A Verdala International School student recently asked me: “When do you think we will live in a world where it is no longer safe to go outside because it is simply too hot? Five, 10 or 20 years?”

The heatwave at the beginning of September was a reminder of this question. Our school starts the academic year earlier than Maltese schools, only to find itself suffocating under extraordinary temperatures. This is an underlying challenge in a school that has been patiently waiting for a substation to be completed, so we can turn on the air conditioners. Parents, staff and students were desperate for respite as the temperatures soared to 33˚C, one day scoring a “feels like 44” in part of Malta.

Meanwhile, power outages started to affect the Wi-Fi, and just when the week couldn’t feel more stifling, a water-pipe blockage in the car park meant the school had no running water and no toilets could be used. Our crisis team had no choice but to close the school for a day and go to distance-learning from home. Staff were transported back to COVID times, although this time with experience, meaning it ran smoothly for both students and staff. Ironically, our ‘Individuals and Societies’ class had been discussing the impact of water shortages on society.

The younger generation look to the adults and wonder why we do not do more. They see forests burning, seas full of rubbish, heatwaves and flooding across the world. These aren’t images that happen ‘somewhere else’, they are on our doorstep.

The real purpose of education is to prepare the orientation for future generations

Climate change is a topic that particularly frustrates young people, as they don’t see much evidence of action. Politicians don’t take it seriously enough; people live in the now, and struggle with the concept of sacrifice for the sake of the future.

It is commonly accepted that 2024 is the year our climate reached a tipping point, as stories from across the globe relate of extreme weather patterns and disasters.

Climate change was a topic at the seventh annual international multidisciplinary conference at the University of Malta’s G.F. Abela Junior College, where one of the renowned guests, Cynthia Umezilke, addressed the importance of “developing strategies for students to retain knowledge-rich and solution-driven education to tackle the pressing climate crises”.

Baumann-Pauly, Poser and LeClair argue that “the leaders of tomorrow are more likely to emerge from educational institutions that prioritise environmental, social and governance requirements in their curriculum”.

Educationalists need to address this through the how, not just the why. The history of climate change is certainly relevant, but more interesting to a young person is how do we tackle it, what solutions there are, and what needs to be done across society and our infrastructure to ensure it does.

Verdala International School students collaborating on a project - a key way learn how to analyse, investigate and connect the dots.

Many national educational systems are adapting their approaches to teaching and learning, as they move from content-driven to a more inquiry-driven project-based approach. The International Baccalaureate (IB) offers this as a requirement for each age group – the primary years programme exhibition, the middle years personal project and the extended essay or reflective project on an ethical issue for the diploma or career-related programme.

Some countries have adapted this into a capstone project, such as the UK Higher Project Qualification, similar to the Malta Systems of Knowledge. Whatever you call it, it is student-driven research, on a topic of their choosing, which is assessed on their ability to problem-solve and think critically. This in itself develops young minds to not just be university-ready but prepared for the adult world where life is not driven by spouting knowledge, but being able to analyse, investigate and connect the dots.

There is no doubt that schools around the world are tackling climate-change geopolitics and environmental responsibility. But what is the tipping point at which our young people go from being hopeful protagonists to passive bystanders? As educators, we strive, persevere and hope that the children we mentor will become responsible, thoughtful and proactive adults, whatever they end up doing.

It is essential that we don’t lose sight of that responsibility, or they will in turn transform into another round of disillusioned consumers who feel ill-equipped to contribute to change. As Maria Montessori said: “The real purpose of education is to prepare the orientation for future generations, who will progress to a new plane.”

Totty Aris is head of Verdala International School.