The environment is our neighbor, yet often, industries support these neighbors with theHeavy Hitters, such as Shell and Cenovus in Canada. The report by the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE) and the For Our Kids advocacy group, titled “Polluting Education and the Youngest Students,” highlights how industry-backed materials are influencing education, steering students towards harmful solutions. The report outlines the significant influence these companies have on Canadian elementary school curricula, pointing out their impact on what kids are learning. Through partnerships, funding, and direct engagement, industry interests, including oil and gas companies, steer the curriculum,贮iligiting fossil fuels as essential and secure support for continued consumption. The report further notes that public educators, held by state and province governments, play a critical role in limiting fossil fuel influences and promoting climate change education during K–12 years.
CBRT reports, offering a platform for dialogue, have been instrumental in empowering young people with climate education. By promoting the oil industries’ pedagogy, these organizations have shown how essential and important climate change education is for the youth. The report also points out that big oil companies are using multiple strategies to normalize fossil fuels as necessary and secure support for their use. These strategies include a bias-balanced approach to energy education, which frames lessons in a way that excludes industry perspectives; greenwashing, where logos like Chevron are placed on environmental impact resources; and redwashing, which dehumanizes Indigenous connections to fossil fuel projects. The report concludes that young kids are seeking education that empowers them to address the climate crisis and take action, calling for more robust climate education initiatives.
The youth-led climate education campaign in British Columbia is a concrete example. The campaign against Finite Future, for instance, promotes a community consultation committee that eliminates the influence of fossil fuel companies from the curriculum. It simultaneously emphasizes the need for a transition away from fossil fuels. Parents and educators are also playing a vital role in addressing climate misinformation, which is agreed upon by equation of words and actions through education. They are holding children to provide honesty and transparency about the oil sector’s role in driving climate change, calling urgency to a systemic and rapid transition away from fossil fuels.
Moreover, CAPE and For Our Kids recognize the critical role of public educators in shaping climate education. They are effective in慬 preventing fossil fuel sponsorship by schools and holding school boards accountable for climate-related issues. Additionally, teachers, student groups, and parents are significant allies, providing guidance and resistance to misinformation in mathematics. These actions underscore the importance of a climate-risk neutral education system to ensure future generations are equipped to address this pressing issue.