BONNi & BO Climate License

City of Bonn/Foundation Bonn Climate Ambassadors (Stiftung Bonner Klimabotschafter) (

Local / Regional Government

)

#SDGAction46887

Description

The Foundation Bonn Climate Ambassadors (Stiftung Bonner Klimabotschafter) has been established upon initiative of the Savings Bank in Bonn and the City of Bonn in 2010, shortly after COP 15 in Copenhagen. Since the beginning, the board is chaired by the Mayor of Bonn, currently by Mayor Katja Dörner The primary goal of the foundation is to mobilize citizens to take climate action, in particular by involving children and young people as disseminators. In 2012, the foundation started the BONNi&BO Climate License educational program. In cooperation with a local cartoon artist and teachers, the graphic novel character BONNi (resembling the lion in the heraldic emblem of Bonn) and his new friend BO (a polar bear migrated from the north pole because of melting polar caps) became the heroes of an educative, yet entertaining comic and workbook. In May 2012, the first primary schools started implementing a one-month program with their third graders, 8 to 9 year olds, mainstreaming climate action in diverse school subjects. Most importantly, the children did not only study in class, but were also asked to perform tasks at home, to engage their families in everyday-life climate action. At the end of the month, with the workbook completed, the children acquire their BONNi&BO Climate License and are officially recognized as Bonn Climate Ambassadors. They are encouraged to spread the word wherever they go, and to mobilize others for the climate cause. In their next school grade, they receive a climate agenda calendar to keep them interested and engaged. Over the years, groups of children have met with the federal president, spoken at UN climate conferences or have taken part in the Action for Climate Empowerment dialogues. The initiative has raised international awareness and has been duplicated in at least three of Bonn’s six sister cities: Bukhara, La Paz and Cape Coast. The BONNi&BO Climate License is managed by the foundation Bonn Climate Ambassadors. The foundation board is chaired by Mayor Katja Dörner and has a secretariat under the roof of the citizens foundation Bonn. Within the city administration, the Department of International Affairs and Global Sustainability is the coordinating unit.

Expected Impact

Climate Change is a cross-cutting issue and a threat for all. Therefore, multiple SDGs are addressed, with No. 4 (education) and No. 13 (climate) as clear priorities. The topics of the workbook are very down to earth, starting with the children’s everyday life and surroundings. Energy, mobility, water, food – in all of these areas the children can actually make small changes happen. This will again serve as motivation to tackle bigger challenges later in life. Switching the light off, turning the water off, taking the bicycle or walking, asking for vegetarian food more often or choosing fairtrade and/or organic products – the effect is visible right away. And the word is spreading to the parents, encouraging them to act accordingly. While BONNi the lion acts superficial and ignores the links between nature and climate, BO tells him about how his home has been affected by climate change and how he can turn it around for a better future. The children identify with the lion and the polar bear and learn in a playful way. The City of Bonn (along with many other cities in the world) is engaging in a major transition. With Climate Neutrality as goal for 2035 at the latest, the remaining time is as limited as the remaining CO2-budget. The City is addressing this goal and deadline with a participatory process, working hand in hand with civil society. Bonn’s Climate Action Plan is actually counting backwards from 2035 to establish remaining times and residual budgets. However, this full transition can only be successful if everyone is on board. Education is key in this process. The BONNi & BO Climate License program is slightly adapted every year. And every participating child will in turn spread the word to family and friends. When looking at the visions of climate activists gathered in one of the Bonn4Future-workshops, visualized by a graphic facilitator, and comparing those to a recent children’s drawing of a climate ambassadors group, the messages are identical – and they cover the whole spectrum of the SDGs. As many as 17,000 children have participated in the program since 2012, including 2,200 from 39 schools who completed the program this year. It has reached an incredible number of children to date, who in turn will continue to reach out to their families and friends, telling them about climate change, climate action and the positive changes to lifestyle making a difference to the world. Continuity and identification is what makes this educational program so successful. Our target is to reach more schools and more children every year.

