Maharashtra govt hands over new curriculum on environment and climate change to education department

In a major initiative to inculcate climate-consciousness and green values in the GenNext, the Maharashtra government is introducing a comprehensive curriculum for Grades I-VIII developed by the Department of Environment and Climate Change and UNICEF.

The Majhi Vasundhara (MV) Curriculum aims at inculcating application-based awareness on issues such as climate change in students from Grades I-VIII with a balance between traditional and local knowledge.

Going away from the predominant informational style of learning, the MV Curriculum will develop an understanding of the environmental ecosystem through projects and activities.

The four themes of this curriculum are Biodiversity Conservation, Solid Waste Management and Personal & Community Health, Water Resource Management, and Energy, Air Pollution and Climate Change.

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Environment, Tourism and Protocol Minister Aaditya Thackeray handed over the MV Curriculum to School Education Minister Prof Dr Varsha Gaikwad on Monday.

“In this hour of climate emergency, the survival of the human race on Earth entirely depends on our actions. Introducing this curriculum is our attempt at getting the next generation to start with a green thumb and be proactively involved in a pro-earth lifestyle. This curriculum is developed with the help of UNICEF to create awareness about climate change and instil responsibility towards our planet in primary school education,” said Thackeray.

"Education is about helping children better interact with their environment. Through the curriculum, to be introduced in schools, we hope to prepare young minds to respect, protect and save the environment,” added Prof Gaikwad.

Thackeray started My Vasundhara (My Earth) innovative initiative for environmental conservation and protection. This initiative focuses on all the five elements of nature known as “Panchmahabhutas”.

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It includes Bhumi (land), Jal (water), Vayu (air), Agni (energy), Sky (augmentation).

Through this initiative, the Department of Environment and Climate Change will make the citizens aware of the issues of climate change and environmental problems and make efforts for the betterment of the environment.

The development of this curriculum was initiated on December 3, 2020, by the Government of Maharashtra and partner organisations including United Nations Children’s Fund Maharashtra, Regional Centre for Urban and Environmental Studies of All India Institute of Local Self Government, Mumbai, Centre for Environment Education, Pune and other domain experts.

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This school curriculum which has been developed by the Department of Environment and Climate Change, with the help of UNICEF and experts in the field, is in the form of activity-based lesson plans.

The process of development of the MV Curriculum involved – assessment of existing curriculum, development of a framework for the lesson plans and development of the lesson plans, complementing the existing curriculum. The focus of the lesson plans has been on learning pedagogy and enhancing the cognitive skills of the students.

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