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Climate Education

CONNECTING EDUCATORS. EMPOWERING STUDENTS.

Climate Education helps students and faculty “understand and address the impact of the climate crisis, empowering them with the knowledge, skills, values and attitudes needed to act as agents of change” (UNESCO).

IGL supports schools in integrating climate education across the curriculum, fostering systems thinking, building faculty capacity, addressing student climate anxiety, and advancing whole school sustainability through gatherings, workshops, and a supportive community of leaders committed to this work.

Organized by Institute for Global Learning in partnership with the Klingenstein Center and hosted at Teachers College, Columbia University, this summit will provide school leaders and educators the opportunity to build community, to share and collaborate, and to learn from scholars and leaders in the field of climate education.

Educators in a variety of positions, from across grade levels and disciplines, will share how they intentionally embed student action in their learning design, and participants in this summit will learn from these case studies as well as emerging research in the field of climate education. Schools will leave with new ideas and resources on how to engage students in myriad ways from civic and political engagement to partnering with local artists, immersive learning experiences, and school-wide sustainability programs. Participants will also be able to connect and collaborate with each other as they consider future opportunities for their schools.

Our diverse range of summit sessions address programs and initiatives that focus on developing student leadership and learning around climate issues, including immersive learning, climate action projects, and partnerships.

Cost & Registration

Registration is $375 USD per person for IGL member schools and current Teachers College students, and $450 USD per person for nonmember schools. Late registration rates of $425 and $500, respectively, begin Tuesday, December 22, 2026.

Registration includes Friday and Saturday morning refreshments, Friday lunch and a happy hour reception.

Register Here

General Schedule

Friday, January 22, 2027

8:00 AM Arrivals and morning refreshments
9:00 AM Welcome and Opening Session
9:45 AM – 4:00 PM Breakout Presentations, Networking Session and Featured Speaker
4:00 – 5:30 PM Happy Hour Reception

Saturday, January 23, 2027

8:00 AM Arrivals and morning refreshments
9:00 AM – 12:00 PM Breakout Presentations, Student Leaders in Climate Action Panel and Featured Speaker
12:00 PM Optional Lunch
1:00 – 5:00 PM Post-Summit Workshop & Campus Tour (optional)

Call for Proposals

Through this Call for Proposals, we invite educators and school leaders across disciplines and divisions to share innovative approaches to climate education.

Topics may include:

Programs, courses, curriculum units, or initiatives that intentionally develop student learning or action on climate issues

Student leadership development in sustainability and climate action

Immersive or experiential learning opportunities that engage students in climate issues

School frameworks of the knowledge, skills, and dispositions developed through climate education

Partnerships and collaborations in your local community or beyond

Responses to student climate anxiety or apathy

Courses or units that teach systems or futures thinking

Professional learning and support for faculty across the curriculum

Whole school sustainability or climate action initiatives across campus

DEADLINE: Priority Deadline: Monday, November 9, 2026. Proposals accested through Friday, November 20, 2026.

Submit a Proposal Here

Last Year’s Breakout Presentations

A Whole-School Approach to Integrating Climate Change Education across the Curriculum

Presented by John Hannah, Retired Teacher; Learning Landscape & Sustainability Consultant, John Bulger, Senior Geography Teacher and Sustainability Coordinator and Jackie Birch, Grade 2 Teacher, Learning Landscape Coordinator, Hillfield Strathallan College (Hamilton, Ontario, Canada)

Changing School Culture on Climate Education

Presented by Seth O’Bryan, Middle School Principal, Harley School (Rochester, NY, USA)

Creative Sparks: Using the Arts to Ignite Whole-School Climate Action

Presented by Sara Wahl, Teacher, Rockway Mennonite Collegiate (Kitchener, ON, Canada)

Designing Interdisciplinary Curriculum for Climate Engagement: Two Schools Share their Journey

Presented by Joanne Aronson, Department Chair Math, Science, and Technology, Miami Country Day School (Miami, Florida, USA); Tamara Smith, Director of Service, Stewardship and Sustainability, TFS- Canada’s International School (Toronto, Ontario, Canada)

Educational Approaches to Foster Nature Connection in a K-8 School

Presented by Erin McNamara, Director of Experiential & Nature-Based Learning, Old Trail School (Bath, OH, USA)

Embodied, Immersive Climate Education: A Toolkit for Educators

Presented by Marisha Plotnik, Educator/Researcher, The Nature Institute (Ghent, New York, USA)

Empowering the Next Generation of Climate Leaders: Two Programs Highlight Collaboration for Climate Action

Presented by John Hsu, Climate Leaders Fellowship Director, Rustic Pathways Foundation (Mentor, Ohio, USA); Ana Romero, Head of Sustainability, Wellington College International (UK)

From Challenge to Change: Empowering Grade 9s for Climate Action

Presented by Jeff Adams, HC-X Educator and Allison Campbell-Rogers, HC-X Educator, Havergal College (Toronto, ON, Canada)

From Climate Anxiety to Action: Empowering Students Through Immersive Expeditions

Presented by Emma Heeney, Student Experiences Coordinator and Student Exchanges, Advisor, Lakefield College (Lakefield, ON, Canada) and Teghan Acres, Senior Programs Designer, Insight Global Education (Vancouver, BC, Canada)

