Poverty Traps and Child Labor

Poverty: Bolivia Case Study

courtesy of the United Nations http://www.fao.org/sd/WPdirect/WPre0a89.gif

Wanting environmental sustainability is great, but if people don't have enough resources to meet their daily needs, they won't be worried about the future of our world.  Instead, they will just try to survive until tomorrow.

1.  Use Google Images and look for three different images that define a poverty trap.  What do they have in common with the chart above?  What is different? Be able to describe a poverty trap.

2.  Child labour is a constant of life for many people across the world.  Take a look at the website simulation  on child labor.  The simulation found is here

When you are done, answer the following:
Is child labour a poverty trap or a conscious choice?
Is education a way out or a false hope?
What are common poverty traps in an environmental science class?
What family member is most likely to wisely invest capital to get out of a poverty trap?  Why?



Here are some more sites to look at.  Specifically, we'll be looking at poverty trap, The Millenium Development Goals and the country of Bolivia in the next few days.  Links to look at are below.  I would suggest a 2 or 3 summary statements for each of the following.:

YOUTH (choose 2 of these to summarize)
http://www.voicesofyouth.org/
Child Labour 1
Child Labour 2
Child Labour 3

THESE ARE IMPORTANT, AND PROVIDE THE BASIS OF MOST CHURCH AND HUMANITARIAN  MISSION PROGRAMS
Millenium Development Goals

 Day 3:  Summarizing Factors Using Bolivia

Step 1:  Identify the biome(s) of Bolivia

Step 2

WRITE DOWN AT LEAST 8 OBSERVATIONS FROM THESE WEBSITES

A quick snapshot:   http://www.worldbank.org/en/country/bolivia  
Food Security:  http://www.wfp.org/content/bolivia-food-security-monitoring-2010
Population Pyramid:  http://www.worldlifeexpectancy.com/world-population-pyramid

CIA Factbook:  https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/bl.html

Step 3:

READ  BOTH OF THESE, AND SEE WHAT ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES ABOVE MUST BE CONSIDERED

Indigenous Issues in Bolivia: http://www.globalissues.org/news/2010/04/20/5297

Sustainability Issues:  http://www.fsdinternational.org/country/bolivia/envissues

=====================
Step 4:  Write a 2-3 page paper on the issues of Bolivia, what needs to be considered to make the country sustainable, and how the Millenium Goals and/or Poverty Traps are connected to the issue.  You will have today and part of tomorrow to do this.

Housing Thoughts

Housing is influenced by many items, including culture, status, energy-efficiency and location.

TO start, tell me what size your house should be, in a range of 50 to 10000 sq. ft.

Determine the heating you would use, and whether it is a contributor to the greenhouse effect

Tell me any passive solar features you would use in the building.

How many bedrooms would it have?

What air circulation features would exist?

What insulation features would use, including an approximate R-value for the walls, windows, and ceiling?

Where would it be located?


Keep a list of resources used, including people, web sites.   Turn in a sketch with the notable features in a format of your choice.  This is due on Tuesday.

NIMBY--Wind or Water Rights

The Klamoth Water Basin Crisis

In this case study, students examine global water shortage problems in the context of the current Klamath Basin water crisis. Two main perspectives are addressed, agriculture and the environment, along with multiple other perspectives including Native Americans, hydroelectric dams, and the fishing industry. Students learn about and discuss competing interests for water and analyze and critique scientific data, maps, and graphs. 

Important Note: Native Americans are considered sovereign citizens of BOTH their own tribe and the United States. So, negotiating with Native Americans means that they have the same rights and respect due to them (according to the Federal Code), as negotiating with a country like Great Britain or Saudi Arabia.

The Case to Consider

Power point overview

YOUR TASK Come up with a compromise that you feel deals with all the issues in a fair and equitable manner. Detail this viewpoint using a poster, and an accompanying narrative. Your poster must include a pie chart that divides the water available. 

You must deal with:

fresh water shortages
the purpose of a wildlife refuge
Native American rights
fishing rights, including harvest, spawning, and various methods of capture
hydroelectric dams and their purposes
community needs
agricultural irrigation needs


Grading:

Poster: 20 points....10 points comes from visual appeal, 10 points comes from content, including the rationale for your decision and your water distribution pie chart.

