Connecting the Climate Challenge

Connecting the Climate Challenge

Partnering and Empowering Communities to Tackle the Climate Crisis

Connecting the Climate Challenge (CCC) is a global initiative by Engage Nepal with Science in collaboration with Tribhuvan University, Teach for Nepal, and Midlothian Council.

CCC brings together schools and communities from Nepal and the UK to explore how climate change affects their lives and to work collaboratively toward meaningful solutions. Using an interdisciplinary approach that combines science, digital technologies, creativity, and the arts, the project empowers young people and communities to learn, connect, and take action.

Schools across diverse climatic regions act as the starting point for wider community engagement, creating opportunities for students, educators, and local communities to exchange experiences and inspire change beyond the classroom.

Our Mission

We aim to empower communities to become active climate leaders by:

• Building environmental knowledge through creative, interdisciplinary, and hands-on learning experiences
• Giving underrepresented communities a stronger voice in climate conversations
• Supporting students and communities to create innovative solutions through leadership and collaboration
• Raising awareness and inspiring action through storytelling, arts, and media

CCC was originally supported in 2021 by the British Council as part of the COP 26 Creative Commissions for the Climate. From the beginning of 2022, this project has also been supported by the Eurofins Foundation. We also receive in-kind support from the Edinburgh Climate Change Institute.

Growing Global Impact

The project began in 2021 with 10 schools in Nepal and 10 schools in the UK. Through a mentoring approach, participating schools supported new schools to join the initiative, expanding the network to over 50 schools across both countries. More recently, the project extended its reach to Spain, strengthening international collaboration and impact.

Climate Action in Practice

Through school eco-committees, students and communities have led a wide range of climate initiatives, including:

• River clean-ups and environmental monitoring activities
• Tree plantation and biodiversity initiatives
• Plastic reduction campaigns in schools and local communities
• Climate conventions bringing together schools, local leaders, and communities
• Social media campaigns, climate summits, and youth-led discussions

Students also engage in citizen science activities, working alongside researchers to collect environmental data, strengthen critical thinking skills, and develop practical solutions to local and global climate challenges.

Arts, Media and Storytelling for Change

CCC uses the power of arts and media to amplify community voices and inspire wider action. Students collaborate with artists and filmmakers to communicate climate stories and share their impact through documentaries, campaigns, and creative projects.

The initiative has supported award-winning student work (Motherland English Boarding School and Crystal Mountain School were awarded the Most Liked film and the Climate Change Award with their documentaries The Lonely Steps of a Farmer and Climate Change in the Himalayas at the Camera Sika X Road to COP26 competition) and led to the creation of the Connecting the Climate Challenge Documentary, showcased at international science and environmental film festivals (including the Al Sidr Environmental Film Festival (Abu Dhabi).

Looking Ahead

CCC continues to build lasting connections between communities, creating a growing network of young climate leaders committed to driving positive change. By connecting local experiences with global challenges, we are helping communities learn from each other and shape a more sustainable future together.

Other Project Highlights

• In 2022 we organised a networking event called Connecting the Climate Challenge-The Future in Dhulikhel (Nepal) where ten Nepalese schools attended (with seven representatives from each school, including educators and students) to reflect on challenges and opportunities arising from the project and to share initiatives and climate action plans. As part of this event, we also invited a Scottish, a Nepalese artist and a Nepali videographer to attend the event and create a collaborative art piece and extend our CCC documentary. We aim to organise more of these networking events as they represent a great opportunity for eco-committees to share their work and inspire each other while realising that they are part of an important network of like-minded citizens.

• Every year we give prizes for the best innovative solutions to environmental issues to celebrate the work of the eco-committees. The prizes are in the form of resources that further support eco-committees implement their climate action plans.
• The project has led to the development of the Green Detectives mobile app (funded by the European Society for Evolutionary Biology) that connects like-minded schools to share changes in their local environment due to climate change via gamification. We now plan to grow the app into a website that will be run by the eco-committees to stay connected and further spread their work.
• CCC has been published as a case study by the National Centre for Academic and Cultural Exchange (NCACE) and can be found at the NCACE Evidence Repository. We have also been part of the ‘Live at COP26’ and ‘Live at COP27’ massive open online courses (MOOCs) put together by Learning for Sustainability Scotland.

Thanks to the British Council and Eurofins Foundation for funding! And thanks to Edinburgh Climate Change Institute for the support!

Keep an eye on this page for updates!