Partners

Stiftung Bonner Klimabotschafter - Foundation Bonn Climate Ambassadors
City of Bonn

supported by
Sparkasse KölnBonn
Stadtwerke Bonn

SDGS & Targets

Goal 4

Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all

4.1

By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys complete free, equitable and quality primary and secondary education leading to relevant and effective learning outcomes

4.1.1

Proportion of children and young people (a) in grades 2/3; (b) at the end of primary; and (c) at the end of lower secondary achieving at least a minimum proficiency level in (i) reading and (ii) mathematics, by sex

4.1.2

Completion rate (primary education, lower secondary education, upper secondary education)

4.2

By 2030, ensure that all girls and boys have access to quality early childhood development, care and pre-primary education so that they are ready for primary education

4.2.1

Proportion of children aged 24–59 months who are developmentally on track in health, learning and psychosocial well-being, by sex

4.2.2

Participation rate in organized learning (one year before the official primary entry age), by sex

4.3

By 2030, ensure equal access for all women and men to affordable and quality technical, vocational and tertiary education, including university

4.3.1

Participation rate of youth and adults in formal and non-formal education and training in the previous 12 months, by sex

4.4

By 2030, substantially increase the number of youth and adults who have relevant skills, including technical and vocational skills, for employment, decent jobs and entrepreneurship

4.4.1

Proportion of youth and adults with information and communications technology (ICT) skills, by type of skill

4.5

By 2030, eliminate gender disparities in education and ensure equal access to all levels of education and vocational training for the vulnerable, including persons with disabilities, indigenous peoples and children in vulnerable situations

4.5.1

Parity indices (female/male, rural/urban, bottom/top wealth quintile and others such as disability status, indigenous peoples and conflict-affected, as data become available) for all education indicators on this list that can be disaggregated

4.6

By 2030, ensure that all youth and a substantial proportion of adults, both men and women, achieve literacy and numeracy

4.6.1

Proportion of population in a given age group achieving at least a fixed level of proficiency in functional (a) literacy and (b) numeracy skills, by sex

4.7

By 2030, ensure that all learners acquire the knowledge and skills needed to promote sustainable development, including, among others, through education for sustainable development and sustainable lifestyles, human rights, gender equality, promotion of a culture of peace and non-violence, global citizenship and appreciation of cultural diversity and of culture’s contribution to sustainable development

4.7.1

Extent to which (i) global citizenship education and (ii) education for sustainable development are mainstreamed in (a) national education policies; (b) curricula; (c) teacher education and (d) student assessment

4.a

Build and upgrade education facilities that are child, disability and gender sensitive and provide safe, non-violent, inclusive and effective learning environments for all

4.a.1

Proportion of schools offering basic services, by type of service

4.b

By 2020, substantially expand globally the number of scholarships available to developing countries, in particular least developed countries, small island developing States and African countries, for enrolment in higher education, including vocational training and information and communications technology, technical, engineering and scientific programmes, in developed countries and other developing countries

4.b.1

Volume of official development assistance flows for scholarships by sector and type of study

4.c

By 2030, substantially increase the supply of qualified teachers, including through international cooperation for teacher training in developing countries, especially least developed countries and small island developing States

4.c.1

Proportion of teachers with the minimum required qualifications, by education level

Goal 12

Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns

12.1

Implement the 10-Year Framework of Programmes on Sustainable Consumption and Production Patterns, all countries taking action, with developed countries taking the lead, taking into account the development and capabilities of developing countries

12.1.1

Number of countries developing, adopting or implementing policy instruments aimed at supporting the shift to sustainable consumption and production

12.2

By 2030, achieve the sustainable management and efficient use of natural resources

12.2.1

Material footprint, material footprint per capita, and material footprint per GDP

12.2.2

Domestic material consumption, domestic material consumption per capita, and domestic material consumption per GDP

12.3

By 2030, halve per capita global food waste at the retail and consumer levels and reduce food losses along production and supply chains, including post-harvest losses

12.3.1

(a) Food loss index and (b) food waste index

12.4

By 2020, achieve the environmentally sound management of chemicals and all wastes throughout their life cycle, in accordance with agreed international frameworks, and significantly reduce their release to air, water and soil in order to minimize their adverse impacts on human health and the environment

12.4.1

Number of parties to international multilateral environmental agreements on hazardous waste, and other chemicals that meet their commitments and obligations in transmitting information as required by each relevant agreement

