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Geography Honors Specialist – 2008 Unit Design

Grade 9 (Academic)

CGC1D – Geography of Canada

Unit 1: Sustainable Development and Reducing our Ecological Footprint

Time: 11 periods

Prepared by: Christine Sabetti and Hanna Porter

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Table of Contents

Course Description – CGC1D – Geography of Canada 3

Long Range Plan – Lesson Sequence and Scope 3-5

Course Expectations for each unit 5-6

Planning Considerations and Evaluation/ Assessment Suggestions 7

Course Resources 8

Descriptive Unit Overview

Unit 1 – Sustainable Development and Reducing our Ecological

Footprint

9

Lesson Scope and Sequence for Unit 1 9

Detailed Lesson Sequence for Unit 1 (Description for each lesson) 10-19

Ready Made Lesson – Life Cycle Analysis 20-48

Culminating Activity –Student Handout 49

Culminating Activity –Assessment/Evaluation (Rubric) & Footprint

Reduction Template

50-51

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Grade 9 (Academic) – CGC1D – Geography of Canada

Long Range Plan

Unit Unit Overview/Topics Skills and Culminating Unit Activities

Unit 1

Sustainable Development and Reducing our Ecological Footprint

(11 lessons)

In this unit, students are encouraged to think about the earth as a single self-contained unit. Students review each of the three spheres that make up the biosphere (hydrosphere, atmosphere, lithosphere) and consider ways in which they interact with each. This along with a review of renewable and non-renewable resources, will lay the foundation students require to fully appreciate the concept of life cycle analysis and what it means to be sustainable. An in-depth look at the Ecological Footprint analysis will excite students to work towards reducing their footprints

Geographic Skills: Graphic organizers and concept maps

Culminating Unit Activity: Ecological Footprint Potluck

Unit 2

Physical Connections

( 15 lessons)

The focus of this unit is to cover Canada’s physical regions focusing on how climate, tectonic forces and glaciation shaped Canada as we know it today, how it has shaped soil, vegetation and the repercussions for human/environment/economic interaction and ecological sustainability.

Geographic Skills: Mapping, Canada’s place names (Provinces and Territories), continents, oceans, latitude/ longitude, scale, climate graphs, GIS

Culminating Unit Activity: Write a letter to your local MP, asking them to commit to stricter carbon emission cuts and reasons why.

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Course Description:

In a world where change happens both slowly and predictably as well as fast and unforeseen, it is of utmost importance to make the connections between human systems and the environment, studying both local and global issues. The Grade 9 Geography course makes each student the starting point and draws on geographic concepts, skills, methods, and technologies to analyse significant issues facing Canadians as citizens of an interdependent world. Students will examine the challenges of creating a sustainable and equitable future through the study of physical, human and economic frameworks, and will develop an understanding of Canada’s diversity and its role in the world.


Unit 3

Economic Connections

(15 lessons)

Students develop an understanding of the vast natural resources found within Canada and their economic importance to the Canadian Economy. Students investigate fishing, farming, forestry, mineral exploration and energy use while focusing on sustainable yield management.

Geographic Skills: Interpreting data using an atlas (using legends), calculating-interpret data statistics, proposal writing

Culminating Unit Activity: Natural Resource Conference

Unit 4

Human Connections

(15 lessons)

Students demonstrate their understanding of the concepts of cultural diversity within the Canadian mosaic, population distribution and migration trends, as well as urban and rural population trends. Students are called upon to respect and celebrate the rich historical and cultural heritage of Canadian society with a certain emphasis put on Aboriginal issues .

Geographic Skills: Creating and interpreting graphs (population pyramids, demographic transition graph), recognizing and predicting trends,

Culminating Unit Activity: Kensington Market/Chinatown Fieldtrip

Unit 5

Global Connections

(15 lessons)

Students explore some current world issues, and look at sustainable development to ensure the preservation of environment and/or resources for future generations)

Geographic Skills: Time zones, HDI analysis, scatter graphs,

Culminating Unit Activity: Analyzing World Demographics assignment from the Monograph

Culminating Course Activity

(10 lessons)

Students are to complete a culminating PowerPoint presentation that clearly demonstrates the knowledge learned throughout the course and their role in becoming more sustainable individuals.

Individually, students will be assigned one ecozone of Canada to investigate. The task is to present the physical, climatic, economic and cultural diversity of this ecozone. The student also has to investigate a particular issue in this region focusing on ecological sustainability, stewardship and their personal involvement.

Geographic Skills:Research skills, presentation skills, effective use of PowerPoint, climate graphs, analyzing issues and statistics

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Course Expectations (Units 1-3)

Unit 1 Sustainable Development and our Ecological Footprint

Unit 2 Physical Connections

Unit 3 Economic Connections

Overall Expectations

HEA explain the relationship of Canada’s renewable and non-renewable resources to the Canadian economy;HEB analyse the ways in which natural systems interact with human systems and make predictions about the outcomes of these interactions;HEC evaluate various ways of ensuring resource sustainability in Canada.UMCB predict how current or anticipated changes in the geography of Canada will affect the country’s future economic, social, and environmental well-being;UMCC explain how global economic and environmental factors affect individual choices.

Specific Expectations

SS1 explain the terms and concepts associated with regions (e.g. “ecological footprint”);SS2 describe the characteristics of natural systems HE10 present findings from research on ways of improving the balance between human and natural systems (e.g., recycling, industrial initiatives to reduce pollution).HE11 analyse and evaluate the success, in environmental and economic terms, of local waste management methods;HE12 evaluate solutions to environmental problems proposed by various groups and make recommendations for sustainable resource use;HE13 recommend ways in which individuals can contribute to the quality of life in their home, local ecozone, province, nation, and the world.GC8 compare, in terms of resource use and consumption, the “ecological footprint” of an average Canadian with that of an average citizen in a developing country;.UMC2 explain how selected factors cause change in human and natural systems UMC6 analyse the positive and negative effects on people and the environment of the manufacture, transportation to market, and consumption of selected products UMC8 predict various global environmental changes and the impact they may have in the future on the occupations of Canadians in various sectors of the economy GIC1 develop and use appropriate questions to define a topic, problem, or issue and to focus a geographic inquiry;GIC7 use graphic organizers to clarify and interpret geographic information;GIC14 communicate the results of geographic inquiries, for different audiences and purposes, using a variety of forms and including geographic visual supports, both conventional and geotechnological


SSA describe the components and patterns of Canada’s spatial organization;SSC analyse local and regional factors that affect Canada’s natural and human systems.UMCA explain how natural and human systems change over time and from place to place;GICA use the methods and tools of geographic inquiry to locate, gather, evaluate, and organize information about Canada’s natural and human systems;


SS1 explain the terms and concepts associated with regions HE2 describe how natural systems influence cultural and economic activities GC3 explain how Canada’s natural systems form part of global natural systems UMC8 predict various global environmental changes and the impact they may have in the future on the occupations of Canadians in various sectors of the economy GIC1 develop and use appropriate questions to define a topic, problem, or issue and to focus a geographic inquiry;GIC2 gather geographic information from primary sources and secondary source to research a geographic issue;GIC3 evaluate the credibility of sources and the reliability and usefulness of information GIC6 identify and describe the technologies used in geographic inquiry GIC7 use graphic organizers to clarify and interpret geographic information;GIC8 use different types of maps to interpret geographic relationships, including changes over time in a specific location;GIC10 provide appropriate and sufficient geographic evidence and well-reasoned arguments, to support opinions and conclusions;


HEA explain the relationship of Canada’s renewable and non-renewable resources to the Canadian economy;HEB analyse the ways in which natural systems interact with human systems and make predictions about the outcomes of these interactions;HEC evaluate various ways of ensuring resource sustainability in Canada.UMCB predict how current or anticipated changes in the geography of Canada will affect the country’s future economic, social, and environmental well-being;UMCC explain how global economic and environmental factors affect individual choices.GICA use the methods and tools of geographic inquiry to locate, gather, evaluate, and organize information about Canada’s natural and human systems;SSB demonstrate an understanding of the regional diversity of Canada’s natural and human systems;SSC analyse local and regional factors that affect Canada’s natural and human systems.


SS3 describe the characteristics of human systems SS6 explain the geographical requirements that determine the location of businesses, industries, and transportation systems.SS13 predict future locations of businesses, industries, and transportation systems in Canada;HE1 explain how human activities affect, or are affected by, the environment;HE3 describe the regional distribution of Canada’s energy sources and the relative importance of each source;HE4 identify the role of government in managing resources and protecting the environment;HE6 assess the value of Canada’s key natural resources, including agricultural lands and wilderness;HE7 assess the feasibility of using selected renewable and alternative energy sources to implement conservation strategies;HE8 evaluate differing viewpoints on the benefits and disadvantages of selected resource megaprojects UMC2 explain how selected factors cause change in human and natural systems UMC4 analyse different perspectives on a geographic issue and present arguments supporting a point of view;UMC5 predict the consequences of human activities on natural systems GIC1 develop and use appropriate questions to define a topic, problem, or issue and to focus a geographic inquiry;GIC2 gather geographic information from primary sources and secondary source to research a geographic issue;GIC3 evaluate the credibility of sources and the reliability and usefulness of information GIC5 distinguish among opinion, argument, and fact in research sources;GIC8 use different types of maps to interpret geographic relationships, including changes over time in a specific location;GIC10 provide appropriate and sufficient geographic evidence and well-reasoned arguments, to support opinions and conclusions;GIC12 analyse a regional or national geographic issue on the basis of information gathered through research

Course Expectations (Units 4, 5 and Culminating Activity)

Unit 4 Human Connections Unit 5 Global Connections Culminating Activity

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GICA use the methods and tools of geographic inquiry to locate, gather, evaluate, and organize information about Canada’s natural and human systems;SSC analyse local and regional factors that affect Canada’s natural and human systems.


