Speaking 4 the Planet (S4P) is an arts-based approach to sustainability education. It was designed originally as a competition for secondary school students to celebrate youth voice on matters related to the planet and the future—their future. S4P invites students to intertwine humanities and sciences, to philosophise about human actions and to imagine a better world while standing deep in the science of the world they live in.

These competitions now take place in primary, secondary and tertiary institutions. Beyond creating opportunities to develop and display the skills associated with each competition category, these events promote the importance of having a voice—using words, performance, art and video. They promote advocacy and value evidence-based opinions. They invite quirky solutions to what might appear to be intractable environmental and sustainability problems!

S4P helps to build advocates for the Earth—and all its species. Students are inspired to write and speak and paint and perform about the social aspects of sustainability. They are learning that if we don’t get the human stuff right, we won’t get the environmental stuff right.

S4P also helps students see that they are not alone in their concern for the planet and for their future. Our students see protest marches around Australia and around the world—S4P events build networks of schools and young people whose passion is to create a world worth living in.

See this article for more about Speaking 4 the Planet.

• Read about our founder and CEO, Phil Smith.
• Interested in S4P? Have a question? Contact us.