Pacific educators led discussions about union perspectives on climate justice and a just transition during the third edition of Education International Asia-Pacific’s (EIAP) Climate Justice series last December 2023.

Owing to the success of the first-ever “Educators Stand for Climate Justice and a Just Transition” conference in Lautoka, Fiji in May 2023, EIAP sought to promote the outcomes of the discussions and strategic meetings to enliven participation to the Educators 4 Sustainable Development (E4SD) program among unions at the national level. Education unionists from Fiji, Aotearoa New Zealand, and Vanuatu presented a recap of the discussions they had led during the recently held conference.

Rongopai Kira, acting principal of Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Ngāti Kahungunu ki Heretaunga in the Hawkes Bay region of Aotearoa-New Zealand and unionist at the Te Riu Roa NZEI (New Zealand Education Institute), spoke about best practices on union organizing for climate justice and a just transition. It was important that NZEI’s climate justice and just transition campaigns were premised on Māori concepts such as Mōku te Ao  (“The world is for me”) and Mautaranga Maui (an idiom for climate activist) because these encapsulate a holistic approach to education and promotes a curriculum that values indigenous perspectives on sustainable practices. Moreover, combining these concepts with a Just Transition was a winning strategy because for Māori communities, a Just Transition involves recognizing and respecting their cultural values, ensuring that their voices are heard in decision-making.

Nanise Bale Kamikamica, education unionist with the Fiji Teachers Union and the coordinator of the COPE Women’s Network, spoke about the Pacific women educators’ session on climate change and gender injustice. She said that Pacific women are disproportionately being affected by the climate crisis, as societal expectations of providing care for their families are compounded by the destructive effects of climate change-induced disasters. In Vanuatu, for example, cases of violence against women are known to increase in the aftermath of disasters. This adds a layer of gender injustice in the region. In Kiribati, according to Kamikamica, the threat of sinking islands is also affecting women differently as women are expected to ensure the survival of their families. Therefore, she said that the discussions of the COPE Women’s Network during the conference concluded with the demand for gender-responsive, fair and equal climate action policies. “Global leaders should know that building the resilience of women and girls is like building the resilience of a society or a nation” she added.

Michael Waller, education unionist with the New Zealand Post-Primary Teachers Association (NZPPTA), discussed how climate change is altering the teaching profession. He said that environmental changes such as melting glaciers and climate change-induced disasters are putting more pressure on educators. In Aotearoa-New Zealand, for instance, educators are grappling with falling student attendance due to climate disasters and a rapidly changing local curriculum that simply cannot adapt quick enough to intensifying climate change. He concluded, and concurred with the COPE Women’s Network, that a key solution to the climate crisis is bringing the estimated 132 million out-of-school girls across the globe back into education, which can have the domino effect of 86 gigatons of carbon emissions reduction by 2050. He added, for this solution to advance, men in power must act to strengthen public funding in education.

Meanwhile, Neselinda Meta, an educator from Tuvalu and COPE general secretary, introduced how Pacific educators are responding to the call for a stronger commitment to climate justice and a just transition. She said that educators are already experiencing the escalating climate impacts in their personal and professional lives, especially Pacific educators who are more vulnerable to climate change. Hence, COPE and its affiliates are committed to the project of climate justice and a just transition, with the first-ever climate conference in May 2023 marking the start of greater engagement among unions.

In Solomon Islands, for example, the Solomon Island National Teachers Association (SINTA) organized a workshop that brought together more than 33 educators for a training on climate education and youth mobilization. Rachel Menvi, assistant general secretary of SINTA, spoke about the successful workshop which was organized in cooperation with UNESCO Pacific and COPE. She said that the conference in Fiji inspired SINTA to conduct its own national-level training on climate justice. It also marked the beginning of SINTA’s engagement on climate change, as they hope to continue working on the issues within the union and beyond.

In his opening remarks, EIAP regional director Anand Singh stressed the importance of organizing the first-ever regional climate conference in the Pacific and cascading the outcomes to the wider EIAP assembly through a webinar spearheaded by Pacific union leaders. “Our indigenous brothers and sisters led many of the sessions during the conference in Fiji because of their valuable insights on the climate emergency as they have already experienced it first-hand. They also already possess the knowledge and solutions that could bring our planet back to ecological harmony…. I hope that this initiative can become a space for Asia Pacific unionists to build stronger solidarity in pursuing actions that advance climate justice and a just transition in the region,” he added.