SS5 distinguish between the characteristics of urban and rural environments SS7 analyse variations in population density and use their findings to explain overall population patterns;SS8 illustrate and explain the regional distribution patterns of various peoples across Canada SS9 analyse the location pattern of recent First Nation land claims in Canada.SS10 identify criteria with which to evaluate the effect of government land use policy on planning in the local community;SS11 compare different ways of providing human systems for a territory and areas in southern Canada;SS12 use a reasoned argument to identify the best place to live in Canada and justify their choice;SS14 identify and describe examples of Canadian art that reflect natural or cultural landscapes.HE5 explain the ways in which the traditional ecological knowledge of Aboriginal peoples, including their concepts of place, wilderness, and boundaries, influences how they interact with their environment.UMC1 recognize the similarities among cultures and the need to respect cultural differences;UMC3 identify and explain the factors influencing demographics and migration in Canada.UMC7 evaluate the impact of change on a selected planning project GIC1 develop and use appropriate questions to define a topic, problem, or issue and to focus a geographic inquiry;GIC2 gather geographic information from primary and secondary source to research a geographic issue;GIC3 evaluate the credibility of sources and the reliability and usefulness of information GIC4 identify various career opportunities in the field of geography, and the educational requirements associated with them.GIC9 use appropriate statistical methods and categories of data in geographic analysis, observing accepted conventions;the results of geographic inquiries, for different audiences and purposes, using a variety of forms and including geographic visual supports, both conventional and geotechnological GIC15 use an accepted form of academic documentation to acknowledge all information sources, including electronic sources.


GCA describe how Canada’s diverse geography affects its economic, cultural, and environmental links to other countries;GCB analyse connections between Canada and other countries;GCC report on global issues that affect Canadians.UMCC explain how global economic and environmental factors affect individual choices.


GC1 explain the role of selected international organizations and agreements and why Canada participates in them GC2 summarize significant contributions Canada makes to the world GC4 compare Canada’s approaches to specific concerns with the approaches of other nations;GC3 evaluate Canada’s participation in organizations that deal with global issues GC5 Analyse the global distribution of selected commodities and determine Canada’s share of each GC6 summarize ways in which the economies of Canada and the rest of the world are interdependent;GC7 evaluate the importance of tourism to Canada’s economic development.GC9 produce a set of guidelines for developing a solution to a global geographic or environmental issue.GIC4 identify various career opportunities in the field of geography, and the educational requirements associated with them.GIC8 use different types of maps to interpret geographic relationships, including changes over time in a specific location;GIC9 use appropriate statistical methods and categories of data in geographic analysis, observing accepted conventions;GIC10 provide appropriate and sufficient geographic evidence and well-reasoned arguments, to support opinions and conclusions;


SS1 explain the terms and concepts associated with regions (e.g., bioregion, ecozone, “ecological footprint”, boundaries, transition zone, ecumene);GICA use the methods and tools of geographic inquiry to locate, gather, evaluate, and organize information about Canada’s natural and human systems;GICB analyse and interpret data gathered in inquiries into the geography of Canada, using a variety of methods and geotechnologies;GICC communicate the results of geographic inquiries, using appropriate terms and concepts and a variety of forms and techniques.


GIC1 develop and use appropriate questions to define a topic, problem, or issue and to focus a geographic inquiry;GIC2 gather geographic information from primary sources and secondary source to research a geographic issue;GIC3 evaluate the credibility of sources and the reliability and usefulness of information GIC6 identify and describe the technologies used in geographic GIC7 use graphic organizers to clarify and interpret geographic information;GIC8 use different types of maps to interpret geographic relationships, including changes over time in a specific location;GIC9 use appropriate statistical methods and categories of data in geographic analysis, observing accepted conventions;GIC11 collect and synthesize information about the local ecozone;GIC13 make planning decisions concerning a regional community after studying its existing natural and human systems GIC14 communicate the results of geographic inquiries, for different audiences and purposes, using a variety of forms and including geographic visual supports, both conventional and geotechnological;GIC15 use an accepted form of academic documentation to acknowledge all information sources, including electronic sources;GIC16 use appropriate terminology to communicate results of geographic inquiries.

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Planning Considerations

Since there is a real need for furthering the understanding of ecological sustainability, the “read thread” in this course is the students and their interdependence with the environment. Each unit in this course infuses the concept of ecological sustainability in the lessons and the culminating activities, and the students are given the chance to try skill sets pertinent to the course and the concept.

When planning each unit in the course, the lessons and topics should reflect the expectations outlined in the course culminating activity. Therefore a thorough understanding of the culminating activity is of utmost importance. The first unit – Sustainable Development and Reducing Our Ecological Footprint is placed at the beginning of the course to capture students’ attention early and to simulate discussion throughout the course reverting back to the concept taught in this unit. The following units will then address physical, economic, human and global connections, keeping ecological sustainability in focus.

When teaching the course, try to keep the class engaged through various teaching and learning strategies such as brainstorming, think-pair-share techniques, lectures, note making, mind mapping, the use of guest speakers, graphing, reading, discussion and debate and the use of current case studies. Make use of visual aids wherever possible and encourage participation from students by making them involved in the lessons through small group activities. Encourage students to reflect and consider their own values, actions, lifestyles, family and community when studying geographic issues. Apply learning to student’s own life to maintain their interest.

Assessment and Evaluation

Avoid assessing student’s knowledge through generic tests, quizzes and examinations. Several summative assessments ideas are provided at the end of each unit below. Students can demonstrate their learning in a variety of ways. Offer opportunities to improve student learning through ongoing feedback, clear expectations and modeled explores of assessment tasks.

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Course Resources

Books, Magazines and Atlases1. Clark, Bruce. W, Wallace, John. K, Earle, Kim. M: Making Connections: Canada’s

Geography, 2nd edition. Toronto, Pearson Education Inc., 20062. Swatridge, Leonard A. Canada: Exploring New Directions , 4th edition. Fitzhenry & Whiteside Ltd., 1999. 3. Cartwright, G. Birchall, Contact Canada, 2nd edition. Oxford University Press., 1996.4. Nystrom. The Nystrom Atlas of Canada and the World, Chicago, 2004 5. Stanford, Quentin. H, General Editor. The Canadian Oxford School Atlas , 8th Ed.

Toronto, Oxford University Press, 20036. The Monograph . Canada: Ontario Association for Geographic and Environmental Education

http://www.oagee.org

Internet Resources 1. World Climate www.worldclimate.com (Easy access to climate data from cities

around the world. Useful for climate graphs.)2. Google Earth http://earth.google.com/ (Can be downloaded and used to illustrate

topographic features and view arial pictures)3. Parks Canada www.pc.ca (Retrieve information from Canadian National Parks. Useful

for culminating activity)4. Redefining Progress http://www.myfootprint.org/en/ (Online ecological footprint

calculator)5. Environment Canada http://www.ec.gc.ca (Useful information and maps from various

ecozones in Canada) 6. Statistics Canada http://www.statcan.ca/7. CCEA http://www.ccea.org/ecozones/ (Useful information and maps from various ecozones in

Canada)8. The Canadian Biodiversity Website http://canadianbiodiversity.mcgill.ca/english/index.htm

(Useful information and maps from various ecozones in Canada)9. The Meatrix www.sustainabletable.org (Online video used to teach factory farming issues and

concepts)

Videos/ DVD/Guest speakers Resources 1. The Lorax (Video on environmental degradation)2. CBC News and Review (Series of 15-minute news segments on various issues. Offers

supplementary teaching aids)3. The Climate Change Show (Climate change video from Science North)4. Tapped Out: Water Resources (OSSFT documentary and lesson plans)5. Zoocheck Toronto (Guest speaker; factory farming)6. Evergreen (Guest speaker; conservation)7. Engineers Without Borders (Guest speaker; water)

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http://www.sustainabletable.org/

http://canadianbiodiversity.mcgill.ca/english/index.htm

http://www.ccea.org/ecozones/

http://www.statcan.ca/

http://www.ec.gc.ca/

http://www.myfootprint.org/en/

http://www.pc.ca/

http://earth.google.com/

http://www.oagee.org/


Descriptive Unit Overview

In this unit, students are encouraged to think about the earth as a single self-contained unit. Students review each of the three spheres that make up the biosphere (hydrosphere, atmosphere, lithosphere) and consider ways in which they interact with each. This along with a review of renewable and non-renewable resources, will lay the foundation students require to fully appreciate the concept of life cycle analysis and what it means to be sustainable. An in-depth look at the Ecological Footprint analysis will excite students to work towards reducing their footprints and they will put their new knowledge and skills to test while participating in the culminating activity.

Lesson and Time Required

Topics

Lesson 1:Introduction to Earth’s

systemsTime: 75 min

Our daily impacts on the environment Parts of the biosphere (lithosphere, atmosphere,

hydrosphere)

Lesson 2:Resources and SustainabilityTime: 75 min

Renewable and non-renewable resources Carrying capacity Phantom carrying capacity Sustainability

Lesson 3:Lessons Learned from the

LoraxTime: 75 min

Sustainability

Lesson 4:Where does our waste

go?Time: 150 min

Waste management Diversion methods (3Rs) Organics Toronto’s Target 70 Plan Waste Audit

Lesson 5:Life Cycle Analysis(Classroom Ready)

Time: 150 min

Life Cycle Analysis Consumption Energy Use

Lesson 6:Ecological Footprint

Time: 150 min

Ecological Footprint Indicators Regional Comparisons

Lesson 7:Culminating Activity

Time: 150 min

Pot Luck Activity – Making connections

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Unit 1: Sustainable Development and Reducing our Ecological Footprint


Detailed Lesson Sequence

Lesson 1 – Introduction to Earth’s systemsTime75 min

Description/Specific Outcomes:

In this lesson the students start with identifying personal daily activities (e.g. I had breakfast this morning, took the bus to school) and link these to the impact they have on the biosphere. The concept biosphere (atmosphere, lithosphere and hydrosphere) will be introduced and investigated. The students will have an opportunity to brainstorm issues that originate from their individual daily activities (e.g. air pollution from car transportation or waste from products I buy). Hopefully the following issues will be touched on; air/water pollution, extinction of species, sol degradation, climate change, problems with ozone layer.

ExpectationsOverall

HEB analyse the ways in which natural systems interact with human systems and make predictions about the outcomes of these interactions

Specific GIC7 use graphic organizers to clarify and interpret geographic information GIC14 communicate the results of geographic inquiries, for different audiences and

purposes, using a variety of forms and including geographic visual supports, both conventional and geotechnological

SS2 describe the characteristics of natural systems

Resources Chart paper and markers Overhead projector and transparencies of Biosphere (Hydrosphere, Lithosphere and

Atmosphere)

Assessment/Evaluation/Homework:

Homework: Students have to write an individual paragraph reflecting over the following question, “What do you think the underlying cause to all the issues discussed in class is and why? Explain!” (Answer should hopefully be consumption)

Assignment: The students will start conducting a two day waste audit. Students should compile a list of all their waste during breakfast, lunch, dinner and throughout the day, (examples; granola wrappers, leftover food, papers, gum, water bottles, pop cans etc.) Remind students to be as specific as possible. Teachers can design a worksheet based on the following template.

