Climate-U Network Conference
Higher Education and the Climate Crisis
04 - 07 November, 2025
Belém, Brazil and Online
The Federal University of Paraná, Climate-U Network Lead institution 2025
The Federal University of Pará,
Host of the 2025 Climate-U Network Conference
Climate-U Network Conference
Higher Education and the Climate Crisis
Schedule
04 November: Online conference
05 - 07 November: In-person conference (with some sessions to be broadscast online)
Overview
The Climate-U network brings together universities from around the world who are committed to working together to address the climate crisis. The network was born out of the Climate-U project (Transforming Universities for a Changing Climate), which ran from February 2020 to January 2024, funded by the Global Challenges Research Fund.
The network aims to strengthen climate action and sustainability efforts within each institution and collaboratively, given that the sustainability challenges traverse sectors and regions. Universities are central to the transformation of societies, through their unique role in professional development, knowledge production and public debate. While there has been increasing attention to the active role universities can play in recent years, and many institutions have committed to achieving carbon neutrality and just transitions, there is still a significant knowledge gap.
Building on previous conferences held in London, UK (2023) and Nairobi, Kenya (2024), the 2025 conference provides a space for debate, exchange of ideas and sharing of new research on diverse aspects of the higher education-climate crisis-sustainability axis. It offers a platform for a range of activities that will include interactive seminars, workshops, research papers, and artistic engagement featuring interdisciplinary perspectives from prominent speakers and decision-makers in climate education. Both online and in-person participation are available.
For in-person participants, the event offers an immersive experience in the Amazon, fostering engagement with Indigenous, quilombola (African Brazilian) and other rainforest communities collaborating with the Brazilian team. It provides international network members with opportunities for deep environmental immersion and interactive workshops where Amazonian communities share traditional knowledge and innovative approaches to climate change and education.
The 2025 International Climate-U Network Conference will be held in Belém, Brazil, ahead of COP30, enabling participants to engage in COP activities, with in-person and virtual participation for research papers and symposia presentations.
Register now to attend online or in-person
Free and open to all
Conference sub-themes
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Transdisciplinary approaches to addressing the climate crisis in higher education
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Sustainable campus initiatives and best practices
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Climate justice, intersectionality, equity and higher education
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Knowledge and perspectives of indigenous and traditional peoples on the climate crisis
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Student activism and engagement for climate action
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Climate communication, policy, and public engagement strategies
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The role of higher education institutions in advancing the UN Sustainable Development Goals
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Sustainable development and community partnerships
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Local and global challenges at the UN Climate Conferences
We look forward to welcoming you and receiving your abstracts.
General enquiries
General enquiries can be directed to:
Tania Brasileiro (brasileirotania@gmail.com)
Sônia Fátima Schwendler (s.f.schwendler@qmul.ac.uk),
Luciana Brandli (brandli@upf.br),
Salomão Hage (salomao_hage@yahoo.com.br),
Luis Alípio Gomes (alipiogomesprofessor@gmail.com),
Tristan McCowan (t.mccowan@ucl.ac.uk)
Conference Committee
Federal University of Paraná
Federal University of Pará
Federal University of West Pará
University of Passo Fundo
University of São Paulo
University College London
Register now!
Higher Education and the Climate Crisis On-line or in-person at UFPA Belém, Brazil
Conference partner organisations
