Climate ethics and education regarding the responsibilities and challenges of the climate emergency

Abstract

This text explores the intersection of climate ethics and education, addressing the responsibilities and challenges arising from the climate emergency. It seeks to (i) present a brief overview of the current climate emergency we are experiencing, necessary to understand the reasons that have brought us to this global crisis; (ii) identify theoretical challenges and plausible ethical frameworks, as well as moral responsibilities for actions and guidance toward an uncertain future for thousands of lives on the planet; (iii) to discuss, based on these issues, how Environmental and Climate Education, grounded in a global climate ethic, can encourage the education of our children, youth, and adults toward care and respect for Nature, reconnecting and reestablishing the meaning of sustainability. The analysis draws on studies by ethicists, climatologists, biologists, investigative science journalists, as well as political philosophers. It is argued that it is necessary to advocate for an education focused on the demands of the climate emergency and linked to a global ecological ethic, capable of helping to create conditions for the establishment of a more just, supportive, responsible, and sustainable way of life.