Updated March 2007
EARTH EVENT 2007 : 1st March - 29th April 2007
Sustainability is a recently developed concept which has started to become embedded in schemes of work, textbooks and documents. The basic definition of sustainability is one which involves:
"meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs"
Brundtland Commission
Education for Sustainable Development
One good place to start is that of the BIO REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT team. This organisation is heavily involved in sustainable living developments and experiments. In May 2004, they started a project in Lisbon, Portugal. You can also read about this on the BBC site.
Try SUSTAINABILITY 2000.
Also try LIVING EARTH
Tropical Rainforests are a resource which can actually be worth more if left standing. Chico Mendes and his 'seringueiros': rubber-tappers lead a movement to protect the forest, but Chico ended up being shot in Government-related circumstances. Led to a song by Roy Harper - a recommended concert experience. Unsurprisingly, Chico's life story and struggle is chronicled at CHICO MENDES. COM: which is billed as a 'real time storybook adventure' called 'Rubber Jungle'. MORE HERE too. It's worth checking out more on this inspirational person.
An article on Chico from the UNEP here.
A link to the 2002 Earth Summit's site is HERE. There's another 'OFFICIAL' ONE here too.
There's also another SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT site here.
You can also get involved in FUTURE FORESTS.
One of the organisations / sites which people associated with this theme is the WWF. Several of my students look at this: unfortunately they're looking for details on 'The Rock', or the 'Royal Rumble'. WWF is the WORLDWIDE FUND FOR NATURE, and they have an OUR WORLD area of the website. They are also hosted a series of online debates. I have registered with WWF for these debates and look forward to meeting some of you there. It will be interesting to see what people have to say. One of the other advantages of registering your interest and getting your students to take part in some of the online debates is that they can receive some useful resources free from time to time. I recently received a very nice large set of newspaper blanks.
One way of supporting sustainable projects is to buy FAIR TRADE goods.
The site of BATH UNIVERSITY with links and discussion on relevant issues is useful.
If you want some ideas on developing a sustainability role-play, there's an undergraduate level one based in Wensleydale in the Yorkshire Dales that has been produced by Leeds University. It's called SusDale, and can be downloaded as a zipfile from HERE. (Note that there are other case studies at this site too - some of which are produced in association with the Environment Agency..)
The National Curriculum site is now up and running. It introduces yet another acronym: the snappy ESD: Education for Sustainable Development. Take a look HERE.
THIS SITE has a timeline of Sustainable Development.
A GOVERNMENT SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT site here.
Following on from the summit, there's a relatively new PEOPLE AND PLANET site. It comes from Planet 21. In the next half century, the world is expected to add another 3 million to the 6 billion already here. Consumption per capita is expected to double in the same time scale. These 2 trends will have a huge effect on the planet, and there will be particular problems in the cities of LEDCs. The site explores 15 key areas including Population, Development, Forests, Pollution, Food, Reproductive Health, Water, Oceans, Wildlife, Energy and Eco-tourism.
Noel Jenkins, who produces the HAMPSTEAD SCHOOL site and JUICY GEOGRAPHY alerted colleagues to the MESSENGERS site, which was organised by one of his students, who raised the funding and organised the posting of 10 000 posters in London with a message about the number of hungry people in the world, and tried to bring the issue to the attention of people to coincide with the Earth Summit 2002. It is a nicely laid out site with some good quotes and an inspiration to those of use who would quite like to do something but aren't sure what...
I have an excellent 'coffee-table' book by Yann Arthus-Bertrand (unfortunately, I have no coffee table). View some of his stunning pictures of THE EARTH FROM ABOVE here. Some good materials on this site, and he has a desire to spread his message, particularly with the careful captioning of the images. He has also launched several other sites: notably THE EARTH FROM THE AIR and YANN ARTHUS BERTRAND. The latter site has a section called UNDERSTANDING THE EARTH which looks at sustainable development. He recently had an exhibition at the Natural History museum, and I saw a touring exhibition in the centre of Birmingham in November 2004 (also had a go on the big wheel!)
Sustainability is a concept which relates to the idea of STEWARDSHIP.
Try the site of the FAO: Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations for more information.
A website launched in June 2004 by the EU's ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION AGENCY. In addition to their existing ECO AGENT website where you play the part of an ECO Agent and go on missions to learn about and save the environment, they have also launched a website based on the virtual island of HONOLOKO. This is a game where you need to be SUSTAINABLY MINDED in order to win. When I visited, nothing much happened, but it may do now so check it out.
My Globalisation / Jeans page now featured in the LOUGHBOROUGH UNIVERSITY SUSTAIN-A-BALLS page which has examples of resources for the teaching of Sustainable Development.
LESSON PLANS
1. FOOTPRINTS
This is the idea that we can measure the impact that our lifestyle has on the environment: if everyone was an American (we are told) the earth would not be enough for us... These are called Ecological Footprints (EFs)
A population's EF is:
" the total area of productive land or sea required to produce all the crops, meat, seafood, wood and fibre it consumes, to sustain its energy consumption and give space for its infrastructure." (WWF definition)
Go here for a QUIZ on EFs.
