Integrating Mobility, Digital Tools, and Climate Education to Address Terrestrial Plant Diversity And Conservation in a Changing Climate

ongoing

Africa is the most vulnerable landmass, inordinately impacted by a changing climate, yet it remains the least resourced, equipped or prepared. Climate change impacts are easily discerned in terrestrial plants. Changes to plants have ripple effect on ecosystem productivity, biochemical cycling, abiotic conditions, and faunal habitats. Plants are affected by and regulate climate, offering a criterion for observations of climate change effects. Climate change responsiveness is best inculcated through education. Climate change education in higher education is a low-cost impactful intervention with an inherent multiplier effect. Graduates will train future generations, ensuring long term sustainable impact. Deriving from stakeholder needs, the proposed Integrating Mobility, Digital Tools, and Climate Education to Address Terrestrial Plant Diversity and Conservation in a Changing Climate (IMPACT-ED) project aims to train postgraduate students across disciplines, through academic mobility, to be climate responsive. IMPACT-ED strives to integrate climate education in curricula of higher education institutions. Incremental adjustments to existing curricula, advancing climate change responsiveness anchored in the latest and novel digital technologies, will be undertaken. Practical training on innovative digital technology will enable graduates to automate detection and real-time monitoring of plants. This will usher in green career pathways for mobility students. Six partnering African universities, namely the University of Namibia (Namibia), Kibabii University (Kenya), Makerere and Kyambogo Universities (Uganda), University of Eswatini (Eswatini), and University of Nigeria Nsukka (Nigeria) supported by the University of Turku (Finland) as a technical partner, constitute IMPACT-ED consortium which will be managed collectively. Three interconnected work packages, each with specific objectives, deliverables and tasks to be accomplished will be pursued concurrently.