Denmark's Fourth National Communication on Climate Change – 9. Education, training and public awareness

Denmark's Fourth National Communication on Climate Change

9. Education, training and public awareness

9.1 Education and postgraduate education programmes
9.2 Climate information
9.3 Danish participation in international climate activities
9.4 Public campaigns

In Denmark there is an ongoing public debate in the media and elsewhere about climate change, anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions and political reactions in terms of policies and measures. In 2002 the government published its strategy for sustainable development. The Danish climate policy – including the Climate Strategy adopted in 2003 - must be seen in the light of the action to make the development of Danish society sustainable. Part of the strategy is to involve the public and openness around the strategy, decision-making and analyses. Denmark has a long tradition for involving the public and, in the environment field, this tradition was followed up by an international agreement - the Aarhus Convention from 1998. In the international UN negotiations on a common effort to mitigate the effect of climate changes, both Danish industry, and green and development-oriented organisations were represented in the Danish delegation. A considerable amount of information on climate change and Danish policies is provided on the websites of the Ministry of Environment (www.mim.dk), the Danish Environmental Protection Agency (www.mst.dk), the Ministry of Finance (www.fm.dk), the Ministry of Transport and Energy (www.trm.dk) and the Danish Energy Authority (www.ens.dk).

9.1 EDUCATION AND POSTGRADUATE EDUCATION PROGRAMMES

Climate change is a central theme at Copenhagen Global Change Initiative (COGCI), which is a PhD school and research network established in cooperation between the University of Copenhagen, DMI, NERI, and GEUS. The school has 22 PhD students registered at present. The programme comprises general and specialist courses, together with seminars and theme days. The seminars and theme days are open to the public.

The universities disseminate widely the result of research - for example, the Niels Bohr Institute's activities are published at the website http://www.fys.ku.dk/hco/presse/Formidling2002.htm. A large part of this work concerns climate, both specifically and more generally.

Climate regulation at UN, EU and national levels (and associated lobbyism) is a key issue in the new Master in Environment and Energy Law (MEEL). The degree is offered from 1 September 2006 at the University of Aarhus, cooperating with Aarhus School of Business, the University of Southern Denmark, and the Royal Veterinary and Agricultural University. NERI is also contributing to the course.

Members of DMI/Danish Climate Centre staff give lectures to high-school students, teachers and researchers, and others. Staff members have, for instance, since 1998 taken part in the Danish Science Festival, giving lectures around Denmark. For further information, visit http://www.dnf2004.dk/. 150,000 people have taken part in each of the festival's 2000 events and activities. Further, primary/lower secondary and upper secondary students take part in special science training programmes in the festival periods. DMI presents general information material on www.dmi.dk, offering both basic knowledge on climate and climate change issues, and topic themes/news, which is largely used in Danish schools.

In connection with the many projects initiated under the Danish Environmental Protection Agency's (Danish EPA) Programme for Cleaner Products, reports are required, and these are made publicly accessible. In addition, articles are prepared for various technical journals so that the relevant target groups learn about the results.

On the Danish EPA website http://www.mst.dk (click top border ”Undervisningsmateriale”), the Agency presents teaching material which can be used for instance for teaching various disciplines in Danish schools at all levels. The teaching material is targeted towards specific levels. Cooperating with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of the Environment has prepared the Global Environment project with teaching material targeted towards environmental studies, focusing i.a. on climate. The material is internet-based (www.globalemiljoe.dk) and supplemented by a manual.

The Danish EPA also operates a website, www.dea-ccat.dk, with interactive simple climate models (based on the second assessment report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change). On the web-site, school children and others may test the reductions required in order to stabilise the atmospheric content of greenhouse gases. The model, originally developed by the Danish Energy Authority's Climate Group, is used extensively by upper secondary students and teachers. DEACCAT has also supported the development of the JCM (java climate model, www.chooseclimate.org), and requested a Danish version of the web facility.

On http://www.emu.dk/miljoe/ you will find extensive information on environment and nature, including impacts on the climate, targeted towards teaching at upper secondary schools, primary and lower secondary schools, and vocational training, and aiming at helping teachers and pupils integrate environmental issues in general training. This is done by presenting teaching courses, by giving access to information and literature, and by reference and links to relevant national and international authorities and institutions.

9.2 CLIMATE INFORMATION

The websites of the Ministry of the Environment and of the Danish EPA are updated regularly with the latest relevant information within the climate area, either directly in the form of press releases, documents, reports, etc. or through links to the actual players.

The Ministry of the Environment publishes the series Miljø-Tema (environmental essays) focussing on various subjects, including the leaflet: Adapting to the climate of the future. These can be ordered from the Ministry's information centre, Frontlinien, at http://www.frontlinien.dk, or be downloaded at http://www.mst.dk/udgiv/Publications/2004/87-7614-456-9/html/default_eng.htm

The Danish EPA publishes a number of environmental data on the website http://www.mst.dk (click top border ”Miljødatabaser”), including for instance discharge data from sewage treatment plants, separate industrial discharges, and freshwater fish farming, and data from marine and saltwater fish farming.

