Authors: Leo Hawkins, Stuthi Kandasamy, Iris Harding, Ruby Wightman, Charlotte Rainer, Edward Ormandy, Emily Flewitt, Gargi Nayak, Helena Lomax, Aarav Volvoicar, Pranav Sareen, Sayem Ahmed Sayed, Aivy Abraham, David Phillips, Diego Lafazanidis, Emily Botham, Emma Holmes, Jack Beckenham, Joseph Cockburn, Maria Ungureanu-Lupes, Melissa Foster-Turner, Ryan Khatib, Samarth Agnihotri, Stanley Lawrence, Vak Nayak, Amelia Farber
This blog was written by the Net zero Education Youth Advisory Board (YAB), a group of 25 Sixth Form students, aged 16-18, across England. We wrote this as we think it is important that net zero education is included in the school curricula, and because the Climate Emergency will be the largest challenge of the 21st century and we must be prepared. Dr Amelia Farber is the researcher who assisted the YAB.
Net zero: What is it? Why is it important? Why should we care? How do net zero and the Climate Emergency interrelate? These are all questions that pop up in our minds as secondary school students. If only we knew what it meant? It’s a concept we’d never been exposed to in school, until we joined the Net Zero Education Youth Advisory Board this year. It’s news headlines that seek action, but we never understand why. Don’t you think schools should prepare us for this? In this blog post we explore what net zero is, and our thoughts as students on the importance of net zero education in schools. We draw on the experiences and data from members of the net zero Education Youth Advisory Board, a group of 25 sixth form students from across England. These students are advisors to the Net Zero Education research project which culminated this year, and which sought to understand how to conceptualize education for and about net zero emissions in UK secondary schools.
So, what is net zero? It is a scientific concept that refers to the goal of reaching net zero greenhouse gas emissions to stop global warming and thus mitigate further climate change, (Frankhauser et al., 2022). To reach net zero emissions we need to 1) drastically and urgently reduce our global greenhouse gas emissions and 2) drastically increase sequestration of emissions (pulling emissions out of the atmosphere) (Fankhauser et al., 2022).
And why is teaching about Net zero in schools important? Currently, net zero is not mentioned in any of the UK school curricula, nor is it covered in any global school system (Puttick et al., 2026). Drawing from YAB members, we summarise three reasons why teaching about net zero is important: 1) because Net zero itself is an urgent issue; 2) because there are many future planetary and individual impacts of reaching Net zero; and 3) because Net zero presents a solution to the Climate Emergency.
1. Net zero is an Urgent Goal
The Climate Emergency and the need to reach net zero is increasingly pressing (Allen et al., 2022). With an increase in heatwaves, glaciers melting, extinction of keystone species and more, consequences grow more severe day by day and the longer we wait the harder it seems to reverse this. But, by teaching about net zero emissions we can enable students and the wider public to help.
Schools in the UK rarely, if ever, mention net zero in the classroom, and lack of understanding about such a pivotal concept such as this could be dangerous (Paul A Howard-Jones, 2025). A lack of knowledge leads to ignorance which leads to indifference. And indifference is harmful to us all. Often, we as students tend to feel voiceless and powerless to change the tide of things. While there is some truth to that, schools have a chance to prepare students for the future and give them a voice to speak out and act for a better world. Essentially, though it may seem impossible to affect change, schools can provide information and inspiration so that we can achieve net zero globally.
Net zero is important to talk about and include in the curriculum because secondary students have a tremendous ability to positively impact net zero, simply because of their age. As they grow into a world that needs to reach net zero emissions, young people have the right, and responsibility, to take up the mantle, even though the Climate Emergency was created by generations of adults before them.
Education is a powerful tool to tackle issues like the Climate Emergency and to help us achieve net zero (Evans, 2022). It is, therefore, vital that students are given information about what net zero is and how we can achieve it so that they can actively be involved in current and future net zero initiatives and hold adults accountable for them.
Net zero, while hinging on the policies and decisions of key powerful actors (including governments and industry leaders) will need the support of millions of the rest of us - global society will have to be mobilised to tackle the Climate Emergency and to improve life on our planet by reaching net zero emissions. All of this, though, starts with understanding what net zero is and how to get there – which requires education about it.
