Teacher Preparation

Students will...

... understand their impact on the Earth
... take responsibility for their personal actions
... compare the impact on our environment between the past resource and our current resource use.

Students can...

... think critically about their personal resource use
... make suggestions for how to reduce their environmental impact.

Teacher content information: With a world population of 7 billion people and rising, we need to be concerned about the Earth’s ability to provide us all with the things we need to live, and to absorb all the waste we produce. Your environmental footprint is a measure of your personal impact on the environment. It can be defined as the amount of the earth’s surface it takes to provide everything each person uses – food, water, energy, clothes, roads, buildings etc.

The larger the footprint, the more resources are needed to support that lifestyle. The ecological footprints of most developed countries require more land than is available. People in Australia have a very large footprint. Based on one estimate, the average Australian has a footprint of 9.4 hectares (about the size of 14 average sports fields). If everyone on Earth lived like the average Australian, we could need at least three Earth's to provide all the materials and energy we currently use and the waste we produce. To be sustainable we need to reduce our footprint to approximately 2.2 hectares.

This graph shows a possible future scenario if we continue to consume the Earth's resources at the same rate.

Talk to students about why scientists have different predictions and measurements of environmental footprints, for example, some scientists might want to examine the idea of ecological footprints from the perspective of land use while others might want to examine it from the position of emissions. This is why when you compare ecological footprints for countries, you might find Australia at different positions on the scale, for example, you can see how the number one countries compare here and here.

It may also be useful to show students that there are different ways of measuring ecological footprints for each country, for example, we can measure according to the total country footprint, or we can measure according to the footprint per capita (see here).

Teaching Sequence

Step 1.

Introduce your students to the term ‘environmental footprint’. Explain to them what the term means - you can use the analogy of walking in sand and the depth of the foot imprint. You can use the footprint graph (below and here) to show how scientists have developed different scenarios about our footprint and the amount of Earth's required in the future:

Through your discussion, talk to students about why scientists have different predictions and measurements of environmental footprints, for example, some scientists might want to examine the idea of ecological footprints from the perspective of land use while others might want to examine it from the position of emissions. This is why when you compare ecological footprints for countries, you might find Australia at different positions on the scale, for example, you can see how the number one countries compare here and here.

It may also be useful to show students that there are different ways of measuring ecological footprints for each country, for example, we can measure according to the total country footprint, or we can measure according to the footprint per capita (see here).

You could then have a brief discussion around the difference between resources that we 'need' versus resources that we 'want'. This might help students to appreciate that the worst-case scenario is not inevitable: by thinking about what we want and need we can make choices that can impact our environment in different ways (i.e. choosing to have less 'stuff' and focusing mainly on what we need will reduce our environmental impact and our footprint).

Step 2.

Now ask students the following question:

Does Australia, as a country, have a large footprint?

(You could use the information on this table to guide discussion).

Step 3.

Draw a very large footprint on the board and put the title: ‘Areas that make up your footprint’. As a class brainstorm, what activities contribute to our environmental footprint? You may want to divide the footprint up into three main areas:

Energy	Using electrical or other powered devices including microwaves, lights, hairdryers, heaters, air-conditioners, travelling in a car, tractor, bus or train, lawnmowers, televisions, computers, radios, and refrigerators.
Water	Using water for drinking, growing food, cleaning. It could be cleaning your hands, teeth or flushing the toilet. Water is also used in washing machines and dishwashers, and to water the garden and sporting fields.
Waste	What you use and no longer need. This could be bottles, newspaper, packaging, old clothes and leftover food.

Get your students to record a definition of an environmental footprint on their Student Worksheet.

Then get them to draw their own footprint and draw/cut out pictures of activities that contribute to their footprint.

Step 4.

Ask the students to complete the Activity Measure Your Impact on their Student Worksheet. Get students to think about the activities they have completed in the last 24 hours and help them think about the resources that were used to undertake the activity.

Each student then rates each of their activities and associated resources out of one to three in terms of their environmental impact. Once students have finished rating each activity’s impact, they should add up their total score to assess what size their footprint was for that particular day.

Step 5.

Invite students to consider:

What changes could they make to their daily activities at school and at home to improve their score?

Students use the table below to write down ways of using less energy, using less water and making less waste.

Step 6.

Students can then work in pairs or small groups to reflect on the ways that our current lifestyles impact our environment by comparing the ways we generate energy, use water and generate waste to how humans lived 100 years ago.

Students are asked to draw comparisons using a set of questions that are provided on the Student Worksheet.

Reflection

Students can then complete the reflection thinking tool on the Student Worksheet.

Note: Before rounding off this lesson, ensure that students understand that it is not up to them individually to address and 'fix' the national or global environmental footprint. Explain to students that there are many adults all around the world working very hard to address the issues relating to our environmental footprints; however, there are actions we can all take in our daily lives to help our environment. By sharing the stories of what we are doing with our friends and families we can show people how easy it is to do something and how when we are all doing something we can make a real change.

Take this opportunity to reflect on your own teaching

Take It Further

Into the Future - Ask students to imagine what the world would be like if we continue to use more resources than we have. Students can write a story of living in the next century – the year 3000. Have we managed to reduce the amount of resources we use?
Homeprint - Students can calculate the Environmental Footprint of their home, recording how much water, energy and waste they use/produce in a day.

Teacher Reflection

Take this opportunity to reflect on your own teaching

What did you learn about your teaching today?
What worked well?
What didn't work so well?
What would you share?
Where to next?
How are you going to get there?

Clean Up Australia - My Environmental Footprint

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