UNICEF Children and youth as agents of change for climate resilience UNICEF Children and youth as agents of change for climate resilience - UNICEF Children and youth as agents of change- new finance code The UNICEF country office approached the Embassy of Sweden with a project proposal for 'Empowering children and young people in North Macedonia to be agents of change in reducing community vulnerability to climate change', with a total cost of 15 631 579 SEK  for a duration of 36 months during 2020-2023. 

The proposed concept is set to: 
1.establish foundations for a relevant and consistent platform for knowledge on environmental and climate change issues. It will support the establishment of comprehensive and cohesive learning standards, training of educational and expert staff and provide expert support in this process specifically in the area of environmental education.
2. enable environmentally focused learning, skills building and empowerment for children and youth across all age groups and throughout their education process, both formal and non-formal:
• pre-school children learn the foundations of natural sciences and environmental awareness, along with their parents and teachers, to create a basis for action and change; 
• primary school aged children, acquiring skills to translate learning and awareness into action, and • adolescents and youth, building on and focusing their great capacity to innovate and create their own opportunities and make change in the world around them. UNICEFs projektförslag har fokus på att ge barn och ungdomar i Nordmakedonien möjlighet att bidra som förändringsagenter för att minska samhällets sårbarhet för klimatförändringar. Projektet, vilket planeras pågå under 36 månader mellan åren 2020-2023, har en total kostnad på 15 631 579 SEK. 

Det föreslagna projektet syftar till att: 

1. Etablera en bas för en relevant och konsekvent plattform för kunskap om miljö- och klimatförändringar. Projektet kommer att stödja inrättandet av omfattande och sammanhängande inlärningsstandarder, utbildning av utbildningspersonal och expertpersonal samt att ge expertstöd i denna process, särskilt inom miljöutbildning.

2. Möjliggöra miljöinriktat lärande, kompetensbyggnad och bemyndigande för barn och ungdomar i alla åldersgrupper och under hela deras utbildningsprocess, både i formella och icke-formella lärandemiljöer: 

• förskolebarn lär sig grunden för naturvetenskap och miljömedvetenhet, tillsammans med sina föräldrar och lärare, för att skapa en bas för handling och förändring; 
• barn i grundskolan får färdigheter för att översätta lärande och medvetenhet till konkreta handlingar; 
• ungdomar och unga vuxna utvecklar och fokuserar sina förmågor till att innovera och skapa möjligheter och förändringar i världen. The overall vision of the project is:  
A comprehensive and purposeful environmental education is in place, ensuring that teachers: a) are provided with the resources and capacities to deliver engaging content and activities to students; and b) are supported by mechanisms for professional development and peer learning. Students have a wide variety of platforms and tools for experiential, hands-on learning in the natural sciences, but also have access to venues, programmes and opportunities to practice and foster agency, social innovation and entrepreneurship. Ultimately this system creates public demand for solutions to the environmental and climate change challenges and supports young people to actively engage in responding to the increasing risks.
There are two specific objectives:
Outcome 1. Foundations for relevant and consistent environmental education are established Strengthening the system and services offered to students, parents and teachers to nurture knowledge and skills for problem solving and environmental sustainability. Outcome 2. Children, young boys and girls, are better equipped to actively contribute to and enhance their community’s response to environmental impact and climate change. Empowering children and youth to acquire knowledge, develop skills and actively seek out opportunities and solutions for combating environmental impact and climate change. In doing so, young people will also develop transferable skills to innovate, adapt and overcome challenges in their environment as well as in their own professional development. By providing the four critical aspects of agency - voice, space, audience and influence, children will be empowered to follow through on issues pertinent to their future in a responsible, informed and systemic manner.
UNICEF Office in North Macedonia intends to use formal and non-formal learning to empower children and youth to be agents of change. UNICEF through the project activities intends to increase public participation by ensuring that the voice of young people is heard and taken into consideration by developing skills for critical thinking about living in a healthy environment, sustainable development and awareness on climate change and making responsible choices in everyday life.