Does Climate Change Education Result to Less Carbon?

Training a scientific workforce in order to mitigate the impacts of climate change drives an international need for climate science education, including in Ghana. How preservice teachers understand climate change, and the often misunderstood relationship between ozone depletion and global warming, critically impacts the students they will teach. This mixed method, descriptive study explores preservice teachers’ climate change and ozone depletion knowledge, and documents the sources of their ideas. Elementary preservice science teachers from three colleges of education in Ghana completed a survey (N = 255) and interview (n = 30). Exploratory factor analysis yielded six factors related to ozone depletion and four related to climate change knowledge. Survey and interview responses revealed that the preservice teachers could explain that stratospheric ozone is a layer of gas in the atmosphere that prevents ultraviolet radiation from reaching Earth. Yet, they could not describe how ozone forms and the mechanism of ozone destruction. The preservice teachers confused climate change with changes in weather and seasons, but could explain how anthropogenic activities like deforestation and burning fossil fuels contribute to climate change. About 88% of the participants thought climate change and ozone depletion were causally linked – either ozone depletion caused climate change, or climate change caused ozone depletion. The participating preservice teachers identified textbooks (80%), instructors (64%), and the media (62%) as the main sources of their ozone depletion and climate change knowledge. We identified a mix of knowledge gaps and coherent ideas that offer scaffolds on which to improve teachers’ knowledge of climate change and ozone depletion.

GI multisociety strategic plan on environmental sustainability.

PurposeThis paper presents assessment results on the level of perceived knowledge in climate change and the extent to which participatory awareness in adaptation initiatives by management and the public in key selected areas identified to be highly impacted by climate change has fared.Design/methodology/approachExploratory research design, using snowball, purposive and simple random sampling methods, was employed to assess respondents' level of knowledge in climate change and participatory adaptation awareness activities. Focus group discussion was finally used to appraise returned responses that compared indigenous knowledge with scientific data to examine variables influencing key determinants.FindingsAge, gender, the level of education and work experience were all significant in determining outcome of responses by respondents on perceived level of knowledge in climate change and awareness in adaptation engagement efforts by the public. The study also confirmed existence of perceived knowledge and awareness gap with a marginal difference of 28% between management and stakeholder respondents.Practical implicationsAnthropogenic activities leading to climate change impacts are rarely linked to individual actions, lifestyles and community's sociocultural practices and choices.Originality/valueThere is a disconnect between what climate change managers know and are doing in terms of adaptation and mitigation efforts and what stakeholders should know and are expected to do toward achieving functional participatory engagements in Ghana. It calls for needs assessment on a governance system that will chart a new order to transform individual and household attitudes through curriculum development, awareness training, coping strategies to capacity building for members of the communities and households.

Predicting consumer demand responses to carbon labels

This study investigates the nature of the empirical link between an individual’s well-being and their carbon footprint. It employs a novel approach matching data from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia survey, to household expenditure and greenhouse gas-based carbon footprints. The carbon footprints are calculated using environmental factor multipliers from the detailed and globally integrated multi-regional input–output (MRIO) tables provided by the Eora MRIO database. The results indicate that higher carbon footprints are associated with marginally lower levels of well-being. This relationship appears to be linear. Furthermore, this relationship does not differ greatly for individuals across the well-being distribution. The findings of this study both: (1) add to the body of knowledge on the link between carbon footprints and well-being; and (2) provide policy makers with evidence and strategic guidance on the well-being implications of mitigating carbon footprints.

Climate change is not a future problem, it is a significant variation of weather conditions becoming warmer, wetter or drier. It is the longer-term trend that differentiates climate change from natural weather variability. The aim of this research was to determine primary school students’ knowledge and attitudes related to climate change among primary school students (n = 473) in the Czech Republic, the United Kingdom and Portugal using a questionnaire survey. The dimensions of climate change knowledge, environmental attitudes and values, pro-environmental behaviour, and climate change attitudes were measured and analysed. The results showed gender differences in favour of girls in all the dimensions studied, except for climate change knowledge, where the results of boys and girls were comparable. In an international comparison, UK children scored higher on climate change knowledge and climate change attitudes dimensions. A multiple regression analysis showed the dimensions of nature preservation and appreciation of nature as the strongest positive predictors of pro-environmental behaviour and the dimensions of climate change knowledge and nature preservation as the strongest predictors of climate change belief. The results suggest the importance and implications of the wider societal debate on climate-related personal dimensions. The interconnectedness of environmental and climate-related topics at the primary school level is also evident. Keywords: climate change attitudes, climate change education, climate change knowledge, environmental attitudes, pro-environmental behaviour, primary school

