This fortnight's thi>eWorld Environment Day: Climate Change Issue 162
 
 


World Environment Day - June 5, 2007

"Climate change is not just an environmental issue, as too many people still believe. It is an all encompassing threat. It is a threat to health, since a warmer world is one in which infectious diseases such as malaria and yellow fever will spread further and faster. It could imperil the world's food supply, as rising temperatures and prolonged drought render fertile areas unfit for grazing or crops. It could endanger the very ground on which nearly half the worlds population live -coastal cities such as Lagos or Cape Town, which face inundation from sea levels rising as a result of inciting icecaps and glaciers." Kofi Annan, Secretary-General of the United Nations

We can hardly turn on the television, listen to the radio, or read a newspaper without being inundated by people talking about global warming, rising sea levels, lack of water or increased soil salinity. Why such a fuss? The answer is simple... we have one Earth and the actions we take now will determine how the future unfolds.

Sometimes it can seem like environmental issues are just too big and too far away to do much about... but nothing could be further from the truth! Rethinking some of the things you do around the house or school can make a big difference to your local environment and, as a result, to the planet whose air, land and water we share.

Climate Changed...
THE MEND OF THE WORLD IS NOW!

Use reusable bags, Turn appliances right off, Bike it, Dry clothes outdoors.

(The Environment Agency, UK)

Image: Water

World Environment Day
Each year, June 5 is recognised as World Environment Day. This is a day that the United Nations began back in 1972 and it still continues to be a day in the year when all people are encouraged to look at the changing face of the environment and think of ways to lessen our impact. This year's theme is Melting Ice - A Hot Topic? Never before has water, the lack of it, or the melting of ice, been such a relevant issue. National Geographic report that rising temperatures have a dramatic impact on Arctic ice, which serves as a kind of "air conditioner" at the top of the world. Since 1978 Arctic sea ice area has shrunk by some 9 per cent per decade, and thinned as well. No wonder temperatures are rising!

This World Environment Day, be conscious of what you can do to minimise your use of water. How do your every day actions contribute to the rate at which polar ice is melting?

Image: Flood

Millennium Development Goal 7
In the year 2000, two hundred United Nations member states set themselves eight goals aiming to halve world poverty by the year 2015. 07/07/07 marks the half-way point to achieving the Millennium Development Goals. Goal 7 is to Ensure Environmental Sustainability. Governments are called to implement policies and procedures to reverse the loss of environmental resources. This goal aims to halve the proportion of people without access to clean drinking water, to improve the lives of slum dwellers, and to reduce the loss of the world's forests. Some countries are working towards achieving this goal, but many are falling behind their targets.

The Australian Climate Change and Development Roundtable was formed in recognition that developing countries are particularly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, and to highlight the need for international aid and development agencies to consider the implications of climate change for their programs and advocacy

World Day to combat desertification and drought
The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification is held annually on June 17. It highlights the fact that desertification happens right around the globe and can be effectively tackled through strengthened community participation and co-operation at all levels.

National Sorry Day
On May 26, 1997, the National Inquiry into the Separation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children from their Families, called the Bringing Them Home Report was tabled. It detailed the sad and painful stories of the removal of many thousands of indigenous children from their families. The Report recommended that a Sorry Day should be held. A year later, on May 26, 1998, over half a million Australians signed Sorry Books and took part in ceremonies for the inaugural National Sorry Day.

On this day, we reflect on pain caused by past actions and the ongoing consequences. We publicly express our sorrow in solidarity with our indigenous sisters and brothers and we journey together on the path of healing.

 

    

Teaching and Learning Activities

CROSS CURRICULA

  1. Go to www.un.org and read about how you can get involved in a special UN initiative to help people around the world gain access to safe drinking water. Also view videos looking at water conservation. View the slide show at www.un.org/ and read accompanying information. If you still have water related questions, go to www.un.org/ and ask a UN expert!

