The British Council, the UK’s international organisation for cultural relations and educational opportunities, is showcasing highlights from its Egypt Climate Connection programme – which supports people in Egypt to find creative solutions to climate change in support of the 27th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27) in Sharm El-Sheikh in November.
The British Council supports COP27 by bringing an inclusive voice to the summit, engaging with networks of young Egyptians, education professionals, students, academics, researchers, artists, civil society leaders and policymakers to participate in meaningful dialogue and bring about real change for our planet.
Highlighting the British Council’s role in addressing climate change, Ruth Cocks, British Council Deputy Director in Egypt, said: “We are working closely with the British Embassy in Cairo and partners in the Egyptian ministries to make a success of COP27. We believe young Egyptians from all walks of life have a huge role in shaping future climate change in Egypt, and we are working to include them in climate discussions at COP27 and beyond. Our engagement will showcase the impact of youth engagement, education, culture and English as powerful tools to tackle the climate emergency and bring about lasting positive change.”
The different programmes in English, Education and Arts include Creative Commissions, higher education partnerships, researcher links, policy dialogues, English and climate educational resources, climate and gender grants, and a variety of exciting youth initiatives and activities.
Abdelfattah Nada, one the British Council’s Climate Connection alumni who addressed world leaders in the opening ceremony of the World Leaders Summit at COP26 in Glasgow, as the voice of youth for Egypt, commented on his hopes for COP27 in Sharm El-Sheikh: “One year ago, hosting COP27 in Egypt was a dream, but today it is reality. In COP27, I hope we will witness efficient negotiations and radical decisions that shape a better future for our planet. Egyptian actors in the environmental and sustainability fields are ready to showcase their effort and innovative ideas in Sharm El-Sheikh and look forward to global cooperation for this ‘COP of implementation’.
British Council initiatives to support COP27 include:
• Climate Action for Language Education materials rolled out to over 10,000 teachers across Egypt, both in the Ministry of Education system and the Al Azhar System. The initiative included exploring the nexus of interfaith dialogue and climate.
• Teacher educators from Al-Azhar and the Ministry of Education have enrolled in the Climate Action for Language Education MOOC, to embed climate topics in the classroom effectively.
• Through the One Million Climate Ambassadors project in partnership with Ain Shams University, the ambition is to train one million climate ambassadors in Egypt and wider Africa to engage in discussion about climate change.
• Creative Commissions are exploring climate change through the arts, science and digital technology. These commissions aim to stimulate conversations and connections between the UK and Egypt, bringing together people, cultures and communities to understand each other’s perspectives and collaborate on creative responses and solutions in relation to climate change.
• The Higher Education Climate Grants have supported 15 new partnerships between UK and Egyptian universities, working on climate issues from fellowships greening campuses to developing climate-based Transnational Education (TNE) courses.
• Policy workshops on health and food and agriculture, in partnership with the Egyptian Ministry of Higher Education and the UK Universities Climate Network, bought together leading scientists from UK and Egyptian universities to produce key insights for policymakers in the lead up to COP27, with a focus on real climate solutions.
• COP 27 World Climate stimulation, we are giving school students in Egypt and UK the chance to get into a world climate Stimulation, through an in-person role-playing exercise of the UN climate change negotiations, where they get to explore the necessary speed and level of action that nations must take to address global climate change.
• Youth Voices programme equips young people with the debating and leadership skills needed to advocate on the most pressing climate issues.
• The Climate and Gender grants support organisations to promote gender equality, equity and leadership in combating climate challenges.