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Waste Audit

Day 1Time Activity Waste (products used) Method of disposal (e.g.

garbage, recycle, organic)Before School Snack – watching

TVEx: Granola bar wrapper

Ex: Garbage

During School

After School

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Lesson 2 – Resources and SustainabilityTime75 min


This lesson will start with the students doing a Think/Pair/Share activity trying to determine renewable and non-renewable resources in Canada. The class will engage in a discussion around what happens if these resources are not used properly and the concepts of sustainability, carrying/phantom carrying capacity will be introduced in a short PowerPoint presentation. At the end of the class the students will share their reflections completed for homework and the class will have a discussion around how overconsumption has lead to us not using our resources sustainably.

ExpectationsOverall

HEA explain the relationship of Canada’s renewable and non-renewable resources to the Canadian economy

HEC evaluate various ways of ensuring resource sustainability in CanadaSpecific

UMC2 explain how selected factors cause change in human and natural systems HE13 recommend ways in which individuals can contribute to the quality of life in their

home

Resources Chart paper and markers PowerPoint projector and slides 3 Scenario handouts


Homework: Students have to read three “Mini scenarios” and determine if the resources used are renewable or non-renewable and if the situation is sustainable or not.

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Lesson 3 – Lessons learned from the LoraxTime75 min


The lesson should begin with students working in groups sharing their answers on the three case studies completed for homework. A group decision has to be made and short class discussion can be conducted prior to watching the Lorax. After the class has completing this, the class will watch the video (25 minutes).

Once the class has finished, the teacher will lead a class discussion based on the following questions:

1. Who was affected by the Once-ler?2. How did the situation get so out of hand?3. Why was the Lorax telling the Once-ler how long eachTruffula tree seed took to

grow, and reach full size?4. What happened to the Bar-Ba-Loots when there were not enough trees? the sky

near the thneed factory? Swomee-Swans? and the Humming-Fish?5. What was the author's message concerning what one person can do to save or

destroy the environment? What did the once-ler mean by "UN-LESS"?6. Compare the Once-ler's attitude toward the environment at the beginning of the

story with his attitude at the end?

ExpectationsOverall

HEA explain the relationship of Canada’s renewable and non-renewable resources to the Canadian economy;

HEB analyse the ways in which natural systems interact with human systems and make predictions about the outcomes of these interactions;

HEC evaluate various ways of ensuring resource sustainability in Canada. UMCC explain how global economic and environmental factors affect individual choices.

Specific SS2 describe the characteristics of natural systems UMC2 explain how selected factors cause change in human and natural systems UMC6 analyse the positive and negative effects on people and the environment of the

manufacture, transportation to market, and consumption of selected products GIC1 develop and use appropriate questions to define a topic, problem, or issue and to focus a

geographic inquiry; HE12 evaluate solutions to environmental problems proposed by various groups and make

recommendations for sustainable resource use; HE13 recommend ways in which individuals can contribute to the quality of life in their home,

local ecozone, province, nation, and the world.

Resources The Lorax Video – or Book Discussion questions (overhead)

Assessment/Evaluation/Homework:None

Lesson 4 – Where does Our Waste Go?

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Time150 min


This lesson will give the students an opportunity to investigate in-depth what happens to our waste. They will look at both Landfills, Organic waste and the Three R’s (Reduce, Reuse and Recycle….and Refuse).

Day 1Start lesson with taking up homework.

Then the teacher will randomly put the following objects and times on the board (use little paper signs) and ask one student at a time to come up and try to match the item with the time. Students can refer to their peers for help.

HOW LONG WILL LITTER LAST? Cigarette butts ------------------------ 1-5 years Aluminum Cans and caps ----------------- 500 years Glass Bottles -------------------------- 1,000 years Plastic Bags --------------------------- 10-20 years Plastic Coated Paper ------------------- 5 years Plastic Film Containers ---------------- 20-30 years Nylon Fabric --------------------------- 30-40 years Leather -------------------------------- up to 50 years Wool Socks ----------------------------- 1-5 years Orange and Banana peels ---------------- up to 2 years Tin Cans ------------------------------- 50 years Plastic six-pac holders ---------------- 100 years Plastic bottles and styrofoam ----- Indefinitely

The class should brainstorm where our waste goes and the teacher should go through the following:

Structure of a landfill (what goes into our landfills, how much of our waste goes to landfills, what happens to our waste when it is there e.g. does it decompose or? Comparisons of landfills from around the world, hazards e.g. leaching into our water, cost of maintaining/disposal). At the end show a clip of an information video on Youtube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJ1HmzsLwqc

Organic waste (look at our green bins and what happens to its waste, composting, pros and cons, cost

Day 2

The Three R’s (Reduce, Reuse and Recycle…and Refuse).The teacher should bring in a variety of recyclable and non recyclable items (make sure the items are clean and safe) to the classroom. Have class in a circle in the middle of the room. Dump out the items and ask them to sort them by garbage, recyclable and items we can “reduce” i.e. not buy.

After, class should brainstorm different items that can be recycled, what we recycle in Toronto, why Toronto has a 70% recycling target, the difference between green and blue bin, what happens to our recycled items? Teacher can show them a little clip from Youtube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bHs1wTD4tW8

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bHs1wTD4tW8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJ1HmzsLwqc


Then the students should bring out their waste audits. Share with class. The students should complete a pie chart using the following categories; landfill, organics and recyclables.

ExpectationsOverall


HEC evaluate various ways of ensuring resource sustainability in Canada.Specific

HE10 present findings from research on ways of improving the balance between human and natural systems (e.g., recycling, industrial initiatives to reduce pollution).

HE11 analyse and evaluate the success, in environmental and economic terms, of local waste management methods;

HE12 evaluate solutions to environmental problems proposed by various groups and make recommendations for sustainable resource use;

GIC1 develop and use appropriate questions to define a topic, problem, or issue and to focus a geographic inquiry;

GIC7 use graphic organizers to clarify and interpret geographic information; GIC14 communicate the results of geographic inquiries, for different audiences and

purposes, using a variety of forms and including geographic visual supports, both conventional and geotechnological

Resources Paper signs with time and items (see list above) Computer/Projector/Internet connection Recyclable and non recyclable items Paper, compasses, protractors, pencil crayons www.toronto.ca/garbage/index.htm


Pie charts will be evaluated using rubric

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http://www.toronto.ca/garbage/index.htm


Lesson 5 – Lifecycle Analysis **READY MADE LESSON FOR TEACHERS**Time 150 min

Description/Specific Outcomes:This lesson introduces students to the Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) concept. This lesson is intended to get students thinking about the Life Cycle of their everyday products. This lesson uses cooperative learning techniques and allows students to work on their presentation skills. Students are placed in groups where each group is to investigate one of the following items: Clothing, Meat, Fast Food, Chocolate, Plastic Bags, and Paper. Each handout explains the product in terms of how it affects human health and the environment and also provides tips for what we can do to minimize these effects. The handouts are provided by the World Watch Institute- http://www.worldwatch.org/pubs/goodstuff/. The Culminating Activity is introduced in this lesson, groups should be formulated and group planning should begin.

This lesson is complete with teacher instructions, teacher notes, group presentation handouts, overheads and readings. It is found at the end of the lesson sequence on pages 20 - 48.

ExpectationsOverall




SS1 explain the terms and concepts associated with regions (e.g. “ecological footprint”); GIC7 use graphic organizers to clarify and interpret geographic information

Resources Overheads Folders with jigsaw assignment sheets (Item Handouts: Clothing, Meat, Fast Food. Chocolate,

Plastic Bags and Paper) Article (1 per student) Wasting Away: Natural Resources and the Environment (attached) 4Rs Think Pause Sheet (1 per student)

Assessment/Evaluation/Homework:Assessment: Mini presentations.Homework: On day two, students can do further research on the product to which they will present

the impacts on.

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Lesson 6 – Ecological Footprint AnalysisTime150 min

Description/Specific Outcomes:This lesson is designed to integrate all the concepts learned in previous lessons. Students will be familiar with the use of various indicators and there use. Students will make regional comparisons based on various footprint indices and make connections why some regions of the world might have smaller/larger footprints than others. Students will also make use of an online footprint calculator to perform their individual ecological footprint.

Day 1In this lesson, student will be introduced to the idea of comparing countries through the use of indicators. The teacher should begin the lesson by examining familiar indicators to compare all sorts of topics (ex: Weight = pounds; education = literacy rates; health care = life expectancy; economic health = gross domestic product). Students should recognize how one number can explain a lot about a country’s situation.

The teacher can now introduce the indicator “Ecological Footprint”. Teaches can be as creative as they wish when teaching this final concept.

Suggestions include:1. Draw a rectangular shape on the board and illustrate a sections to represent their

consumption for their entire life. For example: a section with…a. trees for all the paper and wood productsb. farmland/grazing land for meatc. water for drinking, showers, toilets and cookingd. space for mineral and fossil fuel extraction for products and energy

Teachers can compare this ‘rectangle’ and ask how it might be different for other people around the world. Ex: Japanese people would have less graxing area since meat is not a large part of their diet.

2. Have different footprints of different sizes and have students match the footprints to the different countries listed on the board.

3. Using PowerPoint to show different slides that illustrate varying degrees of “consumption”. Photos that show: excessive energy use subsistence living “small villages” shopping collecting water from a well contrasted with a lavish bathroom traffic a landfill

Once the concept has been taught, teachers can explain how ones footprint is calculated. This should include the 3 footprints outlined in ‘Making Connections’

a) Food, Fiber and Timberb) Energy Footprintc) Built-up Land Footprint

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Day 2 Teachers should book the computer lab and perform the ecological footprint calculator using the redefining progress website.

This can be done using the paper version if computers cannot be reserved. In either case, the teacher should consider reading the questions together since some maybe hard to answer/calculate.

ExpectationsOverall




GC8 compare, in terms of resource use and consumption, the “ecological footprint” of an average Canadian with that of an average citizen in a developing country;

SS1 explain the terms and concepts associated with regions (e.g. “ecological footprint”) UMC8 predict various global environmental changes and the impact they may have in the

future on the occupations of Canadians in various sectors of the economy

Resources PowerPoint Projector Book Computer Lab

Assessment/Evaluation/Homework:1. Homework (day 1) – read pages 520-530 in Making Connections: Canada’s Geography, 2nd

edition. Toronto, Pearson Education Inc., 2006. Answer questions 1-5 Question 6 on page 530 is a good question to complete in groups.

