Goal 13: Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts
Climate Action is a call to take urgent steps to combat climate change and its impacts. It focuses on lowering the greenhouse gas emissions that warm the planet and helping countries prepare for extreme weather events like storms and droughts. This goal emphasizes that through education and innovation, we can protect our climate for future generations.
Goal 13: Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts
Climate Action is a call to take urgent steps to combat climate change and its impacts. It focuses on lowering the greenhouse gas emissions that warm the planet and helping countries prepare for extreme weather events like storms and droughts. This goal emphasizes that through education and innovation, we can protect our climate for future generations.
Introduction to Goal 13
A curriculum designed for Goal 13 that inspires the values and competencies behind this mission for grades 5-12.
Featured Lesson: Musical Exploration
Musical Exploration
Dive into Goal 13 through the lens of musical exploration. This lesson provides hands-on activities and creative exploration designed to bring the concepts to life for students.
Lessons
Musical Exploration
Explore Goal 13: Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts through musical exploration.
Pop The Planet: Climate Action & Pop Art
Explore Goal 13: Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts through art.
What If? Writing Stories of Climate Action
Explore Goal 13: Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts through creative writing.
Finding Our Rhythm: A Latin Dance Lesson on Climate Action
Explore Goal 13: Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts through dance/movement.
The Gathering Storm: An Immersive Climate Drama
Explore Goal 13: Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts through drama.
A Story of Climate Action in the Amazon Through Music
Explore Goal 13: Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts through music.
MUSICAL EXPLORATION
Explore Goal 13: Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts through music.
These learning objectives are organized into five categories that together form a comprehensive approach to understanding and engaging with this goal.
Knowledge
- •
Identify and define climate change as a global problem and recognize the need for urgent action to protect our planet.
(Cr1.1.MS, Cn10 .1.MS) - •
Recognize the diverse impacts of climate change (e.g., extreme weather, pollution, changing environments) and understand that everyone can be affected, but that we can work together to find solutions.
(Cn10.1.MS, Cn11.1.MS) - •
Understand the role of education and awareness-raising as key components of climate action, helping to inform and inspire others to make positive changes.
(Cn10.1.MS, Cn11.1.MS)
Discourse
- •
Explore and describe how feelings and messages about climate change are expressed through various art forms (visual art, creative writing, dance, drama, music) by reflecting on visuals, words, movement, sounds, and stories.
(Re7.1.MS, Re8.1.MS) - •
Participate in respectful discussions about climate challenges and solutions, considering how different communities are affected and what actions can be taken.
(Re9.1.MS, Cn11.1.MS) - •
Communicate their own thoughts, feelings, and ideas about Global Goal 13: Climate Action, through creative expression in various artistic mediums.
(Cr3.1.MS)
Attitudes
- •
Develop a sense of urgency and personal responsibility regarding climate change, inspiring a belief in their ability to make a difference.
(Re8.1.MS, Cn10.1.MS) - •
Cultivate empathy and compassion for individuals and communities affected by climate change, particularly those in vulnerable situations.
(Cn11.1.MS) - •
Foster a resilient sense of hope and empowerment, recognizing that collective action and creative solutions are possible, even in the face of a big challenge.
(Re9.1.MS)
Capacity
- •
Develop critical thinking skills by observing and discussing how different artistic elements (like bold colors, contrasting rhythms, opposing movements, or character emotions) can represent climate challenges and solutions.
(Re9.1.MS, Cn10.1.MS) - •
Practice collaboration and communication skills through engaging in group art projects, shared writing, and coordinated movement, drama, or musical performances to tell stories about climate action.
(Cr2.1.MS, Pr5.1.MS) - •
Develop creative expression skills through purposeful experimentation with diverse artistic mediums (visual art, creative writing, dance, drama, music) to communicate their understandings and feelings about Climate Action.
(Cr3.1.MS)
Action
- •
Identify simple and age-appropriate actions they can take to reduce their own impact on the planet and promote climate-friendly practices in their daily lives, schools, and homes.
(Pr6.1.MS, Cn11.1.MS) - •
Participate in collaborative artistic projects that creatively express messages of hope and support for climate action.