Low-GHG culturally acceptable diets to reduce individual carbon footprint by 20%

Research finds UK set to miss emissions target

Pre-service teachers’ (PTs) knowledge about climate change issues is essential to a greater willingness to act on environmental problems. However, existing studies have not addressed knowledge of ozone layer depletion (OLD) and climate change among Russian PTs. To address this gap in the literature, this study examined Russian PTs’ knowledge of OLD and climate change. The results showed that most participants correctly had scientific knowledge about OLD and climate change. However, the results also showed that participants had misunderstood and inaccurate knowledge about the relationship between acid rain and the ozone layer, the role of carbon dioxide in ozone depletion, the impact of acid on the greenhouse effect (GE), and the impact of the GE on ultraviolet radiation, skin cancer risk, and radioactive waste. Furthermore, the findings revealed no significant differences in gender and major areas in knowledge of OLD and climate change. The results also showed that the media and the Internet were the primary sources of participants and significant differences between major and non-major science participants’ knowledge sources.

Background and Objectives: Despite Thailand’s vulnerability to climate change, the topic is underrepresented in the national curriculum. This research investigated Thai local secondary school English teachers’ perceptions of climate change and the attitudes towards teaching this topic in the classroom. It explores whether the researcher’s training program, “Climate Awareness through English Classroom Activities,” which provides practical classroom strategies, enhances the linkage between climate change and human life, and indicates the possibility of instructional implementation, will be able to increase their willingness and confidence to teach this topic. Methods: A two-day teacher training program, “Climate Awareness through English Classroom Activities,” was organized to collect data from 25 participants through a test, two questionnaires with open-ended items, an evaluation form, and personal interviews. This research employs a mixed-method approach. The quantitative data were analyzed using a 1–10 rating Likert scale, and percentages to interpret the responses. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize the quantitative findings. The qualitative data were analyzed through content-based interpretation. Results: The results indicated that the teachers’ climate change knowledge was moderate, with an average score of 6.5 out of 10. While 96% believed they would be affected by climate change, only 27% could briefly identify its impacts. Nonetheless, all participants agreed on the importance of teaching climate change to secondary school students, demonstrating a positive attitude toward integrating the topic into English classrooms. They recognized climate change as a global issue requiring awareness. The training was reported to have positively influenced the teachers’ environmental perspectives and achieved a satisfaction rating of 4.7 out of 5. Additionally, 90% of the teachers reported a shift in their attitudes, attributing it to realizing that teaching climate change in English classrooms was less complex than they had initially thought. Application of this study: The findings suggest that this kind of training projects can enhance English teachers’ perceptions and attitudes, as well as foster their confidence and willingness to teach climate change in the classroom. The data from these research results are beneficial to policymakers and educational strategists working to promote climate change awareness among students. Conclusions: The findings suggest that tailored teacher training programs can significantly enhance English teachers’ perceptions of climate change and their confidence in teaching the topic. The positive shift in attitudes and increased willingness to integrate climate change into English classrooms highlight the potential for such training to effectively support climate change education. This study contributes to the development of climate change education in EFL contexts, offering practical guidelines in connecting environmental issues with English language instruction.

Findings from the second phase of a study of pre-service teachers’ attitudes to environmental education and knowledge of climate change are reported in this paper. A sample of 87 pre-service teachers participated in a survey study in the last year of their Bachelor of Education degree to examine developments to their attitudes to environmental education and their knowledge of climate change as a result of training. Results showed their attitudes towards environmental education were consistently favourable, but their climate change science knowledge had not changed as a result of their participation in their degree. Data on preservice teachers’ sources of knowledge for climate change, their views on important substantive climate change knowledge for their future students and their perceptions of gaps in their own training in relation to climate change were also investigated in order to triangulate the survey data. Implications for preservice teacher education are discussed.