2. Ecological Footprint and results.

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Lesson 7 – Culminating Activity - Ecological Footprint ChallengeTime150 min


In this lesson the students will have an opportunity to put all their newfound knowledge and skills to test. The students will individually choose a recipe that they want to cook for a class potluck. The recipe should be chosen based on a variety of factors, all which should ultimately reduce the student’s ecological footprint. The students have to keep a footprint reduction checklist and will have to justify the choices they make. They will also have to write a reflection based on the process, the choices they made and the outcomes. In the end the class will have a potluck where we share our experiences.

ExpectationsOverall

HEA explain the relationship of Canada’s renewable and non-renewable resources to the Canadian economy

HEC evaluate various ways of ensuring resource sustainability in CanadaSpecific

UMC2 explain how selected factors cause change in human and natural systems HE13 recommend ways in which individuals can contribute to the quality of life in their

home

Resources Assignment handout Footprint reduction checklist Computer lab time If possible, access to Smart Ideas (software program)


Homework: Students have to complete the recipe, checklist, reflection at home. They will be evaluated using the rubric attached to the assignment handout.

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Classroom Ready Lesson – Lesson 6 Life Cycle Analysis

Time required: 2 periods

Lesson Description: This lesson introduces students to the Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) concept. This lesson is intended to get students thinking about all the energy and resources that go into producing any product considering the overall impact each product they consume creates. This lesson uses cooperative learning techniques and allows students to work on communication and presentation skills. Students are placed in groups where each group investigates one of the following items: Clothing, Meat, Fast Food, Chocolate, Plastic Bags, and Paper. Each handout explains the product in terms of how it affects human health and the environment and also provides tips for what we can do to minimize these effects. The handouts are provided by the World Watch Institute at http://www.worldwatch.org/pubs/goodstuff/.

Planning InformationExpectations Overall




SS1 explain the terms and concepts associated with regions (e.g. “ecological footprint”);

GIC7 use graphic organizers to clarify and interpret geographic information;

Prior Knowledge Required

A conceptual understanding of the ecological systems and cycles and how they interact with each other.

Natural Resources (renewable and non-renewable) An understanding of the concept ‘Sustainability ‘ Knowledge of waste diversion methods

Resources Agenda Overheads 1 - 3 (attached) Item Handouts: Clothing, Meat, Fast Food.

Chocolate, Plastic Bags and Paper Culminating Activity student handout Article (1 per student) Wasting Away:

Natural Resources and the Environment 4Rs Think Pause Sheet (1 per student) Graffiti Activity – prepare these questions

on chart paper ahead of time. Large markers for graffiti activity

Day 1 1. Hook2. Lesson: Introduction of LCA3. Group work: A look at the items and their

impacts on the environment and people.

Day 24. Mini-Presentations5. Reading: Wasting Away: Natural Resources

and the Environment (attached) 6. Discussion on 4Rs think pause7. Graffiti Activity

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Lesson

Mental Set/Sharing Expectations

1. (10-15 minutes) Hook: a) In pairs, ask students to choose one product they own (iPod, hairbrush, shoes, etc…)

b) Using overhead 1, ask students to think about the item, i.e.: where did it come from? Where was it made? Who made it? What was needed to make it? And did it have any effects on the planet or people?

c) Together, have students create a mind map of all the resources that go into the production and manufacturing of that product. Attribute all the environmental impacts (e.g. pollution creating from energy use, mineral extraction and shipping) that are created through life span of that produce (e.g., production, manufacturing, use and disposal of the item). Allow 5- 10 minutes for this.

2. Share Expectations: Explain how all of our ‘things’ (products) somehow create an impact on the environment, human health or on our culture. Ask students to share with the class some interesting things they thought of when they analyzed the item they choose. Tell students that today we will be exploring a few of the environmental and health consequences to some of our everyday items.

Input/Check for Understanding/Modeling & Practice

3. (20-30 minutes) Explain the concept of the Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) also known as Cradle to Grave. Review teacher’ notes if needed. Use overhead 2

Definitions of Life Cycle Analysis (LCA): The examination of everything that happens in the manufacture, use, and disposal of a product, from the time the raw materials are taken from the earth to the time the product is thrown away and is added to the ecosystem. The basic idea of LCA is to identify and evaluate all the environmental impacts of a given product. Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a tool used to evaluate the potential environmental impact of a product, process or activity throughout its entire life cycle by quantifying the use of resources ("inputs" such as energy, raw materials, water) and environmental emissions ("outputs" to air, water and soil) associated with the system that is being evaluated.

For a typical product, LCA takes into account the supply of raw materials needed to produce the product, the manufacturing of intermediates and finally the product itself, including packaging, transportation of raw materials, intermediates and the product, use of the product and disposal of the product after use.

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4. Using overhead 3, briefly model the life cycle using the overhead projector (since it is conveniently in front of the class).

a) Explain how: “the plastic parts of the overhead projector were refined from petroleum, the glass was made from sand and miners were working hard, let’s say northern Canada, mining for metals in order to make each of the metal parts. Then all these parts were shipped (trucks=pollution) to a manufacturing plant where they were assembled to make this overhead. The overhead was then extensively packaged (using plastic covering, cardboard boxes (cutting trees – loss of habitat etc) and shipped (again, using trucks = pollution) to a store where it was then bought by your school. Then while you are using it, you need electricity, bulbs, it creates pollution and after it can no longer be used we need to dispose of it.” At each stage there was an impact on the planet and human health!

5. Next, explain how the concept of LCA is used (see overhead 2).

to identify sources of most significant environmental impacts to set criteria for environmental labeling to provide manufacturers with information for design or re-design of

products to decrease energy use, input of materials, solid wastes, hazardous or

troublesome materials or wastes as a basis for advertising claims.

6. Activity (20 minutes) Once you have finished explaining the LCA have students arrange themselves in groups of 4. Distribute one item to each group: clothing, meat, fast food, chocolate, plastic bags and paper (handouts are attached). On chart paper, students are to summarize the effects on the environment, human health and culture or social impacts by creating a mini LCA of the item. (You may have to review examples of social or cultural impacts before they begin).

7. Students may be as creative as they wish for this mini presentation and may want to do some additional research at home. This activity will take you to the end of the period.

Day 2

8. Mini-Presentations (25-30 minutes) Begin today’s class having students share their mini-presentation they worked on yesterday with the class interesting about the LCA of the item (5 minutes each)

9. Reading (20 minutes). Read together as a class the article entitled Wasting Away: Natural Resources and the Environment. The teacher should read this with students in order to clarify concepts and to ensure that each student actually reads it because the article ties the concepts of this unit together nicely. Quietly, students are to fill out the 4Rs Think Pause Sheet.

10. Ask students to share their answers with the class (pick and choose which questions you would like students to share depending on the time)

1. what are the main themes/concepts?

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2. what are the essential I want to remember?3. what reactions do I have to this? What insight do I now have?4. what does the author mean by “The environment is affected at every stage of the

chain”?

11. Graffiti Activity (30 Activity) This is a good time to get the students out of there seats and talk about extending ideas/thoughts in small groups of three. The teacher should prepare these statements ahead of time so that they are ready to be placed on the chart paper.

The statements below are to be written prior to the lesson on chart paper or printed on a paper and taped/glued to the chart paper.

Teacher should explain how each of the statements on the chart paper are statements that the students should either agree or disagree with. Teacher should arrange students in groups of three. Students should write down thoughts – why they agree or disagree with each statement. Allow 3-5 minutes per chart paper. When the teacher signals, groups are to move to the next chart paper.

1. The media plays a large role in determining a society’s consumption level.2. Canadians are consuming far more than Canadians were 10 years ago.3. Our exploitation of resources will not harm the environment.4. Products that are more hazardous to produce or to dispose of should have an additional

tax placed on them.5. Consumption patterns differ from place to place only because of culture.6. Is it ok for other parts of the world to be affected by our pollution.7. Canadians are already doing everything they can to be more environmentally friendly.8. Businesses should take more responsibility for the waste they produce.9. It is impossible for apartment buildings to divert their waste (i.e. recycle and organic

waste)10. Buying things make people happier.

Once students have all had a chance to respond to each of the statements, the teacher can instruct the initial group (who is at the initial chart paper) to circle one agree and one disagree statement response that they liked the best.

Additional Considerations

Accommodations/Adjustments:1. Modification – If the concept if not being grasped, the teacher can perform a LCA of another item together with the class.

Lesson Assessment:1. Formative Assessment: Brief Presentation of

the groups LCA of their item2. Students are to read the LCA article for hmwk,

and fill out the 4Rs Think Pause Sheet which will be discussed and informally assessed.

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Teacher’s Notes

Life cycle analysis and assessment

The concept of conducting a detailed examination of the life cycle of a product or a process is a relatively recent one which emerged in response to increased environmental awareness on the part of the general public, industry and governments.

The immediate precursors of life cycle analysis and assessment (LCAs) were the global modelling studies and energy audits of the late 1960s and early 1970s. These attempted to assess the resource cost and environmental implications of different patterns of human behaviour.

LCAs were an obvious extension, and became vital to support the development of eco-labelling schemes which are operating or planned in a number of countries around the world. In order for eco-labels to be granted to chosen products, the awarding authority needs to be able to evaluate the manufacturing processes involved, the energy consumption in manufacture and use, and the amount and type of waste generated.

To accurately assess the burdens placed on the environment by the manufacture of an item, the following of a procedure or the use of a certain process, two main stages are involved. The first stage is the collection of data, and the second is the interpretation of that data.

A number of different terms have been coined to describe the processes. One of the first terms used was Life Cycle Analysis, but more recently two terms have come to largely replace that one: Life Cycle Inventory (LCI) and Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). These better reflect the different stages of the process. Other terms such as Cradle to Grave Analysis, Eco-balancing, and Material Flow Analysis are also used.

Whichever name is used to describe it, LCA is a potentially powerful tool which can assist regulators to formulate environmental legislation, help manufacturers analyse their processes and improve their products, and perhaps enable consumers to make more informed choices. Like most tools, it must be correctly used, however. A tendency for LCAs to be used to 'prove' the superiority of one product over another has brought the concept into disrepute in some areas.

What is a Life Cycle Analysis?

Taking as an example the case of a manufactured product, an LCA involves making detailed measurements during the manufacture of the product, from the mining of the raw materials used in its production and distribution, through to its use, possible re-use or recycling, and its eventual disposal.

LCAs enable a manufacturer to quantify how much energy and raw materials are used, and how much solid, liquid and gaseous waste is generated, at each stage of the product's life.

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Such a study would normally ignore second generation impacts, such as the energy required to fire the bricks used to build the kilns used to manufacture the raw material.

