Analysis of initiatives to promote education for sustainability and climate action in schools in Madrid and proposals for improvemen

Análisis de iniciativas para fomentar la educación escolar para la sostenibilidad y la acción climática en Madrid y propuestas de mejora

Susana Sastre-Merino, Universidad Politécnica de MadridFollow
Cristine Zanarotti-Prestes-Rosa, Atelier itdFollow
Marvin-Josué Izaguirres-Betancourth, Fundación ACOESFollow

DOI

https://doi.org/10.22550/2174-0909.4112

Abstract

As a powerful tool for social change, education is one of the key transversal areas for promoting sustainability and addressing the climate emergency. This is reflected in international guidelines, such as the 2030 Agenda and the European GreenComp framework, and national guidelines, such as the current Spanish education law (LOMLOE). As a result, Spanish formal education has an opportunity to strengthen schools as strategic nodes for social change. However, there are several barriers that inhibit its true incorporation into the curriculum, such as teacher training and the lack of whole-school projects that address the topic, with many initiatives still being run on an occasional basis in isolation from the wider curriculum. To understand the external support available to schools for the integral incorporation of this approach, this study comprises a documentary analysis of the educational programs for sustainability and climate action offered by private, social, and public organisations in the city of Madrid. This analysis is complemented by a discussion group with relevant stakeholders from the ecosystem to assess the challenges and opportunities involved in promoting this approach. The results indicate that external organisations must adapt their offers to the new LOMLOE framework and support schools with training for teachers and management teams. They must also help schools implement programmes with a curricular and whole-school approach that is collaborative and contextualized. The entire educational community should be involved and the integration of these initiatives in public policies fostered.

Financiación | Funding

This research has been carried out in the framework of the “Clim-Action: Educational Alliance for Climate Action (Clim-Acción)” project, in alliance with the Institute of Educational Sciences and the Centre for Innovation in Technology for Human Development (itdUPM), both from the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Atelier itd, and the Fundación Montemadrid. The project is supported by Porticus and funded by the Fundación Stichting Benevolentia. UPM project code: SE230090021.

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Author Biography

Susana Sastre-Merino. Doctor of Engineering and associate professor at the Instituto de Ciencias de la Educación (ICE) at the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM). Her teaching focuses principally on teacher training. She is a member of the ForPROFE research group and the EduCyT educational innovation group. Her research interests centre on teacher training, teacher competences, and education for sustainable development. She currently coordinates the Erasmus+ “Open and collaborative mapping for pupils-led projects in Secondary Schools through innovative teaching methodology and fostering STEAM education and environmental engagement (EUthMappers)” project and also the Clim-Action: educational alliance for climate action project (with Fundación Montemadrid, itdUPM, and Atelier itd). She is the author of more than 15 articles in impact journals and more than 30 papers at national and international conferences.

https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9511-3793

Cristine Zanarotti-Prestes-Rosa. Master’s in Development Strategies and Technologies from the Universidad Complutense and the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid. Master’s in Sustainability Management and a Bachelor’s degree in Public Administration from the Fundação Getulio Vargas, Brazil. She has completed an international exchange at the University of Texas at Austin and has specialised in process facilitation and social innovation. She is currently a project manager at Atelier itd, a foundation that designs and facilitates contexts for collaboration to encourage fair transitions towards sustainability, including projects in the educational sphere, where she coordinates the “Clim-Action: educational alliance for climate action” project (with Fundación Montemadrid, ICE-UPM, and itdUPM). She has more than fifteen years’ experience in social and private organisations, in which she has collaborated closely with universities such as Harvard University, Columbia University, IE University, and the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid.

https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5641-4155

Marvin Josué Izaguirres-Betancourth. Primary school teacher. Qualified educationalist from the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Honduras (UNAH) and development project specialist. Master’s in Development Strategies and Technologies from the Universidad Complutense and the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid. He also has training in youth leadership and formulation and management of social projects from the Universidad Tecnológica Centroamericana (UNITEC). He has worked as a specialist on educational projects for the Fundación Acoes in Honduras, and as a trainer in social programmes with Real Ledge Honduras. He is part of the “Clim-Action: educational alliance for climate action” project promoted by the ICE-UPM, itdUPM, Atelier itd and Fundación Montemadrid.

https://orcid.org/0009-0009-9453-3089

Citación recomendada | Recommended citation

Sastre-Merino, S., Zanarotti-Prestes-Rosa, C., & Izaguirres-Betancourth, M.-J. (2025). Analysis of initiatives to promote education for sustainability and climate action in schools in Madrid and proposals for improvement [Análisis de iniciativas para fomentar la educación escolar para la sostenibilidad y la acción climática en Madrid y propuestas de mejora]. Revista Española de Pedagogía, 83(290), 105-123. https://doi.org/10.22550/2174-0909.4112