AUN-EEC, ASU, ALI launch Turn It Around! AUN edition cards on the youth’s aspirations for the environment

The ASEAN University Network on Ecological Education and Culture (AUN-EEC), housed at the Ateneo Institute of Sustainability, together with Turn It Around! project, Artists Literacies Institute, and Arizona State University, recently launched the Southeast Asian edition of the Turn It Around! Card deck. As product of the collaborative project, an online deck of cards representative of the sentiments of the Southeast Asian youth regarding environmental protection and climate justice was curated and released online at https://turnitaroundcards.org/tag/asean-university-network-edition/. 

The Turn It Around! Flashcards for Education Futures (https://turnitaroundcards.org/) is a global initiative that creates card decks which showcase the changes the youth hope to see in environmental policy and education. Each card contains an artwork on one side and a piece of writing on the other which are all contributed by the youth. Due to the catchy medium of the project, earlier editions of the Turn It Around project have been shared with various fora which include United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Executive Secretary Patricia Espinosa as audience.

The collaboration for the Southeast Asian edition was launched during the 2022 AUN-EEC Conference on Ecological Education and Culture, where Mr. Andrew Freiband and Prof. Adriene Jenik from Artists Literacies Institute delivered a keynote lecture on reimagining ecological education through art. In the same conference, Ms. Saiarchana Darira, the Youth Engagement Lead of Turn It Around! Facilitated a workshop on how the Turn It Around! Initiative can be facilitated in the classroom. 

Following the conference, an open call for submission of artwork and writing was made through the members of AUN-EEC. Submission is open for all Southeast Asian youth aged 30 and below who wish to share their reflections on the changes they hope to see from environmental policy and climate education. After receiving more than 250 submissions from all over the region, respectable practitioners from the humanities and climate science vetted on the submissions. This led to the final set of card deck which can be viewed here. 

Following the strong support from the youth and the success of the Southeast Asian edition of the Turn It Around project, AUN-EEC embarked on its continuation to focus on the Philippine context. Partnering with Turn It Around cards and various departments from the Ateneo de Manila University, AUN-EEC launched the Philippine adaptation called Baligtarin Mo! which will run year-long. The Baligtarin Mo! team is one of the residents of the Ateneo Arete Sandbox Residency Program. Learn more about Baligtarin Mo! on the AUN-EEC page (including submission guidelines) and the Arete Sandbox page.