12.4.2

(a) Hazardous waste generated per capita; and (b) proportion of hazardous waste treated, by type of treatment

12.5

By 2030, substantially reduce waste generation through prevention, reduction, recycling and reuse

12.5.1

National recycling rate, tons of material recycled

12.6

Encourage companies, especially large and transnational companies, to adopt sustainable practices and to integrate sustainability information into their reporting cycle

12.6.1

Number of companies publishing sustainability reports

12.7

Promote public procurement practices that are sustainable, in accordance with national policies and priorities

12.7.1

Number of countries implementing sustainable public procurement policies and action plans

12.8

By 2030, ensure that people everywhere have the relevant information and awareness for sustainable development and lifestyles in harmony with nature

12.8.1

12.a

Support developing countries to strengthen their scientific and technological capacity to move towards more sustainable patterns of consumption and production

12.a.1

Installed renewable energy-generating capacity in developing countries (in watts per capita)

12.b

Develop and implement tools to monitor sustainable development impacts for sustainable tourism that creates jobs and promotes local culture and products

12.b.1

Implementation of standard accounting tools to monitor the economic and environmental aspects of tourism sustainability

12.c

Rationalize inefficient fossil-fuel subsidies that encourage wasteful consumption by removing market distortions, in accordance with national circumstances, including by restructuring taxation and phasing out those harmful subsidies, where they exist, to reflect their environmental impacts, taking fully into account the specific needs and conditions of developing countries and minimizing the possible adverse impacts on their development in a manner that protects the poor and the affected communities

12.c.1

Amount of fossil-fuel subsidies (production and consumption) per unit of GDP

Goal 13

Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts

13.1

Strengthen resilience and adaptive capacity to climate-related hazards and natural disasters in all countries

13.1.1

Number of deaths, missing persons and directly affected persons attributed to disasters per 100,000 population

13.1.2

Number of countries that adopt and implement national disaster risk reduction strategies in line with the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030

13.1.3

Proportion of local governments that adopt and implement local disaster risk reduction strategies in line with national disaster risk reduction strategies

13.2

Integrate climate change measures into national policies, strategies and planning

13.2.1

Number of countries with nationally determined contributions, long-term strategies, national adaptation plans and adaptation communications, as reported to the secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change

13.2.2

Total greenhouse gas emissions per year

13.3

Improve education, awareness-raising and human and institutional capacity on climate change mitigation, adaptation, impact reduction and early warning

13.3.1

13.a

Implement the commitment undertaken by developed-country parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change to a goal of mobilizing jointly $100 billion annually by 2020 from all sources to address the needs of developing countries in the context of meaningful mitigation actions and transparency on implementation and fully operationalize the Green Climate Fund through its capitalization as soon as possible

13.a.1

Amounts provided and mobilized in United States dollars per year in relation to the continued existing collective mobilization goal of the $100 billion commitment through to 2025

13.b

Promote mechanisms for raising capacity for effective climate change-related planning and management in least developed countries and small island developing States, including focusing on women, youth and local and marginalized communities

13.b.1

Number of least developed countries and small island developing States with nationally determined contributions, long-term strategies, national adaptation plans and adaptation communications, as reported to the secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change

SDG 14 targets covered

Name	Description

Deliverables & Timeline

31 December, 2035

Educating children in the skills of the 21st century as climate ambassadors/multipliers, raising the number by 2,000/year

31 December, 2035

Awareness raising for climate action in a broad public in support of climate neutrality goal 2035

Resources mobilized

Other, please specify

Support of outreach and awareness raising

Partnership Progress

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Action Network

Timeline

01 May 2012 (start date)

31 December 2035 (date of completion)

Entity

City of Bonn/Foundation Bonn Climate Ambassadors (Stiftung Bonner Klimabotschafter)

SDGs

4 12 13

Region

Europe

Other beneficiaries

Primary Schools in Bonn
Schools in Sister Cities

More information

https://www.bonner-klimabotschafter.de/

Countries

Germany

Contact Information

Susanne, International Affairs & Global Sustainability

Susanne.Nolden@Bonn.de