Embedded Files
Introduction
Introduction
In this lesson you will:
discover the ways that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples sustainably managed Australias natural resources for tens of thousands of years
learn about downcycling, recycling and upcycling
research innovative ways to reduce waste.
Inquiry question and intentions
Inquiry question and intentions
Inquiry question:
How do sustainable strategies help protect the Earth into the future?
Learning intentions
To describe traditional sustainable practices used by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
To distinguish between upcycling, recycling, downcycling and repurposing.
To investigate methods of recycling.
To describe innovative ways of reducing waste.
Activity 1 - Learning from Australia's traditional custodians
Activity 1 - Learning from Australia's traditional custodians
Background information
Background information
For tens of thousands of years, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have used knowledge and sophisticated sustainable practices to manage natural resources, living on and caring for country. They used traditional knowledge that worked with the environment to maintain the health of land and water and supplied them with the food they needed. Indigenous land management included traditional Aboriginal fire management, fish traps and traditional sowing and storing of plants.
For example:
The Brewarrina fish traps are about 40,000 years old and show a scientific knowledge and understanding of tidal patterns.
Traditional Aboriginal slow burn fire management was used to regenerate native grasses, to prevent intense bushfires and to maintain biodiversity. Burning also considered plant cycles and animals’ patterns.
Knowledge of traditional methods combined with modern technologies and innovative land management practices can help keep our environment healthy in to the future.
Task 1
Task 1
Watch the video, Connection to Country where Park rangers describe the importance of connecting to, and caring for, Country.
In your exercise book or folder:
Record two key messages or ideas from the video.
Explain what caring for Country means to you.
Connection to Country
Duration: 4:37
Task 2
Task 2
There are many examples of Aboriginal practices that show strong connections between culture, health and caring for traditional lands. These practices have used natural resources sustainably and helped to keep ecosystems diverse and healthy for thousands of years. Sustainable use is about making sure there will be enough resources left for future generations.
Choose one of the following to investigate:
Slow cultural burning
Watch the video, Cultural burning used for fire management on Walbanga country.
Answer these questions:
What are the advantages of slow cultural burning?
How could this be used to care for and sustain the diversity of animals and plants in ecosystems?
Cultural burning used for fire management on Walbanga country
Duration: 3:10
Knowledge and understanding of Indigenous seasons
Watch the video, Indigenous seasons across northern Australia, by clicking on the image to open the ABC Education website in a new tab.
Answer this question:
How is an understanding of plants, animals and seasons important in sustaining the environment into the future?
Indigenous seasons across northern Australia
Duration: 1:41
Budj Bim Cultural Landscape
Watch the video, Budj Bim cultural landscape.
Answer this question:
How is this aquaculture system important in our understanding of sustainable farming?
Budj Bim Cultural Landscape
Duration: 5:55
Brewarrina fish traps
Watch the video, Brewarrina fish traps.
Answer this question:
How is this an example of understanding the river and sustainable fishing?
Brewarrina fish traps
Duration: 3:15
Activity 2 - What is downcycling, recycling and upcycling?
Activity 2 - What is downcycling, recycling and upcycling?
Background information
Background information
Upcycling changes a material into something that has greater value than the original. For example, scraps of cloth from old clothing could be used to make a patchwork bag. The new product, the bag, is more valuable than the scrap materials from which it was made.
Recycling changes a material into a new product of about the same value as the original. For example, metal and aluminium cans could be recycled to make new steel and aluminium cans.
Downcycling changes a material into a new product that has less value than the original. For example, when plastic bottles are recycled, the plastic can get weaker and so the plastic can no longer be used for plastic bottles. It might be used to make carpet. Other examples might be making cleaning rags from clothing, or newspaper out of writing paper.
Upcycling can be better than downcycling because upcycling prolongs the useful life of materials.
Repurposing is another term used for up or down cycling of materials, depending on the value of the new product. Recycling is where the materials are sent back to their original purpose.
Task 1
Task 1
Watch the video, How plastic recycling actually works.
Use information from the video to answer the following question in your exercise book or folder:
Is the recycling of plastic bottles into polyester for clothing an example of upcycling, recycling or downcycling? Justify your ideas.
How plastic recycling actually works
Duration: 3:51
Task 2
Task 2
Watch the video, War on Waste - waste audit.
Use information from the video to answer the following questions in your exercise book or folder:
What do you think about household waste?
What do you wonder about household waste?
War on Waste - waste audit
Duration: 4:58
Task 3 - What happens to our recycling?
Task 3 - What happens to our recycling?
Visit the Go to Under the lid: What happens to your recycling? page on the City of Sydney News website.
Click on the image to open the page in a new tab.
Read the page to explore what happens to each type of recycled material.
Use information from the website to complete the drag the words interactive.
Task 4
Task 4
Different kinds of plastics are recycled in different ways. The plastic code identifies the type of plastic used to make a product.
Complete the Different kinds of plastics activity using the Google Doc.
Click on the button to open a new tab and view the Google Doc.
Click on the Use Template button to create a copy for you to edit.
Activity 3 - What innovative ways could be used to reduce waste?
Activity 3 - What innovative ways could be used to reduce waste?
Background information
Background information
Science and engineering play a key role in developing innovative ideas to manage the growing waste problem around the world. These ideas could be for the management of waste, using recycled materials, designing environmentally friendly materials for packaging and developing new technologies for landfills where methane from compostable materials could be collected and used to generate electricity.
There are many possible methods that could be used to manage this global problem.
Task
Task
Watch the five videos to explore the different ways that scientists and engineers have developed solutions for waste reduction.
Select your favourite or find one of your own to investigate.
Write a short paragraph about why you have chosen this idea and how this innovation could reduce waste.
Use the template to assist you to plan your ideas.
Click on the button to open a new tab and view the Google Doc.
Click on the Use Template button to create a copy for you to edit.
Have Australian scientists discovered a recycling solution to our plastic problem?
Duration: 5:11
An intro guide to Waste Management in Singapore
Duration: 4:50
How Rotting Vegetables Make Electricity
Duration: 5:31
Tyrecycle: Making inroads into tyre recovery in Victoria
Duration: 2:25
Turning Plastic into Petrol: The Future of Recycling in Australia
Duration: 1:54
Exit slip
Exit slip
Handing in your work
Handing in your work
Don't forget to hand in the work you completed today!
Your teacher will have told you to do one of the following:
Upload any digital documents you created and any photos you took of your written work to your Learning Management system (MS Teams, Google Classroom for example).
Email any digital documents you created and any photos you took of your written work to your teacher.
Make sure you keep any hand written work you did in your exercise book or folder as your teacher may need to see these when you are back in class.
Student reflection
Student reflection
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