It is lovely to find you here. My name is Batool, I am a final-year Arts and Sciences student at University College London and I just completed both my Laidlaw projects on Climate Change and Sustainability Education.  

When I started my Laidlaw research project, I knew very little about the field of climate change and sustainability education. However, as I progressed with my 6-week project which extended to form a research paper, I learnt about the enormous potential of an education to prepare and equip young people with knowledge and skills for uncertain futures foreshadowed by possibilities of extinction, natural disasters and political instabilities.  

An effective education that meets humanity’s physical and spiritual needs can be an education that changes the world forever. So with very small steps, I am trying to change the world. Through being kind, and listening to young people, through offering opportunities to learn with one another, being curious and collectively trying to make positive change for sustainability and the peaceful co-existence between all species.  

My supervisor Elizabeth Rushton, a Professor in Education at the University of Stirling, taught me how to conduct research that is inclusive, participatory and offers opportunities to young people in order to foreground their voices in climate change education policy. Furthermore, I learnt how to document research findings, write policy recommendations and communicate youth perspectives with policymakers. These learnings are now part of my social change toolkit which I will use in all my leadership initiatives with young people in my current sphere of influence and beyond.  

Over the next year after my first year research project, so many opportunities opened up to me to make positive change. I discussed the research findings from my first year project with different key policymakers at UCL. I also joined the UK Youth Climate Coalition as an organiser to form national policy recommendations for climate justice and I participated in a British Council youth conference where I met with young people from over 47 different countries. My ability to communicate and listen, with clarity, compassion and trust towards friends, co-workers, academics and students has been tested repeatedly throughout these two years. 

This year, for my Leadership-in-Action project, I decided to conduct the same research project as I did in my first year with 80 young people in Lahore, Pakistan through collaborating with WWF. This was an entirely new experience of working in an organisation and listening to student experiences in an entirely different context to UCL. It was challenging to organise the research project and ensure that my project is prioritised in an organisation like WWF. Through the help of WWF, I organised workshops with 80 young people in Pakistan. During the first workshop, I really struggled to get the university students to be engaged and interested in the discussion about climate change and sustainability education. However, upon feedback from WWF colleagues, I realised that  I had to be louder, more interactive and emphasise that the workshop was a safe place to share their ideas and experiences. The following workshops went really well, and the young people enjoyed sharing their ideas for sustainability in universities in Pakistan. If you would like to know more about what we discussed, you can see my research report on the Laidlaw Scholars’ Website.  

In conclusion, the Laidlaw Scholarship programme offered me the valuable opportunity to try and change the world through climate change and sustainability education. I am excited to learn more about how I can help young people realise their potential in acting for the planet and make positive change for a sustainable future.  

With love and prayers,  

Batool