POLLUTING EDUCATION

The report documents how at least 39 oil and gas companies and 12 industry-tied organizations influence Canadian school curricula through direct sponsorship, government partnerships, and funding of third-party nonprofits. It identifies 'petro-pedagogy' strategies—such as 'bias-balancing,' greenwashing, and a focus on individual rather than systemic action—designed to obscure the industry's role in driving climate change and delay the energy transition. The authors recommend that federal and provincial governments prohibit fossil fuel sponsorship in schools, mandate comprehensive climate justice education, and provide public funding for teacher training and resources to ensure education is free from corporate conflicts of interest.

• At least 39 oil and gas companies and 12 industry-tied organizations are actively influencing climate, energy, and environmental education in Canada using strategies such as providing branded materials, partnering with governments on curricula, and funding third-party providers.
• The fossil fuel industry employs 'petro-pedagogy,' which includes a 'bias-balanced' approach that frames the absence of industry perspectives as unfair bias, effectively presenting industry viewpoints as equal to scientific consensus.
• Industry-funded materials frequently use greenwashing to present the oil and gas sector as environmentally friendly, often by highlighting local conservation projects or using company logos on renewable energy resources while omitting their role in global atmospheric harm.
• A core strategy of the industry is to shift responsibility for climate change from corporations to individuals by promoting personal carbon footprints and individual consumer actions, which insulates the industry from criticism and discourages systemic change.
• The report identifies 'redwashing' as a practice where the industry co-opts Indigenous symbols and language to appear benevolent, while ignoring Indigenous resistance to extractivism and the harms caused by fossil fuel projects to Indigenous lands and health.
• Techno-optimism is used to promote unproven or limited solutions like carbon capture and storage (CCS) and hydrogen to suggest that fossil fuel production can continue indefinitely without causing catastrophic warming.
• In Alberta, the government has partnered with companies like Suncor, Syncrude, and Cenovus to develop K-12 curricula, and the 2024 framework includes expectations that students know Alberta's reputation as the 'most ethical producer of oil in the world.'
• Climate education in Canada is uneven and often shallow; a 2022 survey found that 35% of educators do not cover climate change at all, and many who do spend only 3–5 hours per year on the topic.
• There is a significant gap in climate literacy among Canadians, with only 21% of respondents in one survey able to correctly answer eight or more general knowledge questions about climate change.
• Youth in Canada report high levels of climate anxiety, with 78% stating that concern about climate change affects their mental health, often exacerbated by a perceived inadequate government response.

APA

Keary, A., & Chesnut, J. (2025). POLLUTING EDUCATION. Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment. https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Full-Report_Polluting-Education-The-Influence-of-Fossil-Fuels-on-Childrens-Education-in-Canada.pdf

Chicago

Keary, Anne, and Jennifer Chesnut. POLLUTING EDUCATION. Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment, 2025. https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Full-Report_Polluting-Education-The-Influence-of-Fossil-Fuels-on-Childrens-Education-in-Canada.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Keary |first1=Anne |last2=Chesnut |first2=Jennifer |title=POLLUTING EDUCATION |publisher=Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment |date=February 2025 |url=https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Full-Report_Polluting-Education-The-Influence-of-Fossil-Fuels-on-Childrens-Education-in-Canada.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{keary2025polluting, author = {Keary, Anne and Chesnut, Jennifer}, title = {{POLLUTING EDUCATION}}, institution = {Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment}, year = {2025}, month = feb, url = {https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/Full-Report_Polluting-Education-The-Influence-of-Fossil-Fuels-on-Childrens-Education-in-Canada.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }