Young people are already experiencing the effects of a changing climate.
That’s why at People For Nature, we believe it is crucial to integrate climate education into schools and universities. Early education fosters a sense of responsibility and urgency, ensuring that the next generation is ready to tackle the challenges ahead.
Building climate literacy through teacher-led Climate Fresks
One example of our work is with Fort Street High School. Since 2022, the school has made climate education a core part of its annual Sustainability Week and it organises Climate Fresk workshops for Year 10 students (ages 15–16).
Fort Street High School recognises that climate change must be meaningfully embedded in the classroom, not only to raise awareness, but to empower students with solutions they can apply in shaping a better future.
The approach
Fort Street High School wanted to create a program that could be sustained for the long term. So, rather than relying solely on external facilitators, we trained eight teachers to co-lead the workshops. By taking this ‘train the trainer’ approach, we gave these teachers the knowledge, skills and confidence to run their future workshops autonomously, which they have been doing successfully for the last few years.
Since 2025, teachers have taken on full facilitation and organisation of the workshops themselves.
Results & key impact
The Climate Fresk workshops continue to be a key part of the school’s Sustainability Week with strong engagement from both teachers and students.
We witness a high level of student engagement, showcasing a clear benefit in engaging and empowering teachers to lead the Climate Fresks as they already have a trusted relationship with the students.
Carole Defago, Climate Fresk Program Lead at People For Nature
Additional student feedback supported the success of this climate initiative:
The final presentation of the projects, which the groups presented together in the school hall as a sort of trade fair, [involved] pitching each project to their peers, their teachers and to students from Years 7-9, who now eagerly anticipate their own opportunity to address the climate crisis in this program. The final “bazaar” was full of energy and enthusiasm, with student experts explaining patiently and passionately the urgent need to face the issues their product or system addressed.
Impact beyond the school
We trained eight new Climate Fresk facilitators, building on our existing group of facilitators across Australia.
Furthermore, this success story has inspired other schools to adopt a similar model:
💚 Redlands school has implemented a full-day Year 9 program combining a Climate Fresk workshop and film screening.
💚 The Jesuit schools network trained 8 teachers, with facilitation training scheduled for June 2025.
Our long-term vision for climate literacy in schools
Schools can play a pivotal role in fostering a generation of informed and engaged young leaders dedicated to combating climate change and promoting sustainable practices within their communities.
By equipping teachers as facilitators, this model demonstrates how Climate Fresk can be scaled sustainably within education systems. It is our long-term ambition to see climate literacy and systems thinking embedded in the national curriculum. The Fort Street High School approach highlights the potential for educators to drive change within their schools, fostering a culture of climate action and student-led sustainability projects.
📩 Let’s start the conversation.
Contact us today if you are interested in developing a climate education initiative in your school! We’d love to chat.
Together, we can drive positive change, one action at a time.
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