2. The Impacts of Net Zero
Teaching about net zero is an important topic as without net zero, the future seems bleak and uncertain for many people, especially for those suffering the bulk of the burden of the Climate Emergency in the Global Majority and across disabled, minority, and low-income demographics. Learning about net zero, with a focus on a just transition to net zero emissions, will help actualise the improvements that can be made to combat the Climate Emergency through a lens of justice.
It's also important to learn about net zero as it affects every student’s future and the planet we live on. It helps students make better and more informed choices in their everyday life, whether that be individual actions or actions to hold powerful groups accountable to change. Learning about net zero emissions and how to achieve it also prepares them for future careers in a changing, and greening, economy. Net zero is as globally important as any current issue; in fact, net zero is arguably the most important geopolitical issue, as stopping global warming and reducing the harms of the climate emergency on those suffering injustice (humans and the environment!), is essential to a just future for all. To mitigate further harm to our global ecological community, we must learn about and then work towards net zero emissions.
3. Net zero presents a Solution to the Climate Emergency
Finally, teaching about net zero is important because it presents a solution to the Climate Emergency. While learning about climate change in schools, students often are only told what it is and how it impacts very select case study example populations. We’re told that it’s bad and getting worse, but many students are frustrated and worried because they are not being taught about concrete and effective solutions to the Climate Emergency. That’s where net zero comes in: net zero is one of the largest, most scientifically effective solutions for mitigating the Climate Emergency, and will stop global warming if achieved. Learning about net zero helps students to breakdown and understand the issue of the Climate Emergency by learning about a solution to the problem, not just learning about the problem. If students have a greater understanding of how net zero solves the Climate Emergency, they may feel more hopeful for a climate-safe future and may be more incentivised to be more environmentally conscious in their day to day lives, to contribute to net zero goals and to hold industry and government actors accountable to net zero targets.
To conclude, net zero education is vital, not only because it creates awareness about a global solution to climate change, but also because it fosters action amongst our youth - and with that action, net zero can soon be a reality, not just a hopeful vision. For us to welcome the 21st Century, for us to modernise, for us to thrive as a species we must teach about net zero emissions. From the impact it will have on our future and our children’s future – for all humanity.
For further resources for teachers to both learn about what net zero is, and how to teach about, please see the below resource packets and links. If you would like to consult with the researchers on the Net Zero Education project on how to include net zero in your classroom (in any subject!) please contact amelia.farber@education.ox.ac.uk or steven.puttick@education.ox.ac.uk
Further Resources:
The Oxford Net Zero Education Framework - https://www.education.ox.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Net-Zero.pdf
The Net Zero Education research project pages can be found here: Department page, Agile Initiative page, LinkedIn page
Blog about Net Zero Education teacher and student attending the London Climate Action Week - https://www.agile-initiative.ox.ac.uk/news/net-zero-education-project-welcomes-teacher-and-youth-representative-for-london-climate-action-week-session/
References
Allen, M. R., Friedlingstein, P., Girardin, C. A. J., Jenkins, S., Malhi, Y., Mitchell-Larson, E., Peters, G. P., & Rajamani, L. (2022). Net Zero: Science, origins, and implications. Annual Review of Environment and Resources, 47(1), 849–887. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-environ-112320-105050
Evans, V. (2022, April 22). Why is education important in tackling climate change? Retrieved from Cambridge: https://www.cambridge.org/gb/news-and-insights/insights/why-is-education-important-in-tackling-climate-change
Fankhauser, S., Smith, S. M., Allen, M., Axelsson, K., Hale, T., Hepburn, C., Kendall, J. M., Khosla, R., Lezaun, J., Mitchell-Larson, E., Obersteiner, M., Rajamani, L., Rickaby, R., Seddon, N., & Wetzer, T. (2022). The meaning of net zero and how to get it right. Nature Climate Change, 12(1), 15–21. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41558-021-01245-w
Paul A Howard-Jones, L. J. (2025). Understanding progress in climate change and sustainability education in four state-funded secondary schools in England. Environmental Education Research , 31(6), 17.
Puttick, S., Talks, I., Farber, A. and Healy, G. (2026). Five arguments for including Net zero in the curriculum. [online] Bera.ac.uk. Available at: https://www.bera.ac.uk/blog/five-arguments-for-including-net-zero-in-the-curriculum [Accessed 15 Jun. 2026]