Narrative 30 points... This is one page. It must include 7-9 reasons for your decision and who benefits and who loses for EACH decision.

Cape Wind: The challenge

Cape Wind is an offshore wind project that is proposed off of Nantucket Sound

It is also a NIMBY issues

Link 1

Link 2

Link 3

http://www.capewindmovie.com/

http://www.saveoursound.org/

Pick a Person:

a) barista, making $20000/year

b) fisher, making $50000/year

c) homeowner, Wampanoag tribe member, and food stand operator, making $30,000/year

d) homeowner who uses the place as a second home

e) construction worker, making $70000/year

f) environmentalist, making $25000/year

g) energy executive, making $2,000,000/year

Pick a location

a) on the Sound

b) within 1/2 mile of the Sound

c) in an apartment

d) within 5 miles of the Sound

Pick a health issue

a) none

b) epilepsy

Pick an ethics viewpoint

a) sustainability for the world!

b) sustainability if it doesn't cost me money!

c) my way or the highway!

d) protect the animals!

Outline your profile on a sheet of paper. Each person in your group must have a different profile.

Do some research to come up with the rationale for why this might be a NIMBY project.

List 10 pros and 10 cons of the project.

Have a discussion from the point of view of your profile. Use the pros and cons to discuss your ideas with another table.

Based on your profile, write a one page summary to explain your view for whether the project should go forward. These reasons for a pro or con choice must be supported by the evidence you gather (that is, does the evidence (not just the opinion) match your viewpoint. This is hard, because feelings don't sway a judicial decision--evidence does. Evidence usually takes the form of numerical data, financial impact, or the more nebulous 'cultural significance'

Water Rights on the Colorado

YOUR DECISION:

http://sciencecases.lib.buffalo.edu/cs/files/snake_river.pdf

RESOURCES

http://www.usbr.gov/lc/region/g1000/lawofrvr.html

http://www.waterinfo.org/indian.html

http://www.volokh.com/2012/11/23/us-and-mexico-pact-on-colorado-river-water-rights/

http://www.westernwaterlaw.com/ 

http://www.bandersnatch.com/water.htm

http://www.theworld.org/2010/04/colorado-river-water-rights/

Class Infographics

I

(Infographics on Slide 9 and 10 of the presentation)

Organizing Information with Infographics

It takes a lot of work to design a quality infographic.   These graphics are fact-heavy.  What do they tell you about climate change? Sometimes, they tell you way TOOO much, and you brain goes into overload. Organize your thinking for class about which infographic is the best and which is the least helpful.  Explain your reasoning.

  

USA Today is perhaps the king of simple infographics, focusing on one subject, or snapshot.  How does the USA today infographic differ from the ones above?

Of course, the quality of the information in an infographic is key.  Usually, sources are cited someplace (in itty-bitty type) at the bottom of the infographic.  If that is missing, the graphic lacks credibility.  CHECK the sources!

You want to use visual organization to provide information in a way that leaves the reader wanting to think about the topic.  Your assignment is creating a credible graphic about one possible solution to the issue of climate change.   Highlight the most pertinent facts of climate change and the hope that this solution offers.

How do we evaluate the quality of an infographic?

A rubric from kathyschrock.net 

Quiz, Unit on Climate Change

ON the left side of my desk is a quiz.   Students need to take it.

Take notes over the following.  Each link should have 1-4 sentences.

Carbon Dioxide Trends:  http://www.esrl.noaa.gov/gmd/ccgg/trends/
Methane Trends:  http://cdiac.ornl.gov/trends/atm_meth/lawdome_meth-graphics.html

Ice Core Trends  http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/warnings/stories/
Extreme weather events:   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_extreme_weather_events
Extreme weather events 2:  http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/climate/severeweather/extremes.html
Ocean Temperature Trends:   http://chartsgraphs.wordpress.com/2009/09/04/global-sea-surface-temperature-trends-1850-2009/

Water Depth Trends:   http://flood.firetree.net/

Chapter 7:  Sections 1-5

Focus on the relationships detailed in the Carbon, Nitrogen, Oxygen, and Sulfur Cycles as you read this.

Endangered Species in Iowa

Go to http://www.iowaagriculture.gov/livingontheedge.asp

to see the Regulations, endangered animals, and endangered plