Sustainable Development of Tropical Rainforests

By the end of this lesson you will know you have succeeded if you are able to… Define sustainable development Recall some ways of trying to achieve sustainable development in TRFs Evaluate some of the different methods

Define sustainable development

Recall some ways of trying to achieve sustainable development in TRFs

Evaluate some of the different methods

“ Sustainable development is development which meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. Sustainable development attempts to minimise the negative impacts of development by considering the needs of both the environment and future generations” (from http://worldlywise.blogspot.com , teacher Dr Hutchinson’s blog for students doing Avery Hill GCSE Geography) So… what is sustainable development?

“ Sustainable development is development which meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. Sustainable development attempts to minimise the negative impacts of development by considering the needs of both the environment and future generations”

(from http://worldlywise.blogspot.com , teacher Dr Hutchinson’s blog for students doing Avery Hill GCSE Geography)

Prep Play an online ‘game’ – see www.eduweb.com/ecotourism/eco1.html AND EVALUATE IT – i.e. suggest pros and cons of the game as a way of learning about rainforest ecotourism Complete a past GCSE question on this topic

Play an online ‘game’ – see www.eduweb.com/ecotourism/eco1.html AND EVALUATE IT – i.e. suggest pros and cons of the game as a way of learning about rainforest ecotourism

Complete a past GCSE question on this topic

Get into 3 teams of 3 and 2 teams of 4 Location of Maués, Brazil Assign roles (native family, settlers from city, government, Greenpeace, research student) Decide in your groups (in role) which option you would choose for developing the rainforest sustainably AND WHY [ write it down ] Choose a spokesperson to explain to the class which option you chose AND WHY (and why not the others) In the lesson today… Feel free to scribble ideas on the options sheets

Get into 3 teams of 3 and 2 teams of 4

Location of Maués, Brazil

Assign roles (native family, settlers from city, government, Greenpeace, research student)

Decide in your groups (in role) which option you would choose for developing the rainforest sustainably AND WHY [ write it down ]

Choose a spokesperson to explain to the class which option you chose AND WHY (and why not the others)

1 4 3 2

Evaluation (cont.) NB there are lots of other possible methods, e.g. what do you think these are? - selective logging - small scale slash & burn - leasing to pharmaceutical companies for medicinal research Click here for video clip Which trees are selected? Why? Pros and cons? Environmental? Social? Economic?

NB there are lots of other possible methods, e.g. what do you think these are?

- selective logging

- small scale slash & burn

- leasing to pharmaceutical companies for medicinal research

But before you get sucked in, here’s another of the adverts:

By the end of this lesson you will know you have succeeded if you are able to… Define sustainable development Recall some ways of trying to achieve sustainable development in TRFs Evaluate some of the different methods

Define sustainable development

Recall some ways of trying to achieve sustainable development in TRFs

Evaluate some of the different methods

Evaluation What were the advantages of looking at this issue through group work (as opposed to e.g. internet research)? What about drawbacks? Can you comment with authority about sustainable development of the rainforest in e.g. Brazil or Congo or Madagascar?

What were the advantages of looking at this issue through group work (as opposed to e.g. internet research)?

What about drawbacks?

Can you comment with authority about sustainable development of the rainforest in e.g. Brazil or Congo or Madagascar?

What do these statements mean? Do you agree with them? “ Sustainability is a spectrum, not a ‘black & white’ issue” “ Environmental and economic sustainability are often in conflict – it is hard to achieve both” “ It is hard to find unbiased, authoritative information on sustainable development of tropical rainforests”

“ Sustainability is a spectrum, not a ‘black & white’ issue”

“ Environmental and economic sustainability are often in conflict – it is hard to achieve both”

“ It is hard to find unbiased, authoritative information on sustainable development of tropical rainforests”

Could you apply the ideas and thinking skills from today to other parts of the course / other subjects?

Some other key points from examiners’ reports on this section: Not covering all aspects of the question (environment AND people, in this case) Writing too much, and drifting from the question Just regurgitating the information given, rather than developing it further or adding extra info not in the resource Not justifying opinions, and not including possible drawbacks Not using geographical terms / technical language - e.g… exploitation, conservation, soil erosion, agroforestry, photosynthesis, environmental / social / economic, ecotourism, shifting cultivation…

Some other key points from examiners’ reports on this section:

Not covering all aspects of the question (environment AND people, in this case)

Writing too much, and drifting from the question

Just regurgitating the information given, rather than developing it further or adding extra info not in the resource

Not justifying opinions, and not including possible drawbacks

Not using geographical terms / technical language - e.g…

exploitation, conservation, soil erosion, agroforestry, photosynthesis, environmental / social / economic, ecotourism, shifting cultivation…

www.livingrainforest.org

Copyright etc. All pictures are my own, or from ‘creative commons’ search on Flickr Screenshots from www.livingrainforest.org (which you can visit near Newbury, and which has various worksheets etc. online) Many thanks to the SLN community for ideas and support in making this lesson

All pictures are my own, or from ‘creative commons’ search on Flickr

Screenshots from www.livingrainforest.org (which you can visit near Newbury, and which has various worksheets etc. online)

Many thanks to the SLN community for ideas and support in making this lesson