However, deciding which is the 'cradle' and which the 'grave' for such studies has been one of the points of contention in the relatively new science of LCAs, and in order for LCAs to have value there must be standardization of methodologies, and consensus as to where to set the limits. Much of the focus worldwide to date has been on agreeing the methods and boundaries to be used when making such analyses, and it seems that agreement may have now been reached.

While carrying out an LCA is a lengthy and very detailed exercise, the data collection stage is - in theory at least - relatively uncomplicated, provided the boundary of the study has been clearly defined, the methodology is rigorously applied, and reliable, high-quality data is available. Those of course are fairly large provisos.

Interpretation

While such a record is helpful and informative, on its own it is not sufficient. Having first compiled the detailed inventory, the next stage should be to evaluate the findings.

This second stage - life cycle assessment - is more difficult, since it requires interpretation of the data, and value judgments to be made.

A Life Cycle Inventory will reveal - for example - how many kilos of pulp, how much electricity, and how many gallons of water, are involved in producing a quantity of paper. Only by then assessing those statistics can a conclusion be reached about the product's environmental impact overall. This includes the necessity to make judgments based on the assembled figures, in order to assess the likely significance of the various impacts.

Problems

It is here that many of the problems begin. Decisions, without scientific basis, such as whether three tonnes of emitted sulphur is more or less harmful than the emission of just a few pounds of a more toxic pollutant, are necessarily subjective.

How can one compare heavy energy demand with heavy water use: which imposes greater environmental burden?

How should the use of non-renewable mineral resources like oil or gas (the ingredients of plastics) be compared with the production of softwoods for paper?

How should the combined impacts of the landfilling of wastes (air and groundwater pollution, transport impacts etc) be compared with those produced by the burning of wastes for energy production (predominantly emissions to air)?

Some studies attempt to aggregate the various impacts into clearly defined categories, for example, the possible impact on the ozone layer, or the contribution to acid rain.

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Others go still further and try to add the aggregated figures to arrive at a single 'score' for the product or process being evaluated. It is doubtful whether such simplification will be of general benefit.

Reliable methods for aggregating figures generated by LCA, and using them to compare the life cycle impacts of different products, do not yet exist. However, a great deal of work is currently being conducted on this aspect of LCAs to arrive at a standardized method of interpreting the collected data.

Contradictions

Many LCAs have reached different and sometimes contradictory conclusions about similar products.

Comparisons are rarely easy because of the different assumptions that are used, for example in the case of food packaging, about the size and form of container, the production and distribution system used, and the forms and type of energy assumed.

To compare two items which are identically sized, identically distributed, and recycled at the same rate is relatively simple, but even that requires assumptions to be made. For example, whether deliveries were made in a 9-tonne truck, or a larger one, whether it used diesel or petrol, and ran on congested city centre roads where fuel efficiencies are lower, or on country roads or motorways where fuel efficiencies might be better.

Comparisons of products which are dissimilar in most respects can only be made by making even more judgments and assumptions.

Preserving the confidentiality of commercially-sensitive raw data without reducing the credibility of LCAs is also a major problem. Another is the understandable reluctance of companies to publish information which may indicate that their own product is somehow inferior to that of a competitor. It is not surprising that many of the studies which are published, and not simply used internally, endorse the views of their sponsors.

Recycling

Recycling introduces a further real difficulty into the calculations. In the case of materials like steel and aluminum which can technically be recycled an indefinite number of times (with some melt losses), there is no longer a 'grave'. And in the case of pa-per, which can theoretically be reprocessed four or five times before fibres are too short to have viable strength, should calculations assume that it will be recycled four times, or not? What return rates, for example, should be assumed for factory-refillable containers?

For both refillable containers and materials sent for recycling, the transport distance in each specific case is a major influence in the environmental impacts associated with the process.

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An LCA which concludes that recycling of low-value renewable materials in one city is environmentally preferable may not hold good for a different, more remote city where reprocessing facilities incur large transport impacts.

LCA in waste management

LCA has begun to be used to evaluate a city or region's future waste management options. The LCA, or environmental assessment, covers the environmental and resource impacts of alternative disposal processes, as well as those other processes which are affected by disposal strategies such as

different types of collection schemes for recyclables, changed transport patterns and so on.

The complexity of the task, and the number of assumptions which must be made, is shown by the simplified diagram (above) showing some of the different routes which waste might take, and some of the environmental impacts incurred along the way. Those shown are far from exhaustive.

Why perform LCAs?

LCAs might be conducted by an industry sector to enable it to identify areas where

improvements can be made, in environmental terms. Alternatively the LCA may be intended to provide environmental data for the public or for government. In recent years, a number of major companies have cited LCAs in their marketing and advertising, to support claims that their products are 'environmentally friendly' or even 'environmentally superior' to those of their rivals. Many of these claims have been successfully challenged by environmental groups.

All products have some impact on the environment. Since some products use more resources, cause more pollution or generate more waste than others, the aim is to identify those which are most harmful.

Even for those products whose environmental burdens are relatively low, the LCA should help to identify those stages in production processes and in use which cause or have the potential to cause pollution, and those which have a heavy material or energy demand.

Breaking down the manufacturing process into such fine detail can also be an aid to identifying the use of scarce resources, showing where a more sustainable product could be substituted.

Inconclusive

In most situations it is impossible to prove conclusively using LCAs that any one product or any one process is better in general terms than any other, since many parameters cannot be simplified to the degree necessary to reach such a conclusion.

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It seems likely that, in the case of manufactured goods, the most important time for LCA information to be taken into consideration is at the design stage of new products. Where LCA is used to evaluate procedures rather than products, the information can help ensure appropriate choices are made.

Tool

Life Cycle Analysis must be used cautiously, and in the interpretation of the inventory, care must be taken with subjective judgments.

When first conceived, it was predicted that LCA would enable definitive judgments to be made. That misplaced belief has now been discredited. In combination with the trend towards more open disclosure of environmental information by companies, and the desire by consumers to be guided towards the least harmful purchases, the LCA is a vital tool.

SourceWorld Resource Foundationhttp://www.gdrc.org/uem/lca/life-cycle.html

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Overhead 1

Look at your stuff…

Where did they come from?Where were they made?

Who made them?What was needed to make them?

Did they have any effect on the planet or people?

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LCA is used:

1. to identify sources of most significant environmental impacts

2. to set criteria for environmental labeling

3. to provide manufacturers with information for design or re-design of products

4. to decrease energy use, input of materials, solid wastes, hazardous or troublesome materials or wastes

5. as a basis for advertising claims.


Overhead 2

What is life cycle analysis (LCA)?Determination of the environmental impacts of a product resulting from all

stages of its production, use and disposal

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Overhead 3

Stage Natural Resources Impacts1. Extraction (supply) of raw materials2. Transport

3. Manufacturing

4. Packaging

5. Use

6. Disposal

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Life Cycle Analysis of the Overhead


A. Clothing: The High Price of Fashion

Everyone needs clothes. They shelter us from the elements and define our personal style. Unfortunately, the shirt on your back may be more expensive than you thought—both for the environment, and for the workers that made it. The conventional way of growing cotton, the most common fabric material, relies on heavy inputs of insecticides, herbicides, and chemical fertilizers, many of which are known or probable carcinogens. Dyes used in clothing can contain toxic chemicals, while permanent press treatment can release formaldehyde gas, also a likely carcinogen.

Most of the world's clothing is manufactured in sweatshops in poorer countries, where workers earn less than they need to live, face cramped or unsanitary conditions, and are often subjected to physical, sexual, and verbal abuse. First-hand accounts from factories producing for many designer companies report that people often work more than 100 hours a week, and unions are not permitted.

As global awareness of the real price of fashion grows, many consumers as well as some clothing manufacturers are leading the push for more eco- and worker-friendly apparel.

Did You Know…?The number of garments bought by U.S consumers increased 73 percent between 1996 and 2001, while

apparel prices have fallen 10 percent over the past decade.

By 2001, the average U.S. consumer bought 48 new pieces of clothing a year. Rates of consumer discard, meanwhile, rose by 10 percent a year throughout the 1990s, according to Goodwill.

Sweatshop workers in Mexico earn 85 cents an hour for their labor, while in Indonesia the pay is only 15 cents an hour. Even in the United States, a worker may earn less than $5 for making a garment that will sell for $100.

A cotton T-shirt blended with polyester can release approximately one quarter of its weight in air pollutants and 10 times its weight in carbon dioxide.

Each 100-percent organic cotton T-shirt you buy eliminates the use of 150 grams of agricultural chemicals.

Success!Organic cotton growing accounts for only 0.03 percent of the world's cotton, but is expanding. At one Egyptian

farm, organic cultivation has boosted cotton yields by more than 30 percent, and the fiber is processed into textiles without any synthetic chemicals.

In 2001, the sportswear manufacturer Nike helped launch Organic Exchange, a network of 55 businesses that aims to expand the use of organic cotton in manufacturing over the next 10 years. More than a third of the cotton clothes Nike produced in 2001 contained at least 3 percent certified organic fiber.

Though it's illegal in the United States, hemp farming is permitted in much of Europe and Asia and was legalized in Canada in 1998. Organic wool and linen are also popular natural fiber alternatives.

The growing global movement to end worker abuse in clothing manufacture has forced many sweatshop users out of hiding. In the United States, student activists have demanded that their schools contract only with “sweat-free” producers, and new companies like American Apparel and SweatX are pioneering the fair trade apparel market.

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Simple Things You Can Do:Avoid clothing brands that have been known to use sweatshops. In the United States, these include Wal-Mart,

Gap (Old Navy, Banana Republic), and Target.

Purchase at least some items from up-and-coming fair trade brands and makers of organic cotton and natural fiber clothing.

Donate your old clothes to thrift shops, or buy inexpensive “recycled” garments from these stores.

Write to sweatshop-using companies to tell them you won't give them your business until they stop outsourcing to sweatshops.

Challenge Yourself and Others:Next time you shop for clothes, check labels before you buy. Educate yourself about how and where these items are manufactured. Buy fair trade and organic/natural fiber items, or shun the mall altogether and take your next shopping trip to a thrift store.

For more InformationGlobal Exchange (www.globalexchange.org) is an international human rights organization dedicated to

promoting environmental, political, and social justice, including in the global garment industry.

BehindtheLabel.org (www.behindthelabel.org) provides information on labor abuses in the clothing industry and offers a range of consumer tips for buying sweatshop-free apparel.

Sustainable Cotton Project (www.sustainablecotton.org) works with farmers, manufacturers, and consumers to pioneer markets for certified organically grown cotton.

