To the British Columbia Teachers’ Council:

BC’s Professional Standards describe the shared responsibilities of educators. Yet none explicitly addresses educators’ responsibilities in relation to ecological sustainability, climate change, land, and place.

BC students are growing up in a world increasingly shaped by climate and ecological change. Education can help them understand these changes, connect with the places where they live, and develop the knowledge, responsibility, hope, and agency to respond thoughtfully.

In 2022, the Association of Canadian Deans of Education called for education for a sustainable future to become a central and required part of teacher education in Canada.

It is time for BC’s Professional Standards to reflect this responsibility.

We call on the BC Teachers’ Council to begin consultation toward the development and adoption of a tenth Professional Standard:

Professional Standard 10: Educators connect learners and learning to land, place, and planetary wellbeing.

A new standard would create a shared professional commitment while leaving room for professional judgment, local context, and diverse ways of teaching and learning.

Please join us in asking the BC Teachers’ Council to begin this conversation.