An exploration of school-based climate education initiatives in primary through secondary schools in the US and the UK

This paper provides a narrative literature review of empirical studies on Climate Education (CE) topics for students enrolled in schools across the United States and the United Kingdom. It focuses on interdisciplinary, inquiry-based, and action-oriented approaches that extend beyond traditional didactic teaching methods. This review analyzes 12 peer-reviewed studies to examine students’ engagement, awareness, and agency regarding climate-focused topics. Three central themes emerged from this review of studies across both countries: (1) interdisciplinary, arts and humanities-based initiatives, (2) experiential/inquiry-based initiatives, and (3) action-oriented initiatives. Our findings indicate that students who engaged in storytelling, visual media production, conducted experiments, place-based projects, and community-based activities reported increased climate literacy, emotional engagement, and a stronger sense of collective responsibility. The review recommends designing future school-based initiatives that prioritize student voice, contextual connections, and interdisciplinary collaborations for advancing transformative climate education in schools in the US and UK.