North American Industrial Hemp Council (naihc.org) offers information on the hemp industry, with the goal of reestablishing and expanding the use of industrial hemp in North America.

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http://naihc.org/

http://www.sustainablecotton.org/

http://www.behindthelabel.org/

http://www.globalexchange.org/


B. Meat: This Little Piggy Went to the Global Market

Meat production has increased by 500 percent since 1950. Today, most animals are raised on industrial “factory farms” that are displacing sustainable family farms. Thousands of animals are crowded in unsanitary conditions, spending their entire lives indoors without sunlight or pasture. To prevent disease from these inhumane practices, antibiotics are added to feed, contributing to the worldwide growth of antibiotic resistant bacteria. Vast amounts of manure pollute rivers and streams, causing toxic pollution of air and water and endangering human health.

Community opposition has prompted corporations to move their mega-farms to developing countries where environmental regulations are less strict. Because the time to ship from farm to store takes longer, industry “nukes” our meat

with irradiation—prolonging “shelf-life”—despite evidence that irradiation is unsafe and dangerous. One day soon, you may find that your hamburger was raised half way around the world, irradiated, and flown thousands of miles before landing on your dinner plate.

Did You Know…?Global meat consumption is expected to grow 2 percent each year until 2015, especially in developing

countries where eating meat is seen as a sign of wealth and prosperity. Half of the world's pork is now eaten in China, while Brazil is the second largest consumer of beef, after the United States.

Forty-three percent of the world's beef is raised on factory feedlots, and more than half of the world's pork and poultry is raised on factory farms.

Animals raised in feedlots accumulate Omega 6 fatty acids (the bad fats), which have been linked with cancer, diabetes, obesity, and immune disorders.

Belching, flatulent livestock emit 16 percent of the world's annual production of methane, a powerful greenhouse gas.

In 1995, 25 million gallons of hog waste spilled from an 8-acre lagoon into a river in the United States, killing 10 million fish.

An estimated 70 percent of all antibiotics in the U.S. are fed to pigs, poultry, and cattle merely to promote growth and compensate for the unsanitary and confined conditions on factory farms. By volume, livestock in the country consume eight times more antibiotics than humans do.

With its high meat content, the average U.S. diet requires twice as much water per person per day as an equally nutritious vegetarian diet. A meat-rich meal made with imported ingredients also emits nine times as much carbon as a vegetarian meal made with domestic ingredients that don't have to be hauled long distances.

A diet high in grain-fed meat can require two to four times more land than a vegetarian diet.

A study in 2002 found that 37 percent of the broiler chickens found in major grocery stores are contaminated with antibiotic-resistant pathogens.

Since it was first reported in the United Kingdom in 1986, BSE (mad cow disease) has been detected in 33 countries, and health officials estimate that 139 people worldwide have succumbed to variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, a related illness in humans.

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Success!Sustainable farming, a method of farming that is good for animals, people, and the environment, has

grown into a $15.6 billion business worldwide.

Local communities are organizing to oppose factory farms—and winning! Manitowoc County, in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, prevented a 5,000 head feedlot from locating in a residential area; residents of Saskatchewan, Canada, kept out six hog confinement buildings; and Klamath County in Oregon successfully prevented the construction of an 11,000-head hog factory.

Sow gestation stalls/crates on factory farms, which are so narrow that pregnant pigs cannot turn around, are now banned in the United Kingdom and Sweden, and will be illegal in the European Union in 2013.

More and more people—including some 150 million people in Europe alone—are either becoming vegetarians or reducing their consumption of meat.

Simple Things You Can Do:Get to know local farmers who raise sustainable meat in your area.

Buy sustainable meat at your local health food store or farmer's market. (When you add in environmental and health costs, “inexpensive” factory farmed meat is actually more expensive than sustainable meat.)

If necessary, cut back on your meat consumption.

Read Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser (Houghton Mifflin: 2001), to give yourself more background on the factory farm issue.

Challenge Yourself and Others:Invite friends over for a locally grown, sustainable meal. All ingredients must be raised or grown within a certain radius, e.g., 30 miles of your home. (Even residents of New York City can do this!) Discussion at the meal will revolve around the food—what you learned about locally grown food, how easy or difficult it was to find everything, etc. To make it more fun, ask your friends to provide some of the local food.

For more InformationGRACE Factory Farm Project (www.factoryfarm.org) has information on the environmental,

economic, health, well-being and social aspects of factory farming, as well as sustainable meat.

The Eat Well Guide (www.eatwellguide.org) is a national online resource that lists sustainable farmers, restaurants, and stores in the United States.

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http://www.eatwellguide.org/

http://www.factoryfarm.org/


C.Fast Food: The Global Spread of Food Uniformity

From onion rings to double cheeseburgers, fast food is one of the world's fastest growing food types. It now accounts for roughly half of all restaurant revenues in the United States—triple its share in the early 1970s—and continues to expand there and in many other industrial countries. But some of the most rapid growth is occurring in the developing world, where it's radically changing the way people eat.

People buy fast food because it's cheap, quick, and heavily promoted. But its benefits can be deceptive. Meals devoured in the car or at our desks are replacing homecooked fare enjoyed with family and friends. Around the world, traditional diets and recipes are yielding to sodas, burgers, and other highly processed and standardized items that are high in fat, sugar, and salt—fuelling a

global epidemic of obesity, diabetes, and other chronic illnesses. Meanwhile, fast food producers require farmers to raise uniform fields of crops and herds of livestock for easy processing, eliminating agricultural diversity.

Those in less of a hurry are finding alternatives. Fresh organic foods are increasingly popular in Europe, Japan, and the United States. And a “slow food”movement founded in Italy in 1986 to promote appreciation of food and the cultural experience of shared meals now claims 100,000 members in 80 countries worldwide.

Did You Know…?At many fast-food restaurants, a single meal gives a disproportionate share—sometimes more than 100

percent—of the recommended daily intake of fat, cholesterol, salt, and sugar.

In the United States, an estimated 65 percent of adults are overweight or obese, leading to an annual loss of 300,000 lives and to at least $117 billion in health care costs in 1999.

A recent study showed that children who drink sodas and other sugar-sweetened drinks are more often obese and that this risk increases another 60 percent with each additional beverage consumed.

McDonald's, which operates 30,000 restaurants in 119 countries and serves 46 million customers each day, earned $15.4 billion in revenues in 2002. On opening day in Kuwait City, the line for the McDonald's drive-thru was more than 10 kilometers long.

India's fast-food industry is growing by 40 percent a year and is expected to generate over a billion dollars in sales by 2005. Meanwhile, a quarter of India's population remains under-nourished—a number virtually unchanged over the past decade.

China is now home to 800 KFCs and 100 Pizza Huts.

Coca-Cola and PepsiCo, the world's two largest soft drink companies, are the thirteenth and twentieth largest advertisers in the world; together, they spent $2.4 billion on ads in 2001.

Coca-Cola sells more than 300 drink brands in over 200 countries and employs 60,000 people in Africa alone. Its net revenues reached $19.6 billion in 2002—with more than 70 percent of its income originating outside of the United States.

Success!Page 36 of 50


Governments and corporations are beginning to respond to widespread concerns about fast food. The U.S. state of California now taxes junk food, helping to reduce overall consumption while also generating potential additional revenues for health education. More recently, a new law phased out the sale of all junk food (including soda) in the state's public elementary schools by early 2004.

Kraft, the world's largest food company, plans to cut advertising directed at children, to shrink its portion sizes, and to eliminate some of its most unhealthy products.

In 2002, bowing to pressure from animal rights and public health groups, McDonald's announced that it would stop buying eggs from chickens confined in battery cages and forced to lay additional eggs through starvation—practices already banned in Europe. By 2004, McDonald's will require chicken suppliers to stop giving their birds antibiotics to promote growth and will choose indirect suppliers who don't use antibiotics over those who do.

Simple Things You Can Do:Avoid buying sodas and other junk foods that have low nutritional value and are high in fat, sugar, and salt.

Keep healthy snacks in your car and home to defeat the urge to stop at fast food joints.

Try to cook at least one big meal a week and save your leftovers so you're not compelled to buy takeout for the next few nights.

Join the growing Slow Food movement by contacting the local chapter in your area or by attending one of their events.

Challenge Yourself and Others:Start a dinner club with friends in which you each take turns preparing and hosting a monthly dinner. Or get together with friends to cook a month's worth of dinners that can be frozen as an alternative to takeout.

For more InformationOldways Preservation and Exchange Trust (www.oldwayspt.org) is a non-profit organization that

promotes sound nutrition and translates complex food science into a consumer-friendly tool for consumers, health professionals, chefs, farmers, journalists, and the food industry.

Fast Food Nation, by Eric Schlosser (Houghton Mifflin: 2001), provides a fascinating—and alarming—glimpse into the fast food culture in the United States.

The Eat Well Guide (www.eatwellguide.org) is a national online resource that lists sustainable farmers, restaurants, and stores in the United States.

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http://www.eatwellguide.org/

http://www.oldwayspt.org/


D. Chocolate: Saving the Rainforest, One Morsel at a Time

The next time you bite into a bar of chocolate, consider that taste as a link to some of the world's most endangered forests—and to the millions of farmers who live near them. Chocolate comes from the seeds of the cacao, a small rainforest tree native to the Americas. Produced around the world, it is grown mainly on lands that have lost their original forest cover, sometimes to the cocoa itself. Today, all of the world's major cocoa areas are “biodiversity hotspots”—regions that are unusually rich in biodiversity, but which are also highly threatened.

The world's retail chocolate business is worth an estimated $42-60 billion annually. Yet only about 6-8 percent of this revenue actually makes its way back to the cocoa farmers, many of whom are poorer smallholders. Labor abuse is said to be rife in some cocoa regions, and reports of farmers enslaving thousands of child workers in places like Côte d'Ivoire have sparked widespread criticism of the industry.

Fortunately, a number of manufacturers now offer chocolate bars and other products that are more environmentally friendly and socially responsible. These products contain cocoa that comes from farms that conserve forest, that don’t use child labor, or are organic.

Did You Know…?Cocoa is grown commercially in nearly 60 countries, but production is concentrated in just a few. In 2002,

Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Indonesia, Nigeria, and Brazil accounted for 79 percent of global production.

The global area in cocoa production has expanded by nearly a quarter since 1990 and now totals more than 70,000 square kilometers, an area larger than Ireland.

Cocoa accounts for more than 13 percent of the original forestlands of Côte d'Ivoire, and is still chewing up forest in parts of West Africa and Indonesia.

Although cocoa is sometimes grown alongside other plants, in many cases it is grown as a monoculture in full sun, an arrangement that supports far less species diversity.

