Green skills equip students for brighter future

Knowledge is power

Climate change has caused concerns for many across the mainland.

He Youjing, whose hometown is the coastal Cangnan county in Zhejiang, worries whenever a typhoon approaches, fearing that his home could be swept away. And though the county is in a subtropical climate, where snow is seldom seen, Cangnan experienced heavy snowfall last winter.

"If we don't take action, extreme weather events will be more frequent," he warned.

A report released by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences last November during the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, also known as COP29, indicated that over 90 percent of respondents in China said that they have felt the impact of climate change, with more than 80 percent expressing a positive attitude toward China's dual carbon goals and green development prospects.

Huang Hui is the deputy director of the Center for Vocational Education Development of the Ministry of Education. She said that learning green skills raises students' awareness of ecological development and helps them master relevant technologies — thereby speeding up China's green transition development.

Huang told Xinhua that the center has had discussions concerning the establishment of "green majors" such as carbon emission statistics and accounting, and will incorporate green skills into the teaching standards of related subjects.

"We are going to develop more learning materials on green skills and supporting digital resources, which will be promoted on the national smart education platform," she added.

The textbook coauthored by Mao will soon be published. She is currently recording her lectures to create online courses for more students interested in green skills.

"I loved nature as a child, and often swam in the river near my house," she said. "It is my hope that in the future children can also swim and play in clean rivers."

Xinhua