Young people have grown up in a consumerist culture that reinforces values of self-interest, which research shows are harmful to our emotional health, our communities and the planet. 

Global Action Plan has published a paper aimed at school leaders that suggests a framework for student well-being and a healthy planet and is drawn from decades of academic research. 

Download values to transform our world 

Luke Wynne, head of youth and schools at Global Action Plan said: "We believe that a focus on values in education is urgently needed. Schools have an important role in helping young people explore a more positive set of values, which can improve well-being and increase the chance of them getting involved in environmental social action."

Teachers and their students can access a set of free, teacher-rated, values-themed resources on the Transform Our World's online resource hub.

One of these resources is Global Action Plan's Goals for Good toolkit, which inspires young people to set goals rooted in things that really make them happy, rather than material and often unachievable notions of 'success'. The Goals for Good programme has been tested under experimental conditions, with preliminary results revealing a shift away from materialistic values among participants.

Global Action Plan wants to support teachers and their students to explore how the values that are reinforced by the world around us impact on our well-being and our environment.  

Find out more about the campaign: values to transform our world

Explore the Transform Our World resource hub

First published 23 October 2019