One of the most common pesticides used on cocoa in West Africa is lindane, a toxic organochlorine cousin of DDT.

Success!In some places, cocoa farming now represents a de facto conservation system where the farms in effect

become the forests. In Bahia, Brazil, and in south central Cameroon, cocoa is cultivated under thinned native forest in areas where little other forest remains.

Cocoa has important social and labor potential because of its high value and small-scale nature, with farms spanning just 1-3 hectares. Cacao trees respond well to extra care, so skilled smallholders can achieve higher productivity than bigger farms with too many trees to look after individually.

In 2002, Côte d'Ivoire ratified a treaty against labor abuse of children, and the big chocolate companies launched an initiative to certify Ivoirian chocolate as “slavery-free” by 2005.

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In November 2003, British chocolate manufacturer Cadbury Schweppes announced that it would use a cornstarch polymer candy package that dissolves in water for its chocolates sold in Australia, to cut down on waste.

Simple Things You Can Do:When buying chocolate, look for a brand with high cocoa content (more cocoa means higher quality and—

at least potentially—more farm income). Look also for chocolate that carries a “fair trade” label or the mark of a similar socially responsible producer, and that is organic.

Encourage your favorite stores or supermarkets to carry chocolate brands that are certified as being fair trade, organic, or slavery-free.

Challenge Yourself and Others:The next time you entertain, try to serve a dessert made with only chocolate that is fair trade, organic, or both. Explain to your guests why you chose this type of chocolate and encourage them to reevaluate their own chocolate choices.

For more InformationAnti-Slavery International (www.antislavery.org) and the Child Labor Coalition

(www.stopchildlabor.org/internationalchildlabor/chocolate.htm) both publish information on forced child labor issues on cocoa farms in Africa.

The Rainforest Alliance (www.rainforest-alliance.org/programs/cap/index.html) has a sustainable agriculture certification program that includes cocoa farms.

The Fair Trade Federation (www.fairtradefederation.com/memcof.html) is a resource for information on buying fair-trade certified cocoa products.

Equal Exchange (www.equalexchange.org/products/products.html) is a distributor of fair-trade certified cocoa products in the U.S.

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http://www.equalexchange.org/products/products.html

http://www.fairtradefederation.com/memcof.html

http://www.rainforest-alliance.org/programs/cap/index.html

http://www.stopchildlabor.org/internationalchildlabor/chocolate.htm

http://www.antislavery.org/


E.Plastic Bags: A Necessary Eyesore?

Plastic shopping bags are among the most ubiquitous consumer items on Earth. Their light weight, low cost, and water resistance make them so convenient for carrying groceries, clothing, and other routine purchases that it's hard to imagine life without them. Weighing just a few grams and averaging a few millimeters in thickness, plastic bags might seem thoroughly innocuous—were it not for the sheer number produced. Factories around the world churned out a whopping 4-5 trillion of them in 2002, ranging from large trash bags to thick shopping totes to flimsy grocery sacks.

Compared with paper bags, producing plastic ones uses less energy and water and generates less air pollution and solid waste. Plastic bags also take up less space in a landfill. But many of these bags never make it to landfills; instead, they go airborne after they are discarded—getting caught in fences, trees, even the throats of birds, and clogging gutters, sewers, and waterways. To avoid these impacts, the best alternative is to carry and re-use your own durable cloth bags.

Did You Know…?Plastic bags start as crude oil, natural gas, or other petrochemical derivatives, which are transformed into

chains of hydrogen and carbon molecules known as polymers or polymer resin. After being heated, shaped, and cooled, the plastic is ready to be flattened, sealed, punched, or printed on.

The first plastic “baggies” for bread, sandwiches, fruits, and vegetables were introduced in the United States in 1957. Plastic trash bags started appearing in homes and along curbsides around the world by the late 1960s.

North America and Western Europe account for nearly 80 percent of plastic bag use—though the bags are increasingly common in developing countries as well.

A quarter of the plastic bags used in wealthy nations are now produced in Asia.

Each year, Americans throw away some 100 billion polyethylene plastic bags. (Only 0.6 percent of plastic bags are recycled.)

The Irish have been known to call the ever-present bags their “national flag”; South Africans have dubbed them the “national flower.”

Success!In January 2002, the South African government required manufacturers to make plastic bags more durable

and more expensive to discourage their disposal—prompting a 90-percent reduction in use.

Ireland instituted a 15¢-per-bag tax in March 2002, which led to a 95-percent reduction in use.

In the early 1990s, the Ladakh Women's Alliance and other citizens groups led a successful campaign to ban plastic bags in that Indian province, where the first of May is now celebrated as “Plastic Ban Day.” Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the Philippines, Taiwan, and the United Kingdom also have plans to ban or tax plastic bags.

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Supermarkets around the world are voluntarily encouraging shoppers to forgo plastic bags—or to bring their own bags—by offering a small per-bag refund or charging extra for plastic.

Some manufacturers have introduced biodegradable or compostable plastic bags made from starches, polymers or poly-lactic acid, and no polyethylene—though these remain prohibitively expensive and account for less than 1 percent of the market.

The organizers of the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia, were able to collect 76 percent of the food waste generated at the sports venues and athletes' village by using biodegradable utensils and plastic bags that composted as easily as the food and eliminated the need to separate the garbage.

Simple Things You Can Do:Think twice about taking a plastic bag if your purchase is small and easy to carry.

Keep canvas bags in your home, office, and car so you always have them available when you go to the supermarket or other stores.

Ask your favorite stores to stop providing bags for free, or to offer a discount for not using the bags.

Encourage your local politicians to introduce legislation taxing or banning plastic bags.

Challenge Yourself and Others:Try to go at least one week without accumulating any new plastic bags. If every shopper took just one less bag each month, this could eliminate the waste of hundreds of millions of bags each year.

For more InformationInternational Biodegradable Products Initiative (www.bpiworld.org) is an association that

promotes the use of biodegradable polymeric materials, including bags.

Grassroots Recycling Network (www.grrn.org) works to eliminate the waste of natural and human resources—with the goal of achieving zero waste.

Film and Bag Federation (www.plasticbag.com) is an industry group that serves as the “voice” of the plastic film and bag industry.

F.Paper: Painless Paper Cuts

For most of its history, paper existed as a precious and rare commodity. Today, it covers the planet. From the contents of our in-boxes to the currency in our wallets to the containers for our frozen dinners, paper is never far from reach.

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http://www.plasticbag.com/

http://www.grrn.org/

http://www.bpiworld.org/


Global paper use increased more than six-fold over the latter half of the 20th century, and has doubled since the mid-1970s.

About 93 percent of today's paper comes from trees, and paper production is responsible for about a fifth of the total wood harvest worldwide. A sheet of writing paper might contain fibers from hundreds of different trees that have collectively traveled thousands of kilometers from forest to consumer.

Though invented as a tool to communicate, about half the paper in today's consumer society serves another purpose—packaging. This and other rapidly discarded paper now represents a big chunk of the modern waste stream, accounting for roughly 40 percent of the municipal solid waste burden in many industrial countries.

Did You Know…?The United States produces and uses a third of the world's paper. Forests in the southeastern U.S. now

supply a quarter of the global total.

The average U.S. citizen uses more than 300 kilograms of paper annually, and the average Japanese uses 250 kilograms. People in developing countries, in contrast, use only 18 kilograms of paper a year on average—in India, the figure is 4 kilos, while in 20 countries in Africa, it's less than 1 kilo. (The United Nations estimates that 30-40 kilos is the minimum needed to meet basic literacy and communication needs.)

Producing one ton of paper requires 2-3 times its weight in trees. Newly cut trees account for 55 percent of the global paper supply, while 38 percent is from recycled wood-based paper, and the remaining 7 percent comes from non-tree sources.

The pulp and paper industry is the world's fifth largest industrial consumer of energy and uses more water to produce a ton of product than any other industry.

Making paper from recycled content rather than virgin fiber creates 74 percent less air pollution and 35 percent less water pollution. Yet the share of total paper fiber coming from recycled material has grown only modestly from 20 percent in 1921 to 38 percent today.

The group Environmental Defense estimates that if the entire U.S. catalog industry switched its publications to just 10-percent recycled content paper, the savings in wood alone would be enough to stretch a 1.8-meter-high fence across the United States seven times.

The Gutenberg Bible, the first and second drafts of the U.S. Declaration of Independence, and the original works of Mark Twain were all printed on hemp-based papers.

Success!In 1991, Germany passed a law requiring packaging producers and distributors to take back certain

packaging materials for reuse or recycling—including paper. Within three years, wastepaper recycling shot up to 54 percent, after stagnating at 45 percent for nearly 20 years.

The European Union Parliament recently adopted a law requiring member governments to set waste paper recycling goals of 60 percent by 2008.

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A pulp and paper mill on the Androscoggin River in Maine dramatically reduced its hazardous waste generation from 6 million pounds in 1990 to 300,000 pounds in 1998, and slashed the amount of solid waste going to landfills by 91 percent, largely through pollution prevention measures.

In November 2002, more than 50 environmental groups across North America agreed on a set of common environmental criteria for environmentally preferable paper, and released detailed guidance to advise paper buyers about their choices.

On a limited scale, paper is returning to its nonwood roots. Alternative fibers now on the market include hemp, kenaf (a leafy member of the hibiscus family), agricultural residues (cereal straws, cotton linters, banana peels, coconut shells), and even denim scraps.

Simple Things You Can Do:Buy paper with at least 30 percent postconsumer recycled content, and encourage your school or

workplace to do the same.

Seek out nonwood paper alternatives made from kenaf, cotton, or other fibers. Many “agrifibers” yield more pulp-per-acre than forests or tree farms, and they require fewer pesticides and herbicides.

Recycle your junk mail, and tell vendors to stop sending it. For an overview of how to get off junk mail (as well as e-mail and telephone) lists in the U.S., go to www.newdream.org/junkmail

Encourage your local or national government officials to introduce legislation requiring manufacturers to take back the packaging waste from their products.

Challenge Yourself and Others:See if you can go a week without printing out any new e-mails. Try instead to archive your emails and other information electronically, using a computer-based filing system.

For more InformationConservatree (www.conservatree.org), an organization dedicated to building markets for

environmentally sound papers, offers useful tips on buying recycled, tree-free, and chlorine-free papers.

The U.S. Government's Web-Based Paper Calculator (www.ofee.gov/gp/papercal.html) allows users to compare the environmental impacts of papers made with different levels of recycled content, from virgin paper to 100% recycled.

