As record-high temperatures hit Japan and other Asian countries these past few weeks, the urgency of climate action is evident.

However, there’s not enough discussion about the intersectionality of climate action, natural disasters, gender equality and education in Japan. As young people, we are not only the victims of climate disasters, but also contributors to climate action.

We have a stake in ensuring that we’re as prepared as possible to face climate change threats. This is why we, GPE youth leaders in Japan, hosted an interactive workshop on “Education x Climate Change - Mainstreaming Youths’ Voices in Policymaking” in March 2024.

The workshop was held in Tokyo and gathered 18- to 30-year-old youths from across Japan and parliamentarians from the Youth Division of Liberal Democratic Party of Japan.

Why Japan should take a larger role in the climate change/education discussion

I decided to organize this workshop after attending COP28 in Dubai where I felt the lack of a Japanese presence in the discussion on education and climate action. I genuinely felt this is an area where my country can take a leadership role in the global discussion because Japan has experienced many disasters, often caused by climate change.

But I also realized that climate disasters occur at an unprecedented scale globally and there’s a lot Japan can also learn from other countries to create a safe future for us all.

After a video by Temilade Salami, a GPE youth leader from Nigeria and founder of EcoWarriors, and a presentation by Valentine Chepkoech, a GPE youth leader from Kenya, Kenta Konno shared his story during the workshop of the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011 as a junior high school student.

He conveyed the importance of “Bo-sai” education (disaster risk reduction education) in times of emergencies, explaining how the frequent Bo-sai education he received prepared him and other students to make appropriate decisions and to act swiftly to evacuate and save not only their own lives, but that of others as well.

Workshop participants also discussed two questions:

• What can Japan do to contribute to education and climate action around the world?
• What can Japan learn from other countries to tackle climate change through education?

Here are some of the youth responses:

“It is important for Japan to continue working on further incorporating interdisciplinary learning by conducting cross-curricular education on disaster prevention, natural science, and so on… And to introduce that to the global community.”

“We should look into and spread what the local municipalities are doing for environmental education. For example, in my home city, the students grow environmentally friendly vegetables and rice together with the local farmers in cooperation with local businesses.”

“Japan lacks the ability to disseminate their knowledge and information, including financial contribution, despite its technical capabilities and experiences. In order to change this, we would like to see support in allowing the young people to be involved in environmental education.”

Raising awareness and making recommendations

As summarized by Marina Takahasi (GPE youth leader alum, Japan), “the workshop was an opportunity for Japanese politicians and youth to take seriously the impact of climate change on education, and to think about what education can do to combat climate change. By summarizing the opinions from the event into policy recommendations and conveying the voices of young people to politics, we hope to support climate change, education and youth activities.”

MP Yasuhiro Takami, Head of Student Division, commented: “Japan experiences disasters every year, and I had thought that this was a negative issue for Japan. But I learned a lot from the many discussions we had today, that when it comes to sharing our knowledge to the rest of the world, these hardships we experienced can be useful.”

MP Daisuke Nishino, Head of Policy and Public Relations Division, added: “Today, I was able to realize that disasters occur because of global climate change, and disasters reduce opportunities for education, thereby furthering environmental problems. And that we must mobilize education to tackle this negative spiral.”

MP Takako Suzuki, Director of the LDP Youth Division, promised to include education as a key agenda item in LDP’s proposal for Noto Peninsula earthquake countermeasures which was one of the major issues discussed in the party to respond to the earthquake that happened at the beginning of this year.

The proposal includes requests that youth agreed on during the workshop:

1. Increase funding support to the education sector, including GPE, to ensure education doesn’t stop at times of climate disasters.
2. Increase support to girls’ education since girls are at higher risk to drop out of school after climate disasters happen.
3. Share the knowledge and experience of Japan on disaster risk reduction through GPE and other international platforms, in particular the efficacy of Bo-sai education.
4. Make an intellectual contribution to the global society in leading the Education for Sustainable Development framework by sharing how Japanese school curriculum engages with local communities to foster student’s awareness towards local environment—a crucial element of education to prevent further environmental destruction and realize sustainable development.