The British government is set to launch a new exam to tackle the issue of climate change.
The move comes amid sustained calls from environmental campaigners to teach children the importance of protecting the planet from an early age.
The new natural history GCSE qualification is set to be announced by the UK's Education Secretary Nadhim Zahawi on Thursday and is expected to be launched in September 2025.
The announcement will come as part of the Department for Education's sustainability and climate change strategy.
“Sustainability and climate change are the biggest challenges facing mankind," Mr Zahawi said.
“None of us can be in any doubt just how critical they have become. The new natural history GCSE will offer young people a chance to develop a deeper knowledge and understanding of this amazing planet, its environment and how to conserve it.”
The DfE said the course would teach pupils about environmental and sustainability issues “to gain a deeper knowledge of the natural world around them” and help young people to develop skills for careers in conservation.
“The government will work closely with independent experts and a range of stakeholder organisations, exam boards including Cambridge OCR, and [exam watchdog] Ofqual to develop the detailed content for the GCSE,” the DfE said.
The curriculum will build on topics studied in subjects such as ecosystems in science.
Zac Goldsmith, Minister of State for the Pacific and the International Environment, welcomed the decision.
"This is very good news," he said.
"Long term, medium term and now – there’s nothing more important."
Nature writer Mary Colwell has been campaigning for the introduction of a natural history exam for more than a decade.
"And finally, it is being announced as definite on Thursday (also World Curlew Day!) – a GCSE purely on studying natural history in the UK and how it relates to the rest of the world," she tweeted.
"Field skills, ID, connection to nature. Some good news. Only took 11 years of campaigning!"
London's UCL, Liverpool John Moores, Greenwich and Northampton universities all now offer climate change degrees after a rise in demand.
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
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What is the definition of an SME?
SMEs in the UAE are defined by the number of employees, annual turnover and sector. For example, a “small company” in the services industry has six to 50 employees with a turnover of more than Dh2 million up to Dh20m, while in the manufacturing industry the requirements are 10 to 100 employees with a turnover of more than Dh3m up to Dh50m, according to Dubai SME, an agency of the Department of Economic Development.
A “medium-sized company” can either have staff of 51 to 200 employees or 101 to 250 employees, and a turnover less than or equal to Dh200m or Dh250m, again depending on whether the business is in the trading, manufacturing or services sectors.
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Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
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