Languages for a Changing Planet: Interdisciplinary, Project-Based Approaches to Climate and Communication

Languages for a Changing Planet: Interdisciplinary, Project-Based Approaches to Climate and Communication is a literacy-based instructional unit for second-year Japanese students that integrates climate change education into language learning. Building on a four-day reading module on climate conditions in Japan, the unit engages students in three days of scaffolded classroom activities including vocabulary development, immersive VR experiences, and Japanese-language discussions comparing environmental issues in Japan with those in students' local communities. 

The unit culminates in a collaborative multimedia project in which student groups research a climate issue affecting a specific region of Japan, evaluate its impacts, and propose solutions. Students then created 3–5 minute PR videos in Japanese and shared them with Japanese TAs in the Japanese Language Program, who served as an authentic audience and provided feedback on content and communication. 

By connecting language study with a pressing global challenge, the project strengthens language proficiency, intercultural competence, climate literacy, and critical thinking. It encourages students to use Japanese for meaningful real-world communication while exploring pathways toward environmental action. Designed to be scalable, interdisciplinary, and engaging, the project serves as a model for innovative, socially relevant language instruction, with strong potential for expansion to other language programs at Columbia.