Bildungsmaterialien

We are excited to present the English translation of the Handprint concept ‘Changing structures towards sustainability’. The Handprint is the base of our educational activities at Germanwatch and focuses on the transformative power of political engagement. It helps us gradually transform our society so that everyone can act with sustainability. 

This worksheet begins with a general discussion of the effects of climate change for Germany and China, providing background material on the national contexts. Students are made aware that climate change not only affects the Global South, but that it is already affecting areas of life in all the geographical zones of the world. After this general introduction the focus shifts to the local level, the twin cities of Bonn and Chengdu, allowing students to understand the topic of climate change with reference to a specific, narrowly defined urban context.

Germanwatch released a DVD with educational material on climate change in a South-North dialogue with partners from Bangladesh, Germany, India, Jamaica and South Africa.

These worksheets are suited for natural and social science lessons for upper secondary education (some also suitable for pupils from the tenth grade onwards). In addition to the general description of the interactions and causes, they address the possible effects of climate change, especially in their regional differentiation. It is important to look at the issue of “climate change” not only from an environmental point of view but also to include the development dimension and the question of equity. This is the focus of the worksheets and the corresponding materials by offering the opportunity to draw up different case studies from developing countries, which the pupils can use in the exercises.

This booklet is one result of an international workshop on climate change education held in Warsaw on 8–9 November 2013 and provides an introduction to global climate change by using satellite images. Germanwatch has experience of comparing live satellite images with archived footage of the earth, which has been successfully applied in educational work for almost ten years. Based on that experience, we have chosen an outer-space perspective as an entry point for education on climate change.

This teaching unit focuses on the causes and effects of climate change in general, and the issue of culprits and victims in particular. This basic module should allow the pupils to gain the basic knowledge for the following modules, which are conceived as case studies.

Using a specific case study, pupils learn about the direct consequences of climate change for the inhabitants of a Pacific island state. The teaching module provides general information about climate change as well as looking at an entirely different perspective.

These teaching materials provide school pupils with the chance to work independently through the thematic complex surrounding climate change and weather-related climatic events.

With this teaching module, the school pupils are given the opportunity to compare and look at the effects of the phenomenon of climate change both in an industrialised and in a developing country.

The materials presented here give pupils the opportunity to work through the links between the areas of food security and global climate change. These connections, intensifying as they are in a world of increasing globalisation and constant change, are examined throughout the various regions and in a more detailed way.