There are several sites which allow students to calculate ECO FOOTPRINTS, and this is a useful activity. Can also do a simple lifestyle questionnaire: "How Green are You" sort of thing...
Recent WWF Lifelines supplement for teachers had a useful article on this idea.
Daniel Raven Ellison of West Heath School in Berkshire has set up a great site which will have a QCA / RGS-IBG endorsed SoW
He is also a consultant on a fab new RGS mini-site on ESD. This can be seen by following the link HERE.
I was privileged enough to see Daniel's Teacher to Teacher session at the 2005 GA Conference.
He is also involved in a project to develop educational resources around the future development of SAO TOME AND PRINCIPE. This is a very poor country, but oil reserves have recently been discovered. He is heading out there in Summer 2005 to do some filming to see the impact that the oil is likely to have.
http://www.saotome-e-principe.org/Teaching%20about%20Sao%20Tome%20and%20Principe.html - has a CMap - this is an editable concept map.
2. E4S
Lots of lesson materials at Education 4 Sustainability.
3. There are plenty of RESOURCES and CASE STUDIES with TEACHERS' NOTES at the STEP site: Sustainable Technology Education Project.
Choose a few for pupils to resource. All of these are sustainable small-scale ideas which will make a big difference to people's lives.
4. Make sure that you subscribe to the SUSTRANS "ROUTES 2 ACTION" newsletter. Issue 5 (Winter 2004) contains a range of useful websites and project links:
Why not make your school an ECO SCHOOL. This is a project in association with SUSTRANS Safe Routes to School project. It allows schools to win a bronze, silver and Green Flag award. This is also related to the LIVING STREETS project.
Also mentions a number of other projects aimed at getting pupils walking to school. These include SHARE A JOURNEY.
5. Investigate areas relating to the SUSTAINABILITY of the CHRISTMAS period. We look at globalisation in the run up to Christmas and investigate the issue of toys, as manufactured in China.
Interesting headline THROWAWAY CHRISTMAS on the front of 'The Independent'.
6. The University of Leeds' School of the the Environment has produced an online resource. This looks at Environmental Indicators for Sustainable development, and is based on the area of the KALAHARI DESERT. The index page links to the activities and also a teachers' page with some materials. Go HERE to see the resource. New for 2005, and RECOMMENDED.
7. GCSE CASE STUDY SECTION
SUSTAINABLE AID PROJECTS
Small Scale Projects which could make a real difference
In the run up to Christmas 2005, several newspapers featured stories of projects which they were supporting, with the help of their readers. These were aimed at helping people help themselves and turn their lives around using simple ideas or technology. These were inspiring ideas and make excellent case studies. Here are a sample of the ones I collected and have made available to my students:
An Earthquake-proof housing project in Peru, operated by Practical Action
Helping children who scavenge for rubbish in Nakuru, Kenya by Practical Action
Wind-up radios provided to children who work crushing rocks near Dar es Salaam in Tanzania
Helping HIV+ people in Kenya improve their diet by growing vegetables
Sending 'Schools in a box' to help children in East Timor
Wind up radios (again) for Rwandan orphans - useful articles which talks about the problems of sourcing batteries in such areas...
8. Thanks to Rob Chambers on SLN Forum for locating this site:
http://www.dep.org.uk/scities/resources/downloads.php
Lots of excellent cartoons here. They act as a good stimulus.
9. BSI EDUCATION
The British Standards Institute has now added a set of new content for secondary students. New content for Geography and Citizenship for 11-14 year olds. Check them out HERE.
10. TEACHERNET has now added a very useful SUSTAINABLE SCHOOLS page.
This has a range of resources for schools to explore the idea of SUSTAINABILITY which is not just a good idea, it could also save them a lot of money! There are various ECO SCHOOLS schemes out there and we may get involved at some point.
http://www.teachernet.gov.uk/sustainableschools/
11. PLENTY OF INFORMATION ON MY KES PILOT GEOGRAPHY blog...
12. A new event at the FORUM in Norwich: EARTH EVENT AT THE FORUM
1st March to 29th April 2007
Linked to the National Framework for Sustainable Schools
8 doorways to explore issues and encourage action towards greater sustainability
Food and Drink
Energy and Water
Local well-being
Travel and Traffic
Purchasing and Waste
Global Citizenship
Buildings and Grounds
Inclusion and Participation
The exhibition has over 120 huge pictures, and displays of earth data, plus a huge world map. You can also see a short documentary and sign an eco-pledge.
Also has a 'View from the Ground' photo competition
Has a Change Climate Change - Start local ! exhibition which is organised with CARBON CONNECTIONS
On 1st - 3rd March, Dr. Keith Tovey from CRed will be offering a CARBON FOOTPRINT 'surgery'
There will also be, between 1st and 9th of March, a BOTTLE HOUSE, which is made from 1000 bottles to symbolise the amount of water we consume.
Also a seminar on SUSTAINABLE TRANSPORT at the FORUM in Norwich in March.
13. THE E-CUBE
More on this soon....
It is designed to fit into a fridge and reduce energy consumption...
We are going to be involved in this as part of our role in the Young People's Geographies scheme.
You can download the details from TEACHERNET. New GeographyPage coming soon...
