16 Apr 2025
The third Cambridge University Press & Assessment and Cambridge Zero Convocation, held at the start of April, brought together educators, researchers, and policymakers to explore how science education can equip students to address the climate crisis in meaningful and empowering ways. Previous convocations have covered the subjects of geography and engineering.
Senior academic staff and PhD students from across the University of Cambridge, and specialists from Cambridge University Press & Assessment (Cambridge) and their International Education group, were joined by colleagues from the Royal Society of Chemistry, the UK Department for Education and schools in the Cambridge area.
Opening the two-day event, Christine Özden, Global Director of Climate Education at Cambridge, set the tone: “We believe that education is crucial to tackling the climate crisis, so we have a great responsibility to carry this forward in everything we do. Our challenge is to help inspire and empower teachers and students to make a real contribution.”
Dr Amy Munro-Faure, Head of Education and Student Engagement at Cambridge Zero, added: “It’s clear that we need to be teaching young people the skills they need to thrive in a changing world, with a strong focus on solutions. This Convocation represents an extraordinary opportunity to bring cutting-edge expertise into the curriculum—impacting the knowledge, skills, and qualifications of young people for generations to come.”
The discussions included a look behind the scenes at some of the vast range of climate and sustainability research across the University of Cambridge. Academics and PhD students presented research on a wide range of studies, ranging from the ecology of forests and coastal wetlands, to the growing challenge of pollution from car tyres and from atmospheric chemistry and its impacts on climate change, to opportunities of including more diverse perspectives in the science curriculum.
Merging disciplines
A key theme of the Science Convocation was the need for sustainability and climate issues to be taught throughout the curriculum, not only in science subjects. Students need a joined-up, consistent understanding of the big picture rather than fragmented coverage of separate topics.
Professors Jessica Gwynne and Tim Weil, along with PhD researcher Robin Scullion, were some of the academics illustrating how an interdisciplinary approach can be implemented in practice. They described how the University of Cambridge’s undergraduate science curriculum breaks down the barriers between different disciplines to give students a wide range of scientific perspectives—mirroring the complexity of real-world challenges.
International Education is actively working to embed climate and sustainability more deeply into the science curriculum. Dr Carl Saxton, Head of Secondary Maths, Science and Technology, explained how syllabus revisions are being used to enhance climate education. This includes greater emphasis on interdisciplinary learning and ensuring real-world relevance is integrated into qualifications like Environmental Management.
Helping students move from anxiety to action
However, many participants noted that studying the climate crisis can leave students with a sense of hopelessness, not knowing how to take action. This can be reduced by teaching students about potential solutions and encouraging more direct connections solutions, developing their feelings of personal agency and encouraging more direct connections with nature.
Participants agreed on the need to equip students with a broader set of skills—such as creative problem-solving, systems thinking, and designing their own investigations—rather than just presenting them with facts. This can empower learners to become critical thinkers and change agents in their communities.
Mads Studholme a teacher from Impington Village College, near Cambridge, and four secondary students from the school, shared their experience of climate education and provided insightful answers to participants’ questions. The students talked about their passion for sustainability, which one of them described as “passion verging on desperation”. They emphasised that the curriculum should focus on solutions, including mitigation of the effects of climate change and knowing how to make a difference. They wanted this focus to be reflected in assessment.
Echoing a major theme of the Convocation, one of the students said, “Quite a lot of the time in school we just get told stuff and have to remember it, and there’s not a lot of space for critical thinking.” Learning to communicate effectively about sustainability was also a priority for the students.
Dr Chris Graham, Sustainability Lead and Biology Teacher at Hills Road Sixth Form College, Cambridge, stressed the need to show that climate responsibility lies with society as a whole. Helping students see their individual role within a broader context can also ease climate anxiety and foster engagement.
PHOTO: Third Cambridge University Press & Assessment and Cambridge Zero Convocation, 2-3 April 2025
Engaging all students
From primary level onwards, a majority of students say that they are worried about the climate crisis but maintaining their interest in climate change education isn’t always easy. Research shared by Annette Farrell, Programme Manager at the Royal Society of Chemistry and Will Wale, Sustainability Youth Focal Point at the UK Department for Education, shows that maintaining long-term engagement remains a challenge, particularly among older students. Girls and students from better-off backgrounds are more likely to be concerned about climate change and to participate in positive action. In part, this may reflect the lack of online role models for engagement with climate and sustainability issues.
The importance of adapting climate education to regional contexts was highlighted by Sion Choudhury, Senior Editor in Cambridge’s Delhi office. He presented Cambridge Climate Quest, a series of free online modules for younger learners in South Asia. Developed in partnership with Cambridge Zero, the programme encourages climate literacy while addressing local environmental challenges—linking sustainability to public health, gender, and community-based solutions.
The Convocation concluded with hands-on workshops exploring how to best integrate climate-related science and sustainability across curriculum and assessment. Participants collaborated on practical ways to give students not only knowledge, but also a sense of agency and belonging in the global climate conversation.
A full report on the Convocation will be published later this year.
Further reading
Cambridge Zero exists to maximise the University of Cambridge’s contribution towards achieving a resilient and sustainable zero-carbon world. Further information is available on their website: www.zero.cam.ac.uk
Read our report on empowering engineers of the future through climate change education
Check out our latest guide on Getting Started With climate change education
Looking for ways to engage your students? Find out about our Cambridge Science Competition
