To mark International Youth Day, we celebrate efforts to scale up climate finance for education, which supports the future of youth and students around the world. This article compares two international development initiatives in Cambodia and Malawi, highlighting models that could be replicated to increase financing for education and build resilience for future generations.
BRACE and CSESI– Why Do They Matter?
The Building the Climate Resilience of Children and Communities through the Education Sector (BRACE) project is a breakthrough initiative, placing education as a focus of Green Climate Fund (GCF) funding for the first time. Established at COP28 in Dubai, BRACE is primarily co-funded by a US$32 million grant from the GCF and a US$8 million grant from the Global Partnership for Education (GPE). Save the Children Australia supports the implementation of the project in South Sudan, Tonga, and Cambodia
The Climate Smart Education Systems Initiative (CSESI) is a technical assistance initiative launched in March 2023, with GPE funding of US$21 million including a US$5mln contribution from Japan. It provides advice, supports collaboration between ministries, and builds capacity, including through safety drills for students before floods. Both initiatives connect climate finance with education and focus on strengthening the resilience of school infrastructure and education systems.
Share of funding between BRACE and CSESI based on UNFCCC summary of Building Climate Smart Education Systems (Global Partnership for Education (2026). Climate-smart education systems initiative, United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. Available here)
How Is Education Connected to Climate Finance?
The connection between natural hazards, school infrastructure, and education performance is critical to both initiatives.
BRACE combines financing from the climate change and education sectors to strengthen education systems against climate change and protect learning for millions of children. It is the first GCF-funded initiative focused on the education sector. Outcome 1 aims to ensure that “the education sector at national and sub-national levels in targeted countries is more resilient to the impacts of climate change.”
In Malawi, the impact of floods on school infrastructure provided the basis for GPE to support the country through technical assistance. Malawi is among the world’s most climate-vulnerable countries, ranked 26th by the Notre Dame Global Adaptation Initiative Index (2023). Since 2010, Malawi has experienced 16 major floods, affecting around 100,000 people annually, including students.
The experiences of Cambodia and Malawi demonstrate how countries affected by climate change can access finance and technical assistance to strengthen school infrastructure, education systems, and climate awareness among students.
Scaling Up Funding for Education
Both projects introduce innovative approaches to helping countries access international funding for education. The GCF, GPE, Save the Children, and OECD are developing mechanisms that can help address the current gap between climate finance and education.
Mapping Climate Finance
A key BRACE activity is mapping and tracking global climate finance opportunities for education. This includes the GCF, Adaptation Fund (AF), and Global Environment Facility (GEF), as well as bilateral donors, the private sector, and philanthropies. Results will be presented through the BRACE coordination platform knowledge management site for policymakers in Tonga, Cambodia, and South Sudan.
According to GCF, the roadmap guides ministries in identifying and prioritising climate-smart education investments, aligning them with national education priorities, and matching them with appropriate financing mechanisms and actors. It also identifies gaps in climate finance for education and provides recommendations for financial instruments to support investment needs.
Education in the OECD Climate Finance Tracking System
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Development Assistance Committee (DAC) climate finance tracking system will better reflect the role of education in addressing climate change. BRACE will support adjustments to international climate finance reporting to capture dual-benefit investments in climate and education, particularly for adaptation.
This is an important step towards increasing international investment in both education and climate action. According to the World Bank, only 1.5% of climate finance goes to education. Better tracking of education’s contribution to climate adaptation could therefore support increased investment in initiatives such as BRACE and CSESI.
Collaboration Between Ministries
In Malawi, GPE and Save the Children fostered collaboration between the Ministry of Education and ministries responsible for climate and land. Coordination between ministries is often an obstacle to scaling up climate finance for education. However, CSESI contributed to the inclusion of education in Malawi’s National Adaptation Plan (NAP).
“No single ministry can address the education challenges posed by climate change alone. Our collaboration with the Ministry of Natural Resources and Climate Change and the Department of Disaster Management Affairs demonstrates the power of shared commitment and coordination.“
– Rachel Chimbwete Phiri of Malawi’s Ministry of Education
Similarly, BRACE supports Ministries of Education in coordinating with climate change ministries and engaging in NAP processes, while also facilitating knowledge sharing between the participating countries.
How Did NDCs and NAPs Support Climate Finance for Education?
Component 2 of BRACE supports countries in integrating education into NAP and NDC processes. The inclusion of climate education in NDCs or NAPs was therefore not a requirement, but a result of the initiatives. Similarly, the inclusion of education in Malawi’s NAP resulted from CSESI.
Both initiatives demonstrate the potential to integrate education into national climate planning. In Cambodia, NDC 3.0 mentions education 70 times.
Cambodia’s Price Tag for Climate Education
To effectively bring climate finance to education, countries and multilateral institutions need to establish clear financial requirements. Cambodia has estimated the cost of education and awareness in its NDC at US$96 million (NDC 3.0, p. 65).
This makes the US$40 million in BRACE funding for all three countries appear relatively small. However, the price tag represents a long-term strategy, while BRACE contributes to building the capacities described in the Cambodian NDC. Its broader aim of scaling up finance for participating countries could help Cambodia move towards its longer-term financial needs for education.
Progress on climate education NDCs commitments in each country can be accessed through the Climate Education NDCs Tracker managed by EARTHDAY.ORG.
Schools as Indicators of NAP Processes
The NAP process is also considered a co-benefit indicator of BRACE. Increased locally led adaptation is measured through the percentage of target schools contributing to the NAP process through civil society and public dialogues, with a target of 70% of schools across the three countries. This provides direct evidence that the education sector is expected to actively participate in national adaptation planning.
Future of Finance for Education
The experiences of Malawi and Cambodia demonstrate that education can access funding and technical assistance from institutions such as the GCF. BRACE goes further by supporting curriculum development, teacher training, climate finance tracking, and school infrastructure.
The next step is for more countries to follow the examples of Malawi and Cambodia and unlock greater finance for education to strengthen resilience. This call should also be answered by major climate funds, including the GEF and Clean Technology Fund, by expanding their support for education, teacher training, and empowering the students who will lead the future of the green transition.
