An absence of teaching on climate change in the Australian curriculum has led to the introduction of a program that will see Tasmanian climate experts head into schools to answer student questions on the topic.
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The Curious Climate Project allows registered schools to submit ten student questions about climate change, which will be answered by Tasmanian climate change researchers and placed on a website to become a future teaching resource.
University of Tasmania climate change communicator Gabi Mocatta said no mandated teaching on climate change existed in the Australian curriculum.
"We knew of this gap and wanted to do something that is child and student focused in order to allow them to ask and have their questions answered on climate change," Dr Mocatta said.
"In Tasmania we have a very broad spectrum of great experts that are doing world leading research on climate change so we wanted to connect young people who aren't getting this teaching in schools to any great degree...to these experts."
Dr Mocatta said questions could relate to climate change science, but also might consider the human response, how society feels about it, and how it should manage and live with it.
She said students might be interested in bushfire or flooding events, and how these relate to climate change, or how animals will be able to adapt to changing temperatures.
"All of us, and young people especially, will be living and experiencing the impacts of climate change for all of our lives so it is imperative that we know what it is, and what needs to be done, and that we understand it not just from a science point of view but from a more holistic point of view that takes into consideration all of the questions and answers around climate change that we might possibly have."
A pilot last year saw 300 students engage in the program but this year more than 1000 students from Years 5 to from more than 30 schools will participate, including Riverside High School, Deloraine Primay School, Campbell Town District High School, Ulverstone Secondary College and Smithton High.
Experts include a University of Tasmania marine biologist, a geographer, a climate and ocean modeller, a meteorologist, a renewable energy engineer, and an indigenous perspectives expert, some of whom will also be able to visit schools directly.
Some are authors to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
Dr Mocatta said schools can still register up until September 17, and must upload their questions by September 27.
Questions will be allocated to the Tasmanian experts which will be answered and uploaded onto the website in time for the COP 26 UN Climate Change Conference to be held in November, in the United Kingdom.
"Teachers will be able to bring in this world event to their teaching in that week," she said.
The project is supported by the Tasmanian Government's Tasmanian Climate Change Office, the College of Science and Engineering at UTAS and the Centre for Marine Socioecology at UTAS.