(Cr3.1.MS, Pr6.1.MS) - •
Reflect on their personal role in contributing to a healthier planet, fostering a sense of responsible global citizenship.
(Re9.1.MS, Cn11.1.MS)
Empowering youth to become active agents of change in taking urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts. Recognizing that even small, consistent actions, sparked by their creative explorations, can contribute to a larger global impact.
Taking Action Beyond the Classroom
Here are ways your students can extend their learning and apply their understanding of Global Goal 13 in their wider community and beyond.
Become Climate Storytellers: Choose a favorite piece created in the lessons, and share with family, friends, or local community groups (like a neighborhood association or community group). This allows them to use their art to tell a powerful story about why taking climate action matters for everyone.
Concrete Action: Aim to share their creative work related to Global Goal 12 with at least three people outside of school.
Waste to Wonder Challenge: Find one item at home that would normally be thrown away (e.g., a plastic bottle, box, old sock, etc.) and turn it into something new and useful. Share a photo of this useful object with family or friends, explaining its new purpose.
Concrete Action: Students transform one piece of waste into a useful object and share their creation.
Climate Action Checklist: Create a simple, eye-catching Climate Action Checklist at home. It can include things like "Turn off lights when leaving a room," "Unplug chargers when they're not in use," or "Plant a tree." Use artistic skills to make it visually appealing, and present it to family and friends.
Concrete Action: Students create a Climate Action Checklist for their home and present it to their family/friends to encourage climate-friendly actions.
Research a Climate Change Hero: Research a real person (from history or today) who has made a significant positive impact on climate change. This could be a scientist, a community activist, or an inventor. Write a short paragraph, create a drawing, or prepare a brief presentation about this Climate Change Hero, explaining how their actions connect to Global Goal 13. This helps to see real-world examples of impact and positive change.
Concrete Action: Students research and present one Climate Change Hero to share with family or the class.
Eco-Inventors Journal: Keep a journal at home where drawings or short stories can be used to brainstorm solutions to climate problems. These can be about a new invention, a smarter way to recycle, or a creative way to use less energy.
Concrete Action: Students create an Eco-Inventors Journal and create entries at least once a week about creative solutions to climate change.
Benchmarking Progress
A quick view of the official UN targets for this goal paired with the indicators that track global progress. Use these to connect classroom inquiry with real-world data.
Target 13.1
Strengthen resilience and adaptive capacity to climate-related hazards and natural disasters in all countries.
Indicators
- 13.1.1
Number of deaths, missing persons and directly affected persons attributed to disasters per 100,000 population.
- 13.1.2
Number of countries that adopt and implement national disaster risk reduction strategies in line with the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030.
- 13.1.3
Proportion of local governments that adopt and implement local disaster risk reduction strategies in line with national disaster risk reduction strategies.
Target 13.2
Integrate climate change measures into national policies, strategies, and planning.
Indicators
- 13.2.1
Number of countries with nationally determined contributions, long-term strategies, national adaptation plans and adaptation communications, as reported to the secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.
- 13.2.2
Total greenhouse gas emissions per year.
Target 13.3
Improve education, awareness-raising and human and institutional capacity on climate change mitigation, adaptation, impact reduction and early warning.
Indicators
- 13.3.1
Extent to which (i) global citizenship education and (ii) education for sustainable development are mainstreamed in (a) national education policies; (b) curricula; (c) teacher education; and (d) student assessment.
Target 13.a
Implement the commitment undertaken by developed-country parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change to a goal of mobilizing jointly $100 billion annually by 2020 from all sources to address the needs of developing countries in the context of meaningful mitigation actions and transparency on implementation and fully operationalize the Green Climate Fund through its capitalization as soon as possible.
Indicators
- 13.a.1
Amounts provided and mobilized in the United States dollars per year in relation to the continued existing collective mobilization goal of the $100 billion commitment through to 2025.
Target 13.b
Promote mechanisms for raising capacity for effective climate change-related planning and management in least developed countries and small island developing States, including focusing on women, youth and local and marginalized communities.
Indicators
- 13.b.1
Number of least developed countries and small island developing States with nationally determined contributions, long-term strategies, national adaptation plans and adaptation communications, as reported to the secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.