The delay in the start of the school year in Rio Grande do Sul, caused by a heat wave that pushed temperatures to 43°C, is yet another sign of the climate crisis’s impact on education. In Brazil, extreme events such as floods in the South and wildfires in various regions of the country affect the access, retention, and learning of millions of students, disrupting school activities.

According to a UNICEF report, more than 240 million students in 85 countries had their education disrupted in 2024 due to extreme weather events. In Brazil, 1.7 million students were unable to attend school.

For Brazil, two situations were considered. The floods in Rio Grande do Sul, which affected more than 2,000 schools in the state education system—as a result, 741,000 students were unable to attend classes during the floods. And the drought in the Amazon region, which caused approximately 1,700 schools—including more than 100 located in indigenous areas—to suspend classes for an extended period, affecting 436,000 students.

“Children are more vulnerable to the impacts of climate-related crises, including more severe and frequent heat waves, storms, droughts, and floods,” said UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell.

“Children’s bodies are particularly vulnerable. They heat up faster, sweat less efficiently, and cool down more slowly than adults. Children cannot concentrate in classrooms that offer no protection from the stifling heat, and they cannot get to school if the roads are flooded or if schools have been destroyed. Last year, bad weather kept one in seven students out of school, threatening their health and safety and impacting their long-term education,” Catherine added.

Given this scenario, it’s no surprise that the climate crisis will be one of the key themes of the 30th edition of Bett Brasil, Latin America’s largest event on innovation and technology in education. The event will feature discussions on how adapting to climate change can transform the future of learning.

Among the guest speakers invited to discuss the topic are leading figures such as Edson Grandisioli, director of Reconectta and the Schools for Climate Movement, and Thaís Brianezi, a professor of educommunications at the School of Communications and Arts at the University of São Paulo (ECA-USP) and president of the Brazilian Fund for Environmental Education (FunBEA).

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Strategic actions to reverse this situation

A technical paper authored by Sofia Lerche Vieira, professor emerita at the State University of Ceará (UECE), titled “The Impact of Climate Change on Education: Launching a Debate,” presented recommendations for addressing the challenges facing education in the context of climate change in Brazil.

The report provides context on how climate change is affecting access to, retention in, and learning within the education system, and discusses ways to address the challenges inherent in these changes. It also highlights how schools can promote initiatives that help reverse this trend.

Given this context, the author outlines recommendations for policymakers to design integrated and intersectoral actions and interventions, and for the involvement of a wide range of stakeholders and civil society, so that this issue becomes a focus of attention and a national priority. The document highlights four key areas as fundamental to guiding climate action:

First: It emphasizes the need for sustainable infrastructure and resilient systems, suggesting initiatives such as a National Green Schools Program and intersectoral actions aimed at preventing natural disasters.

Second: It highlights the importance of curricular changes that prioritize climate and environmental literacy, encompassing both initial and continuing teacher training and encouraging academic research on environmental policies, climate change, and education.

Third: Focus on actively engaging the school community in environmental initiatives, both inside and outside the school.

Fourth: This pertainsto the urgent need for an ongoing debate on education and climate change, involving multiple stakeholders and aligned with the mitigation of climate impacts through an intersectoral approach.

The technical document was developed by D³e – Data for a Democratic Debate on Education, Todos Pela Educação, Instituto Terra Firme, and Banco Master.

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