Abstract

This study represents Phase-2 of the international “Teachers as Climate Leaders – Teacher-led Climate Culture Model (TCCM)” research and extends earlier work on teacher leadership and school sustainability culture by integrating Artificial Intelligence (AI) as a key dimension shaping educational practice (Holmes et al., 2019; UNESCO, 2023). The study examines relationships among teachers’ use of AI, teacher agency, climate literacy, and digital equity within school contexts (Priestley et al., 2015; Warschauer & Matuchniak, 2010). Data were collected through international teacher and student surveys conducted across multiple countries, focusing on teachers’ AI confidence, school culture, perceptions of equity, and students’ climate understanding and engagement. Using a mixed-methods design, the study explores AI not merely as a technological tool but as a socio-educational factor influencing professional judgment, school climate, and students’ capacity to critically understand and act on climate issues (Williamson & Eynon, 2020; Selwyn, 2022). The findings contribute to current debates on AI in education, strengthen climate literacy discourse, and inform policy discussions related to COP31 and global climate-education frameworks (UNFCCC, 2022; UNESCO, 2020). Quantitative results indicate that AI use is strongly associated with teacher agency (r = .657), which is in turn aligned with more positive school-climate perceptions and student climate-literacy outcomes.

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