Widening engagement with climate policy
Letters from the Global South (LFTGS) aimed to get more people from different backgrounds to learn about and engage with climate policy.
For the UK to reach its Net Zero target, every community will need to be engaged, but currently its environmental sector and climate movement lack diversity, particularly from working-class and minoritised ethnic and religious groups. Dr Alessandra Palange’s fellowship set out to address this problem, by developing a pop-up exhibition and linked workshops to amplify the voices and experiences of global communities underrepresented in the climate movement. The project brought together social scientists at IOE, the informal group Muslims Declare and politicians and activists working to progress the Climate and Nature (CAN) Bill through the UK Parliament.
The travelling exhibition offered an accessible introduction to the science behind the CAN Bill. It included an illustrated introduction to carbon inequalities, climate justice, and the impacts of climate change. The exhibition brought together accounts, messages, and images into engaging case studies from countries including Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Nigeria, and Pakistan. The posters highlighted the disproportionate impact of climate change and environmental degradation on Global South communities, despite their minimal contribution to the problem. One participant said a key takeaway from the workshop was that “everyone has something valuable to say; there is vast knowledge and expertise in communities”.
[Letter transcription: Dear Developed Countries, you don't have to turn a deaf ear. Heed "scientist warning" and shift "classical economics" to "ecological economics" and then commit to: urgently cancelling the Global South debt for your climate debt. It's all about justice. David Rwanda.]
Workshops to deepen engagement
To date, the project Letters from the Global South has involved conducting eight workshops across five cities. Approximately 50% of workshop participants had never engaged in environmental initiatives before, while around 60% identified as Asian or Black. Participant feedback suggested increased knowledge and awareness of climate change. One participant explained that they had “learned about the role of governments in climate change”. Another mentioned that before the workshop, they did not know about “the extreme inequalities” that exist in relation to climate change. Others described an increased awareness of the potential that exists within their communities to influence these debates.
[Letter transcription: Hello, I am Ryan Nyamadzaus, a 10 year old eco-warrior from Zimbabwe. Recently I visited Rifa Conversation Camp here in Zimbabwe. As green as it was, because of the rain season I couldn't help but think of the impact of Climate Change on the wildlife. Heavy rains have caused flooding along the Zambezi River bank which kills wildlife and destroy their shelters during the rainy season. At the same time other parts of the country can not support wildlife because of reduced rainfall over the years with watering ponds for wild animals drying up before the next rain season. Wildlife is a very important part of our eco-system and also need to be protected from climate change.]
Addressing gaps in research
The project tackled a serious gap in contemporary social science. Current research on Muslim communities and climate change has predominantly focused on environmental readings and understandings of sacred texts by faith-based activists and religious scholars. Much less is known about how Muslims think about climate change day-to-day. It also provided important insights into the challenges of this kind of engagement process: in some settings, the researcher encountered considerable language and literacy barriers, suggesting that more research is needed into how to cater to different audiences.
The exhibition and workshop materials are now being borrowed by campaigners for widening engagement activities in different settings across the UK and for different audiences including schoolchildren, faith groups, charity workers and individuals with learning disabilities. Campaigners are also producing educational materials to support learning activities related to the resources Dr Palange has created.
About the academic
Dr Alessandra Palange is an Honorary Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Department of Curriculum, Pedagogy and Assessment at IOE. Dr Palange is building upon her doctoral research, which investigated Muslim education and activism in online spaces, and has developed a new project in the areas of faith education, participatory democratic engagement, and environmental activism. [2023–24 cohort]