“At UC we are committed to making learning flexible and accessible, while also ensuring what we teach is future-focused and relevant to the challenges people face,” Professor Moran says. “Working with Christchurch City Council on this free initiative is another way we can extend those opportunities into the community.”
UC regularly partners with local organisations across Canterbury and nationally to co-create education that meets community and industry needs. This latest project with CCC builds on that approach, with UC extending reach to learners right across Aotearoa New Zealand.
The course links to CCC’s Climate Resilience Strategy, which supports the city’s response to climate change and its impacts. By helping people understand climate risks and adaptation options, it aims to give communities the knowledge they need to make informed decisions for the future.
Developed with input from climate practitioners, rūnanga, community members and academics across UC, including the School of Earth and Environment and the Department for Political Science and International Relations, the course adapts a successful CCC schools-based programme for adults. Learners will explore the difference between weather and climate, the role of human activity in driving change, and how both science and mātauranga Māori can deepen understanding.
UC Online will also make the course available at no cost to domestic learners, extending its reach to communities across Aotearoa New Zealand.
Council Climate Hazards Adaption Planning Team Leader Jane Morgan says the partnership with UC is a powerful example of local collaboration for long-term community benefit.
“Ultimately, this course is about empowering our communities. By making climate education more accessible, we’re helping people understand the risks and opportunities ahead – and, critically, how they can be part of the solution together,” Morgan says.
“We’re proud to be working with UC to bring this in-depth learning resource to Christchurch and Banks Peninsula residents, and national learners too, at no cost.”
The initiative follows earlier UC Online collaborations with national organisations, such as a custom project management micro-credential developed with Waka Kotahi.
The course offers around 30 hours of online learning over nine weeks, and learners who complete the course will receive a digital badge (certificate available on request). Enrolments will open later in the year, with the first learners beginning in February 2026.
Visit Tuihono UC | UC Online to learn more about the course and to register your interest in the first intake.
