“Young people are the future of our planet. We must equip them with the information, insight and practical skills to understand the importance of biodiversity - both intrinsically and for the survival of humanity. Educators have a key role to play in preparing young people for the challenges that lie ahead. There can be no greater legacy than giving young people the tools they need to save our planet.”
Sir David Attenborough

 

WWF’s 2018 Living Planet Report revealed the scale of human impact on our precious natural world. Our Planet, launched on Netflix earlier this month, takes the story further. The eight-part series, voiced by David Attenborough, reveals the natural wonders that remain, and explores what we need to do to ensure a future in which nature and people thrive.

Today’s young people will be the stewards of our planet in the years to come, and the future of all life depends on them gaining the knowledge, skills and passion for nature necessary to transform humanity’s relationship with the natural world and build a more sustainable future. With just 10 years to bring huge changes to lifestyles and business practices worldwide if we are to avoid global environmental collapse, young people will be faced with a turbulent and challenging world as they move into adulthood and make decisions about their own personal and professional futures. Their actions and voices in support of the changes that are needed to save the planet will be pivotal factors in whether the change is achieved in time, and in a positive way for those living through this transition. The School Strike for Climate movement has shown how powerful youth voice and action can be, and how urgently young people feel change is needed. It is vital that young people are given access to the most current information and evidence about the plight of our planet, so that they can direct their energies towards making the changes that will make a positive difference to the future.

WWF has created a range of resources and activities for schools and young people that build on Our Planet and ensure that the important subjects and messages in Our Planet can be accessed by a wide spectrum of young people around the world. We are empowering educators in primary and secondary schools to draw on the incredible wealth of free high-quality video resources on ourplanet.com to delve into the key issues of our time with their students. We are galvanising schools to confront and discuss the state of our planet as a community through assemblies and screenings. We are prompting young people outside school to pay attention to the natural world and ‘tune in’ to the reality and importance of biodiversity in their everyday life through our innovative nature ID app ‘Seek’. Last but not least we are supporting and enabling a growing movement of young people who want to play an active role in creating the future they want, but need information, skills and resources to do so.

 

INSPIRE

• Bring the story of our planet to life for young people with the spectacular videos and interactive explorable globe available for free on www.OurPlanet.com. Take inspiration and guidan
• ce from the Our Planet educator guide, which includes ideas for sparking ideas, discussion and engagement with videos. Present to the whole school or even the wider community with the using the Our Planet Assembly Pack.
• Take inspiration from young people who are already taking action to create a sustainable future for our planet – follow the Youth for Our Planet blog.

CONNECT

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  Access free classroom resources and educator guides for primary and secondary schools to build a deeper understanding of our living planet, the links between our lifestyles and the health of the natural world, and the actions needed to bring our planet back from the brink.
• Connect live with nature and sustainability experts and projects around the world via Skype in the Classroom on the Our Planet Live site.
• Get outside and discover the natural world around you with the Our Planet Seek app.

ACT

• Contribute to global citizen science when the Our Planet Biodiversity Action toolkit launches in June, and join a worldwide network of youth-led biodiversity action projects.
• Put young people in the driving seat by running an Our Planet’s Future Summit for young people (11-16) and support young people to come up with a model for a sustainable future for our planet.
• Speak up and add youth voice and pledges of action to the global movement to save our planet. https://www.ourplanet.com/en/voice/