Children and young people attending the COP31 climate summit in Antalya are taking part in hands-on activities designed to teach them about climate change, environmental protection and sustainable living.
The Türkiye Climate School, established by the Ministry of National Education in the summit's Green Zone, provides an interactive learning environment where children, young people and teachers can explore the causes and consequences of climate change and discover practical ways to address it.
The school features three main sections: a conference hall, a Living School and a Climate Experience and Technology Area.
Through workshops and interactive demonstrations, participants learn about zero waste, efficient use of natural resources, renewable energy, climate-resilient schools and environmentally friendly technologies.
A range of activities for children will also be organized in the Green Zone throughout the school break.
The Türkiye Climate School aims to make environmental education more engaging by allowing children to interact directly with nature and learn through practical experience.
At the Living School, participants are introduced to environmentally friendly habits, zero-waste practices and ways to protect natural resources.
Workshops include making terrariums and growing plants, giving children an opportunity to understand how natural ecosystems function and why protecting the environment matters.
Teacher Fatma Yüce, who attended the activities with her students, said the experience was helping children develop greater environmental awareness.
"I have a class that loves nature, and we brought that enthusiasm to life here with the children. We made terrariums and planted flowers. Through hands-on activities, the children learned how nature becomes polluted and how it can be cleaned up. It is a wonderful activity, and I am very happy to be here," she said.
Parents visiting the school with their children also highlighted the importance of introducing environmental awareness at an early age.
Çiğdem Koçak said the initiative offered children an opportunity to better understand the environmental challenges that could shape their future.
"As a parent, being here and seeing what kind of environment and life our children may grow up in makes me very happy. It was particularly important to me that my child could come here and become more aware. A wonderful environment has been created to help children develop awareness of climate and environmental issues. COP31 is truly excellent," she said.
Students said the activities gave them an opportunity to learn new things while experimenting with different materials and techniques.
Ümmü Gizem Tosun said she was excited when she first arrived at COP31 and particularly enjoyed the terrarium workshop, where she designed her own miniature plant arrangement.
"I was already very excited when I saw COP31. First, we went inside and got our passes. Then we joined the terrarium workshop, where they explained how a terrarium combines soil and an aquarium-like glass container. We designed our own plants and decorated them. After that, we went to another area where we created things using different materials. We also carried out experiments, made plants and grew lettuce," she said.
Another student, Ozan Soysal, said he enjoyed planting and growing flowers, as well as taking part in experiments.
"I made pots, grew plants and took part in experiments here. Everything was really nice. I loved it," he said.
Beyond planting and creative workshops, the activities also emphasize biodiversity, ecological balance and the importance of protecting all living organisms.
Student Uygar Kabacı said even the smallest creatures play an important role in maintaining healthy ecosystems and that people must work to reduce their ecological footprint.
"COP31 is about reducing our ecological footprint and maintaining ecological balance in general. We know that an ant represents all of us. That is why we need to protect even the smallest things to maintain ecological balance," he said.
Student Gülşen Koçak also urged people to dispose of waste responsibly and separate recyclable materials.
"People should not throw rubbish on the ground. They should put their waste in bins, separating plastic into plastic bins and glass into glass bins," she said.
The Türkiye Climate School is part of the educational activities taking place in COP31's Green Zone, where practical workshops are being used to encourage younger generations to take a more active role in protecting the environment.
