Rainforests – Why Should We Care?
Today we will begin looking at rainforests. Most of you will have some knowledge of rainforests, and particularly when it comes to looking at the issues associated with the negative impacts humans are having on rainforest regions.
Firstly, we will be looking at a keynote that provides an overview of the major natural process and systems that occur in a rainforest environment. Following this, we will begin looking at a majore issue occuring in one rainforest environment, this being deforestation in the Amazon.
When looking at a topic such as this, we will follow an inquiry method in Geography:
- What is the issue?
- Why is this issue occurring?
- What are the impacts of this issue?
- What is being or could be done to manage this issue?
Your Task
Today, you will be divided into groups to research the positive and negative issues associated with deforestation in the Amazon. Each group will be assigned a stakeholder to research. Consider questions such as:
- Why does this group need the Amazon?
- What impacts are they having on the region?
- What are they doing to minimise these impacts on the Amazonian Rainforest?
The stakeholder groups will include:
- Environmentalist
- Government (Government of those countries in the Amazonian Region)
- Government (From other countries around the world)
- Miners
- Farmers/Graziers
- Tourists
- Indigenous People
You will need to present your research as either a keynote, powerpoint or iMovie at the end of this lesson.
Following the presentation, all students must individually write a paragraph either agreeing or disagreeing with the following statement:
All human activity in the Amazon Rainforest must cease immediately.
Resources
The following sources provided an overview on the basic facts associated with deforestation in the Amazon.
National Geographic, Deforestation Facts
Science Daily: Amazon Deforestation Trend on the Increase
Tropical Deforestation: Feature Articles – Earth Observatory
The Indigenous People
Amazonia: The Last Eden – Conservation International
Indigenous Peoples Plight YouTube Clip – BBC Places
Farming
Beef Consumption Fuels Rainforest Destruction – MongaBay.Com
National Geographic: Farming the Amazon – Last of the Amazon
Mining
Mining in Venequelan Amazon Threatens Biodiversity – MongaBay.Com
Amazon Watch: Amazon Oil Expansion
If you find any other useful resources, please add them as a comment below!