DERI prepares regular reports about environmental issues. Technical Report No. 401 contains an evaluation of Denmark's need and possibilities for adapting to future climate changes. In connection with the report, a poster with illustrations has been published. The report features on NERI's website www.dmu.dk. A number of NERI's reports on climate are designed for use in the education sector, including Theme Report 29/1999 Where does air pollution come from? and Theme Report 31/2000 CO₂, where, why, how much?. The report Danish adaptation to a changed climate from NERI 2002 presents the climate changes expected in Denmark. The report shows that rational long-term planning may prevent much damage and many effects of probable climate changes.

DMI/Danish Climate Centre disseminates knowledge on climate issues to the general public on an extensive website on www.dmi.dk. DMI also communicates through lectures and popular articles in newspapers and trade journals, through series of reports, and at theme days (Nyt Klimaforum). In 2001 DMI/Danish Climate Centre published the book ’Climate Change Research - Danish Contributions’. The book provides a general introduction to the problem of man-made climate changes and describes research projects and results at a number of institutions in Denmark. Reports, KlimaNyt and Climate Change Research can be obtained at www.dmi.dk. Finally, employees at DMI often take part in radio and TV interviews, and in interviews in the printed press.

Another relevant website is http://www.glaciology.gfy.ku.dk/, which is updated regularly.

9.3 DANISH PARTICIPATION IN INTERNATIONAL CLIMATE ACTIVITIES

DMI/the Danish Climate Centre participates in a number of inter-national research projects with support primarily from the European Commission's framework research programmes. In addition, the Centre contributes to IPCC work. This includes analyses of the development of climate for several of the IPCC's SRES emission scenarios with a coupled atmosphere ocean model system, carried out in international cooperation. These scenarios are available for effect studies in the IPCC's scenario database. Employees at DMI/ Danish Climate Centre have also participated in the preparation of the IPCC's Third Assessment Report (TAR) - one was coordinating author, another contributing author and several participated as expert reviewers. The same applies for IPCC's Fourth Assessment Report (AR4). DMI is also very active in communication the IPCC's reports to the public through translations and popular articles/books.

The Danish Institute of Agricultural Sciences has contributed to the IPCC through an EU Concerted Action concerning effects of climate changes and adaptation to a changed climate in Europe.

The Risø National Laboratory also participates at expert level in the IPCC. The UNEP Centre at Risø has contributed to the TAR WG III Report with five authors and a coordinating author. The UNEP Centre participates in a wide range of information activities in that connection with different policy possibilities in cooperation with e.g. DMI, NERI, and others.

NERI works in different ways to popularise and communicate the content of e.g. TAR, the latest research results on climate effects, etc.

Via DEA-CCAT the Danish EPA has taken part in the so-called Match Project (Modelling and Assessment of Contributions to Climate Change, www.match-info.net), working with practical methods to link future climate change to specific emissions from the different countries. The Match Project was triggered by a proposal which was originally presented by Brazil under the Climate Convention, and reports back to the Climate Convention's Conference of the Parties.

9.4 PUBLIC CAMPAIGNS

A number of initiatives are being carried out to promote environmentally sound behaviour in companies and households, particularly for climate reasons, and with respect to energy use. Labelling schemes, printed matter, information lines, media spots and similar are used to increase public knowledge of possibilities for action and knowledge of less environmentally harmful technologies.

Traffic, health and the environment.

In the last few years environment policy has increasingly focused on the fact that we all share responsibility for environmental problems and for helping to solve them. This strategy is now also penetrating in the transport sector, and in the last three to four years, two large nationwide environmental traffic campaigns have been implemented. We Bicycle to Work and Environmental Traffic Week, which is an element in the European car-free day on 22 September and European Mobility Week, in which more than 1,000 towns all over Europe participated in 2002.

In We Bicycle to Work, the Danish Cyclists' Federation has established good cooperation with many citizens and companies and has particularly communicated the health benefits of cycling as a form of transport.

In Green Transport Week the emphasis was on demonstrating more environment-friendly transport habits (use the car less, buy an energy-efficient car, drive together with others, use the bike for short trips, use public transport as much as possible, etc.). Emphasis was also on discussing traffic habits with the public in open dialogue and without reproach. In this way greater public engagement in the cause of environmental traffic can be established and help to create greater understanding of new ways of organising urban transport systems.

Another reason for the increased campaign and information activities is that a combination of measures affecting attitudes and behaviour and other forms of encouragement, such as economy and accessibility without a car are needed to promote more environment-friendly traffic habits.

Evaluations show that both We Bicycle to Work and the Environmental Traffic Week have had a good effect and have been well received by municipalities, interest and grass-roots organisations, and companies, all of which were in charge of most of the actual activities. The Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of the Environment have so far provided annual funding of DKK 4-5 mill. for Environmental Traffic Week in order to support and co-fund the work of the municipalities. The present government co-funding ended in 2003 and it has since been up to the Danish municipalities themselves to finance any participation in European Mobility Week.

In the years ahead the growing public focus on lifestyle diseases and obesity will probably provide good opportunities for marketing non-motorised forms of transport, such as cycling and walking, in public health campaigns drawing people's attention to the health benefits of using a bicycle more often, walking to the shops, leisure activities, etc.