New Primer: Advancing Rights-Based Climate Education in Asia-Pacific HEIs
As part of the Regional Asia Pacific Programme (RAPP2): Advancing Just Transitions to Climate-Resilient and Nature-Positive Societies (2024–2026), the Raoul Wallenberg Institute of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law (RWI) has developed a new resource:
From Concept to Curriculum: Advancing Rights-Based Climate Education in Asia-Pacific HEIs.
This Primer supports higher education institutions (HEIs) in integrating a human rights-based approach (HRBA) into climate change education and research. It is designed to build the conceptual and practical foundation for educators and institutions seeking to embed rights-based principles into their academic work on climate action and sustainability transitions.
About the Primer
The Primer was developed as part of RWI’s ongoing collaboration with universities across the Asia-Pacific and draws from internal conceptual development work, past experience in education programming, and emerging literature on climate justice, just transitions, and human rights governance.
It provides:
- A clear explanation of HRBA and its relevance to climate change teaching
- Conceptual foundations on climate justice, just transitions, and intergenerational equity
- Practical ideas on how to apply these concepts across disciplines, whether in law, development studies, environmental science, or social work
- A visual roadmap that links program-level and institutional-level changes, including curriculum design, pedagogy, and policy alignment
The resource is intended for faculty members, academic administrators, curriculum designers, and students, and aims to serve both as an introductory guide and a reflective tool for advancing transformative climate education.
Download the Primer: Integrating Rights and Equality in Climate Change, Disasters, and Human Mobility: A Primer for Higher Education Institutions
Part of a Broader RAPP2 Series
This Primer complements RWI’s broader portfolio of publications under the RAPP2 programme, including:
- Empowering NHRIs to Advance Rights-Based Climate Action (Gap Analysis Report)
- Climate Mobility and Human Rights: A Monitoring Toolkit for NHRIs
Together, these tools aim to strengthen the capacity of both academic and institutional actors to implement human rights-based approaches in addressing the impacts of climate change across the Asia-Pacific region.
New Teaching Resources: From Concept to Classroom
Building on the Primer’s conceptual foundation, RWI has also developed a set of practical teaching materials to support the delivery of rights-based climate education in higher education settings:
- Climate Change, Human Mobility and Human Rights: Workbook for Students
- Climate Change, Human Mobility and Human Rights: Teacher’s Instructions & Exercises
These resources translate the concepts introduced in the Primer into structured, classroom-ready content. Together, they are designed to support lecturers and students in engaging with the human rights dimensions of climate change in a practical and applied way.
The student workbook introduces key topics such as the relationship between climate change and human rights, climate-related mobility, and the disproportionate impacts on vulnerable groups. It also explores key frameworks, including the Human Rights-Based Approach (HRBA), gender and intersectionality, and the FIRE framework, through modules, case studies, and guided exercises.
The teacher’s guide complements the workbook by providing facilitation support, lesson structures, and interactive activities, including role plays, case-based discussions, and participatory exercises. It is designed to support inclusive and practice-oriented learning, enabling educators to adapt the materials across different disciplines and classroom contexts.
Together, the Primer and these teaching resources offer a continuum from conceptual understanding to practical application, supporting higher education institutions in embedding rights-based and gender-responsive approaches into climate change and sustainability education.
Download the Teaching Materials
Teacher’s Instructions & Exercises
Explore all RAPP2 resources here