Rethink Paper (www.rethinkpaper.org) is an organization dedicated to rethinking and replacing current paper consumption and production practices with environmentally preferable alternatives, including nonwood papers.

ForestEthics' Paper Campaign (www.forestethics.org/paper/) is a U.S. campaign that aims for systemic change in the paper industry by targeting the largest retail paper sellers via pressure, protests, and other grassroots efforts.

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http://www.forestethics.org/paper/

http://www.rethinkpaper.org/

http://www.ofee.gov/gp/papercal.html

http://www.conservatree.org/

http://www.newdream.org/junkmail


Wasting Away: Natural Resources and the EnvironmentMedia Awareness Network

We are totally dependent on natural resources. Everything we have or use is made of natural resources, or raw materials and energy obtained from the environment. The clothes you're wearing, the chair you're sitting on, your house and TV and school and books, the school bus, city streets, whatever you ate for breakfast, and the package your breakfast came in are made of natural resources. Natural resources sustain human life.

Non-renewable resources include oil and gas, soil and water, and minerals like iron and aluminium. They are found in strictly limited quantities on our planet and are not replenished by natural processes (except in geological time frames of millions of years). Renewable natural resources include things like trees which can be replenished or will grow again. However, even these are available in finite quantities. Trees, for example, can only grow so fast. Sunlight and wind are the only natural resources available in essentially limitless amounts. And, although it's not the kind of "event" that makes front-page news, many scientists think that depletion of natural resources is one of the biggest problems our society will face in the twenty-first century. Our use of natural resources affects the environment in many ways. Our use of natural resources has impacts that go far beyond simply using materials that are in limited supply. The environment is affected at every stage of the chain of extraction-processing-manufacturing-marketing-consumption-disposal.

The harvesting of raw natural resources directly impacts the environment through mining, timber cutting, construction of dams, and the like. Then the raw materials must be made into a usable form, such as metallic ores into more pure metals. This is an energy-intensive process that typically results in air and water pollution as well as unwanted or even toxic by-products. Next, to produce specific consumer products like clothes, camcorders, or skateboards, further manufacturing processes are needed. These manufacturing processes also use energy and often generate pollution. Then the final consumer products need to be transported and stored, which again involves additional inputs of energy and materials and has further environmental impacts. Finally, the products must be packaged and marketed to us, the public. This involves still more natural resource use and more environmental impacts related to packaging materials, billboards, print ads, and so on. Packaging and advertising contribute significantly to the cost of a product and to its overall environmental impact as well. In the United States, discarded packaging materials alone account for about 35% of household trash. Print advertising in catalogues, fliers, magazines, and newspapers also contributes significantly to household trash.

When we actually purchase an end product, is the chain of impact finally complete? Not yet! If using the product we have bought requires gasoline, batteries, or electricity, the production and use of these generates more pollution.

At some point, whatever the item - be it a few ounces of packaging that holds a fast-food meal for two minutes, or a two-ton automobile that lasts for years - we throw it away. But really, there is no "away." Something must be done with the stuff we no longer want. That can cause problems. A lot of our trash is just plain dangerous. Even common household products like paint, batteries, and cleaning supplies are often toxic. Also, the sheer volume of trash we produce is a problem in itself. In some parts of the U.S., trash is incinerated or burned. Incineration produces air pollution, and the ash left behind is toxic. In other areas, trash is buried in landfills. That has problems, too. Landfills require huge tracts of land. Pollution problems often develop around older landfills. Newer landfills are built to stricter health and environmental standards. However, both landfills and incinerator ash must be carefully monitored for hundreds of years into the future.

How much is enough? Of course, some products we buy are necessary to our health and well-being, or improve the quality of our lives. We need clothes and stoves and so on. And who would want to give up books and music

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and other things that enrich our lives? The question of concern is, at what level of consumption are we using up our natural resources and our environment for things that we don't need and that don't really enhance our lives?

The developed countries of the world hold 25% of the world's population, but consume 75% of all energy, 85% of all wood products, and 72% of all steel produced.

Americans consume the most of all, even more than people in other developed countries. For example, we consume about twice as much energy per person as the British, French, Swedes, Norwegians, or Japanese. Our consumption of other resources is also high. In Fact, from 1940 to 1976, Americans consumed more minerals than did all of humanity up to then. And our consumption rate for most resources is still rising.

Commercialism impacts the environment. Our consumption rate reflects the level of commercialism in our culture. Over the last few decades, advertising has gradually helped convince us to make changes in our lives. Ads surround us. They encourage us to want more and buy more, often regardless of our true needs. Commercialism stimulates artificial wants, and satisfying these wants means consuming more material goods and thus increases resource consumption and environmental impacts.

Ads suggest that we should want things that are newer, faster, fancier, more fashionable, a different colour, larger or smaller, just like what everyone else has or different from what everyone else has. This perceived obsolescence is used to stimulate us to buy more. The classic example of perceived obsolescence is fashions in clothing. The same approach is used when makers of computers, stereos, cars, an other products tempt us with new products even though the older versions serve our needs well. A related approach, planned obsolescence is used by makers of other products. For example, some toys, equipment, calculators, small appliances, and other items are built to last only a short while. When broken, these items are not able to be repaired but must be replaced. Finally, purveyors of fast food and prepared foods tell us that life will be easier and more fun if we eat their highly processed and packaged foods.

A healthy environment and a supply of natural resources are basic to our well-being. The basic premise of almost all ads is that we will be happier if we have this, too. Companies with products for sale would like us to believe that, since their profits increase when we buy their products. Yet our well being and happiness are not necessarily dependent on having more and more and more material goods. Our long-term health, happiness, and well-being are dependent on a healthy environment, as well as on our relationships with family and friends.

Does commercialism foster a culture of waste - a culture in which we are encouraged to make choices that are fundamentally at odds with our need to conserve natural resources and care for the environment? It seems that the typical American lifestyle involves always wanting more. When we live in highly consumptive lifestyle, we use more resources and create more pollution. Many environmental problems are tied to our rate of consumption of material goods and thus of natural resources. The most basic method of caring for our environment is to conserve natural resources and use them wisely.

© Center for the Study of Commercialism, Washington, D.C.

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The 4R Think Pause...Reflecting about article entitled:

Please recorder 2-3 key reactions to the reading in point form in each box below.

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Reflect… what are the main themes/concepts?

Retell… what are the essential I want to remember?

Reaction… what reactions do I have to this? What insight do I now have?

Name:

Reply… what does the author mean by “The environment is affected at every stage of the chain”? (Found on page 1, paragraph 4). Explain your answer using examples from the article.


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Ecological Footprint

Challenge

TaskAs a grand finale, and part of our quest to reduce our ecological footprint, we will be conscious chefs for each other. Your task is to pick a recipe, get the ingredients, cook it and bring it to our class potluck. The idea is to make choices that will reduce your footprint as much as possible, however keep in mind a zero footprint is not realistic. You need to review your prior knowledge (and all the things we have talked about in class) and make choices based on such things as;

Amount and type of packaging (what will happen to it after you are done)? Transportation (both you and the ingredients)? Energy consumption (how much, how long and what type)? Where are ingredients from (local/national/international)? How are they grown (organic/non organic)?

Steps to take1. Brainstorm ideas- ask family, friends, teachers, neighbours for ideas or browse the Internet for

Recipes2. Choose a Recipe3. Shop or find ingredients at home (read the labels, ingredient list etc. to see where things are

from, what different products contain) – be sure to write down a list of all the ingredients, and keep in mind all recipes will have to be made from scratch, no muffin mix in a box please

4. Make your dish- you may get help but the expectation is that you do indeed make the dish yourself (should serve 4-8 ppl)

5. Complete your footprint reduction checklist as you go along – put some thought into it (check categories above)

6. Write a paragraph that explains the choices you made7. Bring the dish, a list of the ingredients, your plate and your cutlery on the day of the potluck.

Make sure you put some thought into what they are made of as well.

Awards will be given to the most creative, healthiest, beautiful presentation, best savoury dish, and the best sweet dish.

You will be evaluated using the attached rubric. Make sure you hand in;

Paragraph Checklist List of ingredients and recipe

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Evaluation RubricLEVEL I(0-59%)

LEVEL II(60-69%)

LEVEL III(70-79%)

LEVEL IV(80-100%)

Critical Thinking

(e.g. transportation,

packaging, small scale vs. factory

farming, pesticide use, social reality of food production

etc.)(T/I)

Choices and process demonstrate limited

critical thinking of the ecological impact of your dish. Only one factor is discussed.Checklist is poorly

completed

Choices and process demonstrate some

critical thinking of the ecological impact of

your dish. Two factors are discussed.

Checklist is completed.

Choices and process thoroughly demonstrate

critical thinking of the ecological impact of your dish, making

reference to 3 or more factors.

Checklist is well completed.

Choices and process explicitly and thoroughly

demonstrates critical thinking of the

ecological impact of your dish making clear reference to 4 or more

factors.Checklist is relevant, well thought through and well completed.

Communication(C)

Paragraph has some structure, a topic

sentence, and some supporting details. Paragraph has a

number of spelling and grammar errors.

Paragraph is structured with a topic sentence, and some supporting

details. Paragraph has few spelling and grammar errors.

Paragraph is well structured with a strong

topic sentence, and valid supporting details. Paragraph has very few

spelling or grammar errors.

Paragraph is well structured with a topic

sentence that draws the reader in, and strong

supporting details. Paragraph has no

spelling and grammar errors.

Use of prior knowledge and demonstration

of effort(K/U)

A limited effort in sharing one’s

contribution and reducing one’s

ecological footprint and was demonstrated

A satisfactory effort in sharing one’s


ecological footprint was demonstrated

A good effort in sharing one’s contribution and

reducing one’s ecological footprint was

demonstrated

Authentic effort in sharing one’s


ecological footprint was demonstrated

Application(A)

Student prepared a recipe and shared it

with the class.

Student prepared a recipe and came

somewhat prepared to share it with the class. Elements of potluck

(cup, plate, napkin etc.) were missing.

Student prepared a recipe and came

prepared to share it with the class.

Elements of potluck (cup, plate, napkin etc.)

were present.

The student prepared a recipe, did a wonderful job sharing it with the

class, included a list of all the ingredients and

brought recyclable elements of potluck

(cup, plate, napkin etc.)

Footprint Reduction Checklist(this is just a template, feel free to create your own)

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Documents

Unit 1 – Sustainable Development and Reducing our ...€¦ · Web viewCGC1D – Geography of Canada. Unit 1: Sustainable Development and Reducing our Ecological Footprint. Time: