3.4 Supporting young activists

You’ve considered several examples of youth activism so far, each varying in their approach. Whatever the age of your own students, exploring the role of activism in addressing the climate crisis may present some challenges, and needs to be handled carefully. This may involve:

• Navigating any intergenerational tensions and issues of blame, and avoiding generalisation.
• Negotiating any tension between students’ views about the role of educators in supporting activism, institutional policies covering this topic, your own views about their role (and about activism in general) and the views of colleagues and parents (where relevant). This may be particularly important for teaching covering disruptive activism, including activism that involves breaking the law.
• Supporting students’ mental health and wellbeing, for example issues arising from young people’s emotional responses to the impact of the climate crisis on their future. You studied some approaches earlier in this course.