Teaching Sequence

Work through this resource material in the following sequence:

10 minutes

Tune In: Lions under threat

20 minutes

Find Out: A case for working together

25 minutes

Take Action: Local action

5 minutes

Reflection

Learning intentions

Students will:

explore how human changes to the landscape have impacted the lion populations in Africa
investigate case studies of people working to build sustainability.

Success criteria

Students can:

explain how human-induced change to the characteristics of a place have intended and unintended impacts
describe actions taken to improve sustainability and why they are impactful.

Prior Learning:

It would be helpful for students to have an understanding of the three pillars of sustainability: social, economic, and environmental. You can use this factsheet (Sustainability Factsheet) to help build this understanding.

Tune In: Lions under threat

Step 1

Begin by sharing the synopsis for the new Disney movie “Mufasa: The Lion King”:

“Mufasa: The Lion King” enlists Rafiki to relay the legend of Mufasa to young lion cub Kiara, daughter of Simba and Nala. The story introduces Mufasa as an orphaned cub, lost and alone until he meets a sympathetic lion named Taka - the heir to a royal bloodline. The chance meeting sets in motion an expansive journey of an extraordinary group of misfits searching for their destiny, and their bonds will be tested as they work together to evade a threatening and deadly foe.

Show students the following trailer:

Mufasa: The Lion King | Official Trailer - (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJwcDX-8Ytc)

Step 2

Pose the question:

Were there any humans in this trailer?
If there was a human, what do you think the interaction would be like?
How would it change the story?

Step 3

Explain to students that although lions are an apex predator (they are at the top of the food chain!), they are listed as vulnerable on the ICUN Red List, and some populations are listed as critically endangered. Ask your students, ‘What do you think the biggest threats to lions are?’ Once you have some ideas from your students, share the Visual Explainer and talk through the following threats:

habitat loss and fragmentation
livestock encroachment
bushmeat trade
human-lion conflict
poaching & trophy hunting.

Use the last two slides to explain the takeaway message: Humans have influenced the characteristics of this place and created these threatening processes, and humans are the ones who can solve this problem.

Find Out: A case for working together

Step 1

Explain to your students that they will be investigating the South Luangwa National Park and how organisations in this area are working with communities to address these human-induced changes. Divide students into pairs or small groups and provide them with a copy of the Student Worksheet and access to a device for researching online.

Step 2

Students will start by investigating the area, and observing how humans have influenced the landscape by using Google Maps. and answering the questions on the worksheet.

Learning support: If your students are unfamiliar with Google Maps, or need support with their digital literacy skills, you can complete this section with the whole class on a display.

Step 3

Students will then choose one of the following organisations and research how this organisation is working to build sustainability.

Project Luangwa (projectluangwa.org/)
Conservation South Luangwa (cslzambia.org/)
Conservation Lower Zambezi (conservationlowerzambezi.org/)
Lion Landscapes (lionlandscapes.org/)
Wildlife Conservation Action (wildlifeconservationaction.org/)

Students will access the organisation’s website and use the Student Worksheet to examine one project the organisation is running for each of the three pillars of sustainability (social, environmental, and economic).

For example:

What is the organisation you are researching and what do they do?	Conservation South Luangwa A conservation organisation funded through grants and donations. They have been operating for 20 years and employ 137 people. They do law-enforcement, veterinary services for wildlife and community outreach.
What is one project this organisation undertaking that helps improve economic sustainability?	*Mitigation Fences* They are installing ‘smelly fences’ using bottles containing local ingredients to deter elephants from the crop fields. They also use barbed wire and electric fences powered by solar panels and they help patrol and repair these fences.
How does this project change the characteristics of this place?	Instead of planting lots of fields in case elephants destroy some, farmers can plant smaller protected fields knowing their crops will survive. This means more habitat for wildlife, and fewer human-wildlife interactions.
What is the flow-on impact for lions?	Less elephants are killed for destroying crops and hurting people, which means there is more prey for lions.People have reliable income and don’t have to hunt bushmeat for food and money, meaning there is more food for lions.

Take Action: Local actions

Step 1

Explain to students that there are many places around the world where humans and native animals have come into conflict, and in many cases, this occurs because of human influences on the characteristics of a place. Ask your students, ‘What examples of human-wildlife conflict can you think of in our country where we might kill an animal because we think it is dangerous either to us or our animals?’ Your students might suggest:

salt water crocodiles
sharks
snakes
spiders
birds of prey, including wedge-tailed eagles
dingoes.

But there are other examples of human-wildlife conflict where the animals aren’t dangerous, but are still causing conflict. Can you think of any examples? Your students might suggest:

brush-tailed possums (moving into your roof or eating through your garden)
kangaroos (competing with livestock for feed, damaging golf courses)
masked lapwings, sometimes referred to as plovers (chasing away threats from their young)
magpies (swooping to protect their chicks)
Australian ibis, sometimes referred to as bin chickens (eating from garbage, causing a mess).

Just like with the lions, these conflicts are caused by humans encroaching on the animal’s habitat. Let’s see if we can find ways to live sustainability with our own wildlife.

Step 2

Students will work in pairs or small groups to create a set of guidelines for their school community about how to live alongside a native animal of their choice. Students can consider the three pillars of sustainability (social, economic and environmental) and create an action plan to share with their school community and promote living with wildlife.

Sources to help students with their research could include:

Backyard buddies (backyardbuddies.org.au/
Gardens for Wildlife (gardensforwildlifevictoria.com/)
Birdlife Australia (birdlife.org.au/)
Australian Insects (australian-insects.com/)
Geoff Coombe’s Living with Wildlife (livingwithwildlife.com.au/)

Students could create a list of actions and recommendations to share with the community.

Literacy extension: These lists could be extended into a longer report that includes illustrations to support the text and references detailing sources of information.

Reflection

Invite students to work independently to respond to the following:

What is the most important lesson I took from how communities are living with wildlife in Africa? Explain why you think this is important.
How would you like to see the characteristics of our own community changed to promote sustainable living with wildlife?

Eco-Warriors

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Summary

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