Lesson overview

In this lesson students will understand what is meant by sustainability and will compare their lifestyles to that of a Tanzanian farmer, deciding which is the most sustainable.

Learning outcomes

• Define Sustainability
• Locate Tanzania
• Compare western lifestyles to those of a Tanzanian farmer’s and evaluate which one is more sustainable

Lesson steps

1. Introduction (10 mins)
   Explain the concept of sustainability. The word comes from sustain and ability. Sustainability is the property of something to remain diverse and productive indefinitely. Sustainability is the endurance of systems and processes; in other words, it is something’s ability to sustain itself.
   
   Pose the following scenario:
   
   • A man has a plot of land with 100 trees.
   • Each tree takes 10 years to grow.
   • The man wants to his trees to have a steady income to pay for his rent.
   • How many trees should the man cut down and sell to ensure he has a sustainable income?
     
   Answer: If the man sells ten trees each year, he will have a sustainable income indefinitely.
   
   Students write a similar scenario in their own lives and share their scenarios. Students use Google Maps to locate and illustrate Tanzania on the blank map provided (see Student Sheet).
2. Expedition (20 mins)
   Lead the expedition. Students explore the expedition and add information about farming in Tanzania to the space around the map of Africa on the Student Sheet, located in the Lesson resources section.
   
   Students estimate the carbon footprint of a Tanzanian farmer using the WWF footprint calculator.
   
3. Activity (30 mins)
   Students write a list of the things that they have in common with the farmers they observed. Students write a list of the things that are different between their lives and the farmers they observed.
   Students estimate their carbon footprint using the WWF footprint calculator. Students evaluate their footprint and compare it to a Tanzanian farmer’s.
4. Extension
   Students write a letter to an imaginary farmer in Tanzania explaining what they learned in the lesson.
   Students research things that they can do to minimise their footprint.
   Students research further on innovations for rural agriculture in Africa.

England

Key Stage 3 Geography

• Extended their locational knowledge of different countries
• Understand physical processes interact to influence and change landscapes, environments and the climate
• Understand dhow human activity relies on effective functioning of natural systems