Climate change education challenges in Indonesia: Educators’ perspective

Abstract

Background: Indonesia, as an archipelago, is vulnerable to climate change. This research focuses on the importance of education in increasing community awareness and capacity for climate change mitigation and adaptation. Education is key to changing attitudes and habits, especially among children who are vulnerable but have great potential to adapt. The Indonesian government's initiative through the launch of the Climate Change Education Guidebook, which complements the independent curriculum, aims to help various stakeholders improve climate literacy and encourage collaborative action in addressing climate change. The purpose of writing this article is to identify the challenges faced by educators in teaching climate change education in schools. Methods: The method used in this research is qualitative, conducting in-depth interviews with three educators at different levels: elementary, junior high, and high school, each located in Lamandau District, Central Kalimantan, Bekasi, West Java, and Kaimana, West Papua. The results of the interviews are then analyzed to determine the gap between the concept of climate change education based on the independent curriculum and the implementation process in the field. Findings: Based on the results of the interviews, the three informants were unaware of the Climate Change Education Guidebook. Nevertheless, the three informants have begun to integrate climate change education lessons into the disciplines they teach. In addition to being directly integrated into classroom lessons, there is a Pancasila Student Profile Strengthening Project (P5) that helps students understand environmental issues and apply them directly in the school environment. However, training for educators on climate change education needs to be conducted to boost educators' confidence and enhance students' motivation to learn. Conclusion: This study concludes that the implementation of climate change education requires special attention because the challenges arise not only from educators but also from the weak education system in Indonesia, which creates disparities between regions. Novelty/Originality of this article: The study highlights the limited awareness of the Climate Change Education Guidebook among educators, despite its integration potential within the independent curriculum. This research contributes new insights into the practical challenges of implementing climate education in Indonesia and emphasizes the urgency of targeted training to strengthen both teacher readiness and student motivation