From Lava Fields to Learning Labs: Outdoor Climate Education Case Studies from Iceland

Presented by Arnbjorn Olafsson, Managing Director, GeoCamp Iceland and Sigrun Svafa Olafsdottir, Project Manager for Education at Reykjanes UNESCO Global Geopark, GeoCamp Iceland & Reykjanes UNESCO Global Geopark (Reykjanesbaer, Reykjanes Peninsula, Iceland)

Learning from Environmental Stewardship and Māori Perspectives in New Zealand

Presented by Mark Bruce-Miller, CEO, Experiential Education New Zealand (Motueka, Tasman, New Zealand) and Lindsey Lohwater, Director of the Taft STEM Research fellowship, Sustainability Coordinator and teacher of Biology., St Mark’s School, MA (Southborough, MA, USA)

Lessons from Terrapalooza: Benefits and Strategies for All-School Climate Celebrations

Presented by Avi McClelland-Cohen, Upper School Teacher and Nora Murphy, Upper School Librarian, Polytechnic School (Pasadena, CA, USA)

Narratives of Environmental Connection: Building Environmental Education Using Student Stories of Change

Presented by Aninne Schneider, Former Head of Environmental Education, Robert College (Istanbul, Turkey)

Normalizing Green Culture in Your High School

Presented by Alie Elliott, Sustainability Programs Director; Science Teacher, Trinity College School (Port Hope, ON, Canada)

Partnerships and Collaborations for Sustainable Learning

Presented by Julia Hunt, Assistant Head, Strategic Initiatives and Joshua Armstrong, Director of Teaching and Learning, Pickering College (Newmarket, ON, Canada)

Reducing Food Waste & Green House Gases through Community Partnerships and Service

Presented by Kiera Toffelmire, Vice-President, Learning & Engagement, Second Harvest (Toronto, ON, Canada) and Michèle Andrews, Co-Founder & Executive Director, DoorNumberOne.org (North Augusta, ON, Canada)

SIFTing Through Climate Misinformation

Presented by Pamela Malinowski, 8th-grade science teacher and Kate Pritchard, Library Director, University School of Nashville (Nashville, TN, USA)

Student Climate Action Impact Projects through Research Mentorship

Session Moderator: Dr. Andrew Simon, Polygence Scholar-in-Residence and Senior Lecturer at Dartmouth College (NH, USA) and student panelists

Student-Led Sustainability Initiatives: Successful Ideas and Takeaways for Engaging Students

Presented by Liz Cutler, Retired Sustainability Director, Princeton Day School (NJ);; Whole-School Sustainability Consultant (Menlo Park, CA, USA)

Unpacking Data Around Climate Education and Sustainability Leadership in Schools

Presented by Danny Schiff, Operations and Data Specialist, IGL

Climate Educators and Sustainability Leaders in Schools Monthly Meet-ups

These informal meet-ups offer a space to discuss opportunities, resources, and challenges in climate education and sustainability program leadership in schools. Participants from member schools are welcome to join any meet-up and need to register only once to attend the full series.

These monthly meet-ups are facilitated by Cush Gillen, the Institute for Global Learning Climate Educator in Residence.

To encourage open and candid dialogue, meet-ups are not recorded.

FORMAT: Virtual, monthly 1 hour synchronous meet-ups
DATES, TIMES, THEMES: See below
AUDIENCE: Open to educators in current Member Schools (including educators formerly part of the independent schools sustainability leads group)
COST: Free

2026-2027 Meet-Ups

Monday, Oct. 19, 2026 | Monthly Meet-up #1: Success stories, questions, and resource sharing

In this first meet-up, participants will be invited to share a success story in their climate education or sustainability efforts in school from last spring. Then, participants will have the chance to discuss what they’re wrestling with this academic year, and pass along resources that excite them. Participants are welcome to share curriculum, projects, workshops, and other resources they would like to contribute to the Monthly Meet-up kick off.

Date: Monday, October 19, 2026
Time: 12:00 pm Pacific | 2:00 pm Central | 3:00 pm Eastern | 9:00 pm Central European

Register Here

Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2026 | Monthly Meet-up #2: Traditional ecological knowledge (TEK), land acknowledgements, and partnerships with Indigenous organizations

Participants will explore traditional ecological knowledge (TEK), land acknowledgements, and partnerships with Indigenous organizations. After an introductory presentation, they will be invited to share where they see their work doing well on this subject, any questions they have, and how each school community can achieve their institutional goals on this subject.

Date: Tuesday, November 17, 2026
Time: 9:00 am Pacific | 11:00 am Central | 12:00 pm Eastern | 6:00 pm Central European

Register Here

Monday, Dec. 7, 2026 | Monthly Meet-up #3: Beyond the classroom: facilities, grounds, and infrastructure

This Meet-up will center around sustainability: energy, composting, buildings, and ground. How are schools tracking their work? Whether it is the START metric or a different method, participants will explore different ways to document and track their advancements in sustainability on their school campuses.

Date: Monday, December 7, 2026
Time: 6:00 am Pacific | 8:00 am Central | 9:00 am Eastern | 3:00 pm Central European

Register Here