Climate Action, Equity and Ontario Schools
The fall has been a very busy time at ETFO, supporting members confronting historically large class sizes and pushing back against a provincial government that has been dead set on taking over school boards instead of addressing the real issues in public schools that have resulted from years of underfunding.
Adjusted for inflation, the successive funding cuts to public schools since 2018 add up to a staggering $6.35 billion. This represents a drop in per-student funding of $3,052. These funding cuts have led to a significant increase in violence in schools, a lack of resources and supports for students and educators, untenable class sizes and school buildings that are crumbling and ill-equipped to handle the increasingly common extremes in weather.
This issue of Voice is our environment issue and a chance to highlight some of your best practices in bringing climate change and climate justice to life in your classrooms. We know that educators across the province are working hard to not only educate their students and teach them to think critically and creatively about climate solutions, but also to inspire hope in the generation that will ultimately take on these challenges. Every day Ontario teachers help students recognize their agency as citizens, their collective power to not only make small local changes but to influence larger, systemic actions and call on decision-makers for policy change – particularly when it comes to climate change and equity.
The devastating effects of climate change, from severe floods and ice storms to intense heat waves and record wildfires, are not felt equally. They disproportionately burden marginalized, low-income and racialized communities, worsening existing social and economic disparities. Our environmental education must continue to do more than teach conservation; it must prepare students to understand and confront these inequities to foster a generation of advocates for climate justice.
Climate change and climate education are among the many issues on which ETFO advocates as part of our work to build better schools for all Ontario students. Last year, along with a broader campaign advocating for smaller classes and investment in the resources and supports students need to be successful, ETFO ran a campaign calling on the Ontario government to invest in school buildings to make them greener and more resilient.
While we teach about sustainability and justice, the provincial government continues to retreat from accountability measures designed to achieve these important goals. Responding to the Ontario government’s proposed legislative changes that would repeal the legal requirement to set emissions reduction targets, develop a climate change plan, and report on progress, in November, Rick Smith, president of the Ontario Climate Institute, said “it is unclear how Ontario expects to achieve measurable results on reducing emissions and accelerating low-carbon competitiveness without setting a credible climate target or a plan to achieve it.”
“What you don’t measure, you can’t manage,” Smith continued. “It’s disappointing to see Ontario walking away from basic transparency and best practices for tackling climate change.”
This policy gap highlights a disconnect in our education system. Public education on climate change and climate justice should be supported and amplified by strong public policy, not forced to compensate for its absence. We need significant investment – not only in updated curriculum resources and professional development that centre climate justice, but fundamentally in the physical infrastructure of our schools and the broader policies that will move Ontario forward.
Thank you for all you do to bring the climate curriculum and all curriculum to life for your students. This meaningful work is both inspiring and demanding. With all the joys and challenges each school year brings, the winter break offers a wonderful chance to rest and recharge. Wishing you a peaceful and restful holiday season.
– Sharon O’Halloran
