Content Standards Alignment

College Board - AP HUMAN GEOGRAPHY

7.8 Sustainable Development Goals 

The What: Creating Change in our Community is a project in which students research and create an original 15-minute Podcast, News Broadcast, Documentary, or Ted Talk diving into one specific SDG (Sustainable Development Goal) regarding an issue experienced by people in their local community. In this project, students worked in small groups (3-4 students) tasked with researching ONE of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of their choosing and then related their research to a sustainability topic impacting our local community of Mesa, Arizona. Students then presented their projects in a Gallery Walk where they learned from their fellow peers about all 17 SDGs by completing a reflection on the solutions each group presented. Therefore, all students gained wide exposure to unique peer-created solutions for all 17 of the SDGs and how these goals impact our community. 

The Why: The reason for creating this lesson was for students to first find a problem they felt passionate about solving within their community. Having students problem-solve their own creative ways to meet their SDG by 2030 puts a realistic time frame and scope to their topic. Water scarcity, for example, is one topic that hits right home to our quality of life here in the Sonoran Desert. My hope is that by allowing students to choose an SDG they care about, they are more engaged with the project. Students further learn more about issues facing our daily lives and ultimately, see themselves as a driver for change in their local community. I chose a presentation format based around a 15-minute Podcast, News Broadcast, Documentary, or Ted Talk in order to spark creativity and make their projects more engaging to the audience. I also chose to have students work together because one of the main goals of global competency is to have the skills to negotiate, discuss and find solutions in a diplomatic manner with people of differing perspectives. By working in small groups students are forced to find a consensus on various aspects of the topic which exercises and builds their global competency in real-life practice. 

The How: Format for the Podcast/Broadcast/Documentary/Ted Talk: 

This is a general template/guideline of what should be addressed throughout each project. However, students may present this information in whatever creative order they imagine but these basic elements are expected to be included in order to build engagement with those who, keep in mind, have no background or knowledge of the topic. 

• Below is what was provided for students to start their projects

5-6 Minutes: Brief history of the SDG and why this specific SDG exists. 

First, WHAT number (5,6,4) is your SDG, and state the formal name. 

• What IS the goal of this SDG? (Like…. explain like I’m 5 – WHAT is this even about?)

• Why is this topic important to know about? How does this impact people’s lives?

• Why should anyone care about achieving this goal? Why do you think it’s important?

• Where are we today in terms of achieving this SDG by 2030? Has any recent progress been made? What important statistical data is relevant for someone to understand this issue? 

• Why should Mesa, Arizona, care about this issue? Has Mesa done anything already to help achieve this SDG? 

30-second Advertising BREAK! 

• AD MUST be specific to the city of Mesa, the state of Arizona, or the Southwest region of the United States. Try to keep the Ad as local as possible. Yes, you will create a 30-second product placement here. You can get super creative with this but, you must think about your target audience. What type of product might someone who listens to political podcasts etc. want to buy? Maybe a product you can see yourself using in Mesa? Be creative with your 100% made-up product placement! Also, the product MUST align with your solution to your SDG! 

8-9 Minutes: Your 3-part SOLUTION to achieving this SDG for Mesa, Arizona by 2030

• Introduce, like an opening paragraph of an essay, three main solutions or changes we must make to achieve this goal by 2030. 

• Spend a significant amount of time (2-3 minutes) explaining each solution with both potential reasons for the community to support and not support each solution. Wrap this up by summarizing why each solution is the best way to achieve this SDG for our local community. 

1 Minute: What small change can one make right now to help achieve this goal? 

• What should be the audience’s “takeaway” be and what can they do immediately to help achieve this goal by 2030? 

The Results:  Overall, students were passionate about their projects and asked so many questions about their topics! Students enjoyed learning how to make a Podcast and they had fun with making of their own Ad Breaks and characters. The quality overall was fairly high for all students but some wanted more time.