Climate change education is increasingly understood as a plural and multi-actor process that extends beyond formal schooling. In the Chinese context, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have emerged as important actors in climate change education, yet their pedagogical roles and educational value remain underexplored in existing scholarship. This paper examines NGO-led climate change education practices in China, with particular attention to how non-formal educational approaches complement and differ from school-centered climate education.

Drawing on qualitative case studies of multiple Chinese NGOs, the study employs document analysis, participant observation, and discourse analysis to examine educational projects such as community workshops, youth training programs, and digital storytelling initiatives. The analysis focuses on three dimensions: pedagogical design, modes of learner engagement, and the construction of climate-related knowledge and action-oriented competencies. These findings are further compared with school-based climate education, which is primarily curriculum-driven, policy-aligned, and assessment-oriented.

The study finds that NGO-led climate change education demonstrates greater flexibility, contextualization, and emphasis on participatory and experiential learning, enabling learners to connect abstract climate knowledge with everyday practices and local climate concerns. Building on perspectives from non-formal education theory and Actor-Network Theory, the paper argues that NGOs function as critical intermediaries linking policy discourse, scientific knowledge, and grassroots climate action. The study contributes to international debates on culturally contextualized climate change education and highlights the importance of integrating formal and non-formal learning pathways in diverse sociopolitical contexts.

Authors:
Bingnan Li, Shaanxi Normal University, China

About the Presenter(s)
BingNan Li is a doctoral candidate in Climate Change Communication at Shaanxi Normal University. Her interests include climate change education, NGO-led communication, and visual storytelling.

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