, bringing Ministries of Education to the table is key to making environmental action truly systemic. Their involvement in the negotiations would help embed this work within curricula on a larger scale. As partners, ministries could help open doors for climate goals that lead to real, sustainable pathways for schools and students worldwide.