Teaching climate hope at 3Generate

The sustainable educational charity It Started With a Sloth offered unique activities to children and young people at 3Generate this year. The objective: helping children understand environmental issues from a different perspective, one that fosters empathy rather than simply presenting facts.

Nine-year-old Jason carefully manoeuvres his fishing rod over a pool filled with plastic waste, concentrating hard on catching a toy fish hidden amongst the rubbish. "It is a challenge to catch the fish because of all the rubbish," he explains. This challenge is a daily struggle for countless creatures in our oceans.

This deceptively simple activity forms part of an innovative approach to climate education that puts children in the position of the animals affected by pollution. Helen, founder of It Started With a Sloth, explains the reasoning behind the exercise: "They are fishing for animals in the plastic; it's putting them in the mind of the animals."

It Started With a Sloth represents a radical departure from traditional environmental education. Helen founded the organisation with a clear mission: teaching children about climate change and sustainability through play, storytelling and hope, rather than overwhelming them with doom and gloom.

The activities exemplify the organisation's values through their construction. Nearly everything is created from waste materials: toilet roll tubes, cling film cores, textile tubes, Amazon packaging, donated fabrics and curtain samples destined for landfill. Even the moss rug comprises repurposed textiles.

Guiding children through understanding, empathy and action

The organisation's presence at 3Generate, the Methodist Church's children and youth event, demonstrates the natural alignment between faith-based values and environmental stewardship. Helen was invited after successfully piloting an immersive classroom experience the previous year. For 3Generate, she expanded the concept into a comprehensive four-section journey.

The experience begins with a hopeful future section, where children encounter reflective questions and explore two paths: what could happen if we make changes and what might occur if we don't. From there, they progress through Seeds of Change, focusing on land-based issues, then Waves of Change, which addresses ocean conservation, before reaching the Eco Action Zone, where they commit to concrete pledges for the planet and its seas.

"The idea is for children to understand why they might want to make a change," Helen explains. "Some might want to save the sea creatures; others want to care about orangutans or their future. We aim to help them find their agency."

This approach acknowledges that different issues resonate with different children. Rather than prescribing what they should care about, the experience helps young people discover their own motivations for environmental action, making their commitment more authentic and sustainable.

The children's responses suggest the approach is working. Eleven-year-old Rachel simply declares the experience "amazing", whilst nine-year-old Jemima enthuses about the eco-themed Snakes and Ladders game.

Their engagement demonstrates that environmental education need not be heavy-handed to be effective. By combining play with purpose, It Started With a Sloth is nurturing a generation of informed, empowered young environmental advocates.