Purpose: Faced with climate change, reducing greenhouse gas emissions is one of the most difficult and urgent global challenges. Seaports are large GHG emitters, and they have been assessing their carbon footprint and adopting decarbonization strategies. However, calculating the carbon footprint of ports is a serious challenge due to the specificity of the service-based activities they conduct. This article addresses the topic of GHG emissions in seaports, using the example of the port in Gdynia (one of the four largest Polish ports), where the port authority started estimating the carbon footprint as part of preparations for ESG reporting. The aim of this article is to identify challenges related to assessing and reporting carbon footprint in a seaport. Design/methodology/approach: The study used secondary and primary data sources. A review of the literature on the subject was conducted, as well as the analysis of the summaries of reports published by the Gdynia port management for the years 2003 and 2020-2023 (in which the identified sources of GHG emissions were described and the amount of emissions was estimated), and data from non-standardized interviews conducted in January 2025 with employees of Polish ports were used, which allowed us to establish that the Port of Gdynia Authority SA was the first of all Polish ports to attempt to estimate the amount of GHG emissions in the port and prepare a report on the size of its carbon footprint. Findings: It was established that the specificity of port activities results in various problems and challenges, which concern, among others, collecting the required and reliable data, using analytical tools dedicated to ports, methods of estimating the carbon footprint, taking into account the incomplete scope of emissions and making numerous "exclusions" (which may lead to doubts as to the reliability of the report), proposals for directions of actions to reduce GHG emissions in the port. Research limitations/implications: The credibility of reports and the effectiveness of seaport carbon footprint reduction strategies depend on the reliability and discipline of the GHG emission estimation process. Practical implications: The study of GHG emissions and the preparation of a reduction strategy in seaports is one of the primary challenges port authorities and port service companies face in light of the need for decarbonization. This article indicates problems and challenges that the authors of carbon footprint reports and reduction strategies in seaports must confront. Originality/value: In the Polish literature on this subject, there is a lack of studies on the specifics of GHG emissions in seaports, reporting of port carbon footprint and related problems. This article identifies challenges and provides some recommendations. Keywords: seaport, greenhouse gases, GHG emissions, carbon footprint of seaports, carbon footprint reporting. Category of the paper: Research paper.

Irrigation increases yields and allows several crops to be produced in regions where it would be naturally impossible due to limited rainfall. However, irrigation can cause several negative environmental impacts, and it is important to understand these in depth for the correct application of mitigation measures. The life cycle assessment methodology was applied herein to compare the main irrigated and non-irrigated crops in Northeast Spain (corn and wheat, respectively), identifying those processes with greater contribution to environmental impacts (carbon and water footprint categories) and providing scientifically-sound information to facilitate government decisions. Due to concerns about climate change and water availability, the methods selected for evaluation of environmental impacts were IPCC 2013 GWP (carbon footprint) and water scarcity indicator (water footprint). The area studied, a 7.38-km2 basin, was monitored for 12years, including the period before, during, and after the implementation of irrigation. The functional unit, to which all material and energy flows were associated with, was the cultivation of 1ha, throughout 1year. The overall carbon footprint for irrigated corn was higher, but when considering the higher productivity achieved with irrigation, the emissions per kilogram of corn decrease and finally favor this irrigated crop. When considering the water footprint, the volumes of irrigation water applied were so high that productivity could not compensate for the negative impacts associated with water use in the case of corn. Nevertheless, consideration of productivities and gross incomes brings the results closer. Fertilizer use (carbon footprint) and irrigation water (water footprint) were the main contributors to the negative impacts detected.

There is increasing evidence that climate change will be one of the primary challenges facing future development and agriculture. Farmers, whether crop or livestock farmers, will be faced with tradeoffs and constraints as climate change exposes them to greater risk and renders some of their current practices unworkable. This study assessed commercial livestock and game farmers’ knowledge and perceptions of climate variability and change in the semiarid Great Fish River Valley, South Africa, and their coping responses to a severe regional drought in 2009/2010. Detailed questionnaires revealed that farmers’ knowledge of global climate change was incomplete, suggesting that measures are needed to increase their understanding and awareness of likely impacts. Farmers were able to articulate a consistent story regarding how they believed local climate to have changed and most had implemented a variety of coping strategies in order to endure the drought. Some of these strategies were seen to have the potential to become longer-term adaptive practices. Farmers were, on the whole, open to considering new approaches and land uses such as carbon farming with Portulacaria afra (spekboom) to help them adapt to a more uncertain future.

Climate change is a global issue that has significantly impacted the agriculture and livestock sectors. Adaptation is a crucial approach to reducing the negative impact of climate change. This study identifies the key factors influencing livestock farmers’ adaptation to climate change in Gandaki Province, Nepal. A multi-stage random sampling technique was used to collect data from 1158 households in five districts (Mustang, Kaski, Tanahu, Nawalpur, and Gorkha) of Gandaki province, western Nepal. A pretested structured questionnaire for households and a checklist for FGDs were used to collect the data. This study utilized descriptive and inferential statistics. A binary logistic regression model was used to identify the determinants of livestock farmers’ adaptation strategies to climate change. Knowledge of climate change and its impact on livestock was common among farmers. Socioeconomic, demographic, climatic, agro-ecological settings and accessibility-related factors are responsible for adaptation strategies among livestock farmers. This study concludes that place of residence, availability of land for livestock, household size, agro-ecological setting, and access to credit are the determining factors in adaptation strategies to climate change impact in Gandaki Province, Nepal. The finding of this study may be beneficial in identifying the relevant adaptation strategies at the local level.