Building STEM career pathways and workforce diversity to address Australia’s future challenges - The Australian Academy of Technology and Engineering (ATSE) is pleased to provide input to the Australian

ATSE urges the Government to take action on the urgent priority of mitigating and adapting to climate change, and to prioritise science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education, career pathways, and workforce diversity to ensure we have the capacity to drive innovation in Australia’s recovery from COVID-19 and address future challenges. [...] STEM education and career pathways Increased use of inquiry- and problem-based pedagogies, taking advantage of industry partnerships, and introduction of new educational technologies Invest in skilled teachers, particularly in coding and other specific STEM disciplines A national approach to overcome the factors that discourage girls and women from studying STEM, and limit their opportunitie. [...] The direct economic cost may exceed $5 billion, with reduced economic growth in the order of 0.2-0.5%.1 The projected total cost to Australia’s economy is in the order of $70 billion, including costs associated with fighting fires, reconstruction, and loss of tourism.2 The severity and extent of the impact of climate change across Australia’s entire economy, environment and society is unknown, but. [...] Australia must adopt long-term, bipartisan policies and programs to support rapid and intensive deployment of technologies and measures to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions and adapt to the impacts of climate change. [...] Increasing the use of inquiry-based and problem-based pedagogies within STEM and other subjects, taking advantage of industry partnerships where appropriate, and exploring the use of new educational technologies will significantly improve the quality of education in Australia.