July 2018: A new curriculum helps youth understand climate change and take practical action to adapt to its impacts in their communities through the use of games and creative activities. The Y-Adapt curriculum titled, ‘Youth Action on Developing Adaptation Plans for Tomorrow,’ also promotes actions focused on local interventions that reduce the impacts of extreme weather events.

Y-Adapt includes an introductory session comprised of a creative competition where teams present real-life examples of youth-led adaptations from across the globe. Another session consists of a climate change challenge that explains the difference between weather and climate, aims to increase understanding about the greenhouse effect and the causes of climate change, and explores the ways in which climate change may have already impacted the communities of participants.

A session on mapping hazards encourages critical thinking to map out extreme weather and its impacts, and to determine the most frequent and impactful hazards in participants’ communities. Students are also encouraged to explore the links between climate change, hazards and impacts focusing on the local context.

Y-Adapt is working with the Haitian Red Cross, the Iranian Red Crescent and others to further improve and expand the curriculum.

Another module involves a card game where teams of players compete to identify how people, places and resources fit into systems, and an interactive exercise where participants brainstorm to identify important resources in their communities. This enables the students to explore the complexities of and better understand the ways in which different systems interact with and depend on each other. The session also shows that climate change will impact a range of systems.

A session on actions to adapt includes a board game for students to, inter alia: negotiate with each other to take individual or collective actions to protect community resources; learn how extreme weather could affect their communities; and explore how climate impacts could become more intense.

Students can also participate in an interactive challenge through creating an action plan to help their community adapt. By engaging in a role-play exercise, students are encouraged to work through challenges and solutions in implementing their plans, and determine which adaptation plan to implement in real life.

Y-Adapt is a collaboration between Plan International, the Engagement Lab at Emerson College, the Philippine Red Cross, Plan Philippines and the Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre. Y-Adapt is also working with the Haitian Red Cross, the Iranian Red Crescent and others to further improve and expand the curriculum. [WeADAPT Introduction of Y-Adapt Curriculum] [Y-Adapt Curriculum and Facilitation Guide] [Emerson College Y-Adapt Webpage] [Red Cross Red Crescent Climate Centre Y-Adapt Webpage]