On 5 May 2020, UN CC:Learn held its 10th annual Steering Group Meeting. The event took place online and served as an opportunity to bring together global members to discuss the programme and its implementation given the current COVID-19 crisis. Representatives from ILO, ITU, UNDP, UNECA, UN Environment, UNESCO, UN Climate Change, UN-HABITAT, UNITAR, WMO as well as World Bank, WFP and the Swiss Development and Cooperation Agency (SDC) attended.
The meeting started off with welcoming remarks given by Mr. Angus Mackay, Director of the Division for Planet and Head of the UN CC:Learn Secretariat. In his opening speech, he walked participants through the UN CC:Learn journey and accomplishments over the past decade. His introduction was followed by remarks from Mr Patrick Sieber from SDC and Mr Nikhil Seth, Executive Director at UNITAR, who reflected on the partnership, the existing health crisis as well as options and opportunities for the future.
UN CC:Learn partners then discussed the status of implementation of the programme so far, both at global and national level, focusing particularly on the 2019 developments. Activities presented ranged from the revision and expansion of the Knowledge Sharing and e-Learning platforms, the launch of 9 new e-learning courses and the affiliation of 2 new resources to awareness raising for teachers, the organization of 16 youth climate dialogues, the advancements in the UN CC:Learn regional hubs as well as the development and implementation of Climate Change Learning Strategies in partner countries. Highlights included the spike in access to UN CC:e-Learn in the first quarter of 2020, which has now gathered almost 285,000 registrations, the finalization of new Strategies in Zambia and Zimbabwe, and the set-up of a new online communication platform, which will facilitate interactions among partners.
Participants then discussed the COVID-19 crisis and its implications for UN CC:Learn and partner activities in more details. These reflections informed an exchange on the work of the partnership in the next months and on the promotion of climate change learning more generally. The meeting also provided an opportunity for partners to identify multiple synergies and areas for collaboration.