Fostering Global Empathy and International Learning: A Climate Change Educational Collaboration Between New York City and Durban, South Africa

In Fall 2024, St. John’s University students enrolled in a scientific inquiry core course focused on Global Health and Climate Change volunteered to participate in a five-week Global Online Learning Exchange (GOLE) project, also known as Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL), with students at the Durban University of Technology (DUT) in South Africa. Approximately 12 students agreed to meet both synchronously and asynchronously with 16 student volunteers from DUT. The St. John’s students were nonscience majors, while the students at DUT were in a medical technology course where English was the primary language.

Prior to participation, the St. John’s students were asked to reflect on their pre-existing assumptions and expectations about their global partners, and what they thought the daily lives of the students in South Africa might be like, such as what foods, music, and recreational activities might be common.

The initial icebreaker was an interactive, synchronous session where students eagerly participated in a discussion about the ethnicity and meaning of their first names. Most of the students’ names from South Africa were quite different from those commonly used in the US, many of which were of European descent.

For the asynchronous meetings held during the five-week interval, the students were tasked with developing and conducting survey questions to interview their respective friends and family members related to one of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Students chose either SDG-3 Good Health and Well-being, SDG-6 Clean Water and Sanitation, or SDG-13 Climate Action, with the following topics:

• Global and Social Responsibility for Sufficient Worldwide Clean Drinking Waters

• The Effects of Extreme Heat on Health

• Changing and Emerging Disease Threats (Ebola, dengue, malaria, avian influenza, COVID-19)

• Increased Threats from Antibiotic Resistant Bacteria Worldwide (MDR Tuberculosis, MRSA, Vancomycin resistance)

• Vaccine Development and Worldwide Preparedness for Another Pandemic and Logistics of Global Vaccine Distribution (influenza, COVID-19, measles, and polio as examples)  

After the groups selected topics, the assignment required them to start with a formal literature review of the topic and decide on a data collection plan. Students then allocated duties to each group member, including collecting and collating the data comparing the two nations separately and analyzing the data to determine common themes within the groups and the differences between the two groups. Each group generated three to four questions to use for qualitative data collection from family and community member’s interviews to gather a “lived experience perspective” about the topic. Most student collaborations utilized a common group Google Doc and WhatsApp.

The final meeting was held synchronously for students to present their research projects. Each group described their findings using PowerPoint slides in an eight-to-10-minute collaborative oral presentation, which included the students’ reflections on the GOLE/COIL experience.

Climate change is a global crisis demanding global solutions. Education can play a pivotal role in fostering understanding, empathy, and the collaborative tools necessary to address this complex problem. Through participation in the GOLE/COIL research project, students from both New York and Durban, South Africa, were able to reflect and offer insight into some of climate change’s challenges through research and the personal experiences they documented from family and friends.

A key component of the GOLE/COIL experience where students work together on a collaborative project is knowledge sharing and hopefully the development of global empathy, respect, and cross-cultural relationships between students from different backgrounds, as well as the ability to connect their classroom learning to real-world challenges. Another benefit of the program is to promote the ability to work effectively in diverse teams and to empower students to become agents of change.

As one student reflected, “In my group, we focused on how extreme heat is increasing the spread of infectious diseases. This was a scary realization because it showed me how climate change affects public health. I had not thought about how warming temperatures could lead to more sickness and strain health-care systems. Discussing these impacts with my group from South Africa made me see the urgency of addressing climate change.”

By leveraging the unique strengths of both cities to address common challenges, international partnerships can not only equip students with knowledge, but also foster the skills and values necessary to address the global climate crisis and build a more sustainable and equitable future for all.