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The focus of these activities is student empowerment in the face of the effects on society of global changes. The following activities are presented as ideas for focusing students on the global change issues related in the chapter. Whether you decide to develop one, or many, of these activities, they should always be introduced by relating them to major themes contained within the chapter.
5.0 THINK POSITIVELY
Assess environmental improvement projects in your community. This would include meeting with public advocacy groups, a local recycling depot or program, investigating any habitat enhancement projects by your local fish and game club or naturalist group, or contacting provincial ministries or municipal energy utilities. In order to assess the positive side of global change, it is necessary for students to realize that various agencies, organizations and businesses are interested in environmental enhancement. Personal interviews, brochures, letters, newsletters, etc. can be collected. Create a display, a bulletin, a video/news report, or a newsletter outlining all of the positive environmental projects in place in your local community, region, and/or province. The information gathered in both the public awareness survey and the environmental enhancement survey should be incorporated in the following activities. (See Appendix 1-Sample Lesson Plans for a detailed description of this activity)
5.1 THINK GLOBALLY-ACT LOCALLY
Based on the environmental assessment survey, and the assessment of local environmental projects, students can plan their own home or school environmental improvement project. This could include working collaboratively with a local environmental enhancement group, an energy resource provider (e.g. your local or provincial hydro or gas utility), or other business or organization. Improvement projects could include the family, the class, the whole school, or parts of the community. The project should be manageable in order to ensure success. Small action projects aimed at specific areas of concern (e.g. wasted paper in the school, the amount of garbage that could be recycled in the home, a specific habitat enhancement project, etc.) will provide opportunities for students to be successful, to feel empowered, and to see that changes are possible.
5.2 CHANGE VALUES
Outline the problems, focusing on the positive aspects of environmental enhancement and what is already being done locally, nationally, and internationally. Stage a local Earth Day. Create a public display at the local shopping mall to make the public aware of student activities in this endeavour. Incorporate a school newsletter, brochures, video tapes, pictures, murals, ecosystems in jars, etc. distribute information through local media...be interviewed on television.
5.3 RAISE YOUR PROFILE
There are a number of environmental newsletters published across the continent that consistently profile student action projects. Write articles about local environmental enhancement projects, and especially about what is being done in your school and community by the students. Send your articles, with pictures, to environmental newsletters, your local newspaper, your provincial newspapers, your local MLA, MP, and Minister of the Environment. Create a book and meet with your school district administration, local business persons, provincial energy providers, and/or Ministry of the Environment education coordinator to seek funding for publishing and distribution. (See Appendix 1-Sample Lesson Plans for a detailed description of this activity.)
5.4 CONDUCT INTERVIEWS
Conduct interviews with and invite as guests, local representatives of Canada's indigenous peoples. Personal contacts are suggested through such organizations as Native Friendship Centres and local Indian Band Offices. Students should prepare themselves through readings from such collections as "Wisdom of the Elders" and resource kits such as "1992 and Beyond".
5.5 DEBATE THE ISSUE
Have students choose a topic from the international action list in Global Change and Canadians (p.44) and develop arguments for and against the action from a Canadian point of view. This activity assumes that students already have the techniques of rational debate at their command. For supporting research, consult with your teacher-librarian as well as local representatives of government and activist groups.
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