  2. National Sorry Day, May 26, is the day to publicly recognise the pain and anguish suffered by the Stolen Generation through the removal of Indigenous children from their families. 2007 marks the 10th Anniversary of the Bringing Them Home report. Go to www.nsdc.org.au and see what your school can do to participate.

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

  1. Go to www.unep.org and select ARCTIC AND POLAR or CLIMATE CHANGE photos. View the photos and use them as the inspiration for a prayer service on the environment.

SCIENCE/HSIE

  1. Go to www.unep.org and read through the Secretary-General's message for World Environment Day. Answer the questions using information from the passage:

    1. What is happening to concentrations of carbon dioxide gas in the atmosphere?

    2. List some of the effects of the Arctic region warming up.

    3. List four ways climate change is impacting on all regions of the world.

    4. What is an alternative to using fossil fuels for energy? How does this alternate energy source aid the environment?

  2. Go to www.unep.org/ and also www.unep.org/ (pages 15-18) and work in groups of three or four. Each group should select one of the following topics:

    1. Polar bear
    2. Farmer
    3. Islander
    4. Insurer
    5. Indigenous Person

    Read the information supplied and produce a poster which illustrates how climate change affects different groups of people. On your poster include how your habitat is changing, what it costs you financially, and in loss of life, and what can be done to reverse the damage.

  3. Go to www.unep.org and have a close look at the Melt Down poster. What is the main message? What can we do to reverse the environmental damage we are facing?

  4. Go to www.green.tvand view the videos from green tv. Pole to Pole is a visual journey of the alarming effects of climate change. View the film on green.tv , the broadband TV channel for environmental films produced in partnership with the UNEP. Under the WATER link, take time to look at the films, Maldives Challenge, Buckets of Water and One Water. More thought provoking films and environmental footage can be found under the AIR, LAND and CLIMATE CHANGE links. As a class discuss the issues raised. How is the changing environment, changing the face of the world?

  5. Go to www.unep.org and in small groups select one of the posters to read and summarise the message. Present your findings to the class and display posters around the school to inform others.

  6. Go to page 19 at www.unep.org and see how you can get involved in World Environment Day.

  7. Go to www.un.org and select HTML or Flash (depending on your computer). Read information on MDG 7 and see the progress, the importance of achieving this goal, how success is calculated, and who benefits. The interesting facts and videos will give you much to think about.

SCIENCE

  1. Anyone for CABBAGE SOUP! Go to www.un.org and test the level of acid in your rainwater using a bowl of cabbage soup.

ENGLISH

  1. Go to www.unep.org and read the story of Tore and the Town on Thin Ice. As a class, list the environmental issues raised. Imagine you are a town local and write a letter to the newspaper editor expressing your fears for the future and, the necessity of doing something to try and stop this environmental disaster from getting any worse.

CAPA

  1. Go to www.unep.org and look through the booklet at some of the amazing photos. Also go to www.unep.org and view the ARCTIC AND POLAR and CLIMATE CHANGE photos. Use these as inspiration to make a collage showing the effects of global warming and the changing face of the environment. You may also like to include some relevant quotes or words around your pictures. Use different materials including paper, wool, feathers, grass, etc. to make the collage eye catching and tactile.

  2. Go to www.unep.org and select a country mentioned from page 21 onwards. Design a pamphlet using a computer program to raise awareness of World Environment Day in your selected country and inform people what is happening, how they can become involved, and identify key problems that need attention.

PARISH/COMMUNITY/SOCIAL JUSTICE GROUPS

  1. Go to www.unep.org and select ARCTIC AND POLAR or CLIMATE CHANGE photos. View the photos and use them as the inspiration for a prayer service on the environment.

  2. Go to www.unep.org and read the brochure on World Environment Day. Be informed about global environmental issues of concern. Gain inspiration from communities across the globe, doing their bit to care for the earth. What action will you take?

  3. Go to www.unep.org and read interesting facts about the changing face of the world. Discuss these posters and the relevance of them to each of us.

  4. Go to www.un.org and read up on the MDGs, especially MDG 7 which is most relevant to this issue.

  5. Upcoming Events:

 

 
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