We designed the National Lottery-funded Good Life Schools programme as a positive response to the problem of excessive consumption, which is driving climate breakdown and destroying habitats.
Consumerism – our ‘buy, buy, buy’ culture – is recklessly promoted as the route to both economic success and personal happiness – with children and the environment as the resulting collateral damage.
Despite this, consumerism remains relatively unquestioned in society. Young people are exposed to more advertising than ever, particularly while using online platforms and social media, resulting in an increasing pressure to consume.
We all need to buy a certain amount to meet our basic needs, but studies show that prioritising materialistic life goals can be linked to decreased life satisfaction and happiness. Young people are being pushed towards high carbon lifestyles, often at the expense of their own wellbeing.
Schools can play an important part in helping students build resilience to consumption pressures and modelling low-consumption lifestyles.
Global Action Plan designed the National Lottery-funded Good Life Schools programme as a positive response to the problem of excessive consumption, which is driving climate breakdown and destroying habitats.
Take Action
Explore how your business or organisation can help us to bring the Good Life Schools programme into more schools.
The Good Life Schools programme is empowering students across schools in Leicester to challenge our consumerist society and actively contribute to a low-carbon future. By facilitating collaboration between schools and local communities, Good Life Schools is creating legacy of environmental changemakers who lead lives which have positive effect on the planet and their own wellbeing
- Leicester City Council
9,000+
young people, teachers and family members engaged
46
schools taking part
34
community partners supporting schools
73,000
people reached
The change we want to see
Helping students reclaim what makes a 'good life'. Good Life Schools is a four-step changemaker programme for student groups, supporting young people to reclaim control of their decisions about what makes a ‘good life’ for them, their community and our shared planet (and taking action against being manipulated into highly consumerist lifestyles by incessant advertising and social media).
The programme provides opportunities for young people to share their experiences and solutions to excessive consumption with others, through events in the local community, meetings with policy makers, films, articles (and even TV appearances!).
We are currently supporting schools in six regions across the UK. We offer free teacher training and student workshops led by members of the local community. These sessions provide practical skills, real-world perspectives and practical inspiration from people actively working towards positive change in their area.
The reason why the Good Life Schools project is so important is that the next generation need to learn how to question all our social norms and to create an entirely new and sustainable approach to good living.
Mike Berners-Lee
A celebration of all the young people, educators, organisations and supporters involved in the National Lottery funded Good Life Schools programme in 2025.
Our partners
Thanks to National Lottery players, Global Action Plan received over £1.1m from The National Lottery Community Fund to support Good Life Schools.
We work with partners across England and Wales to bring Good Life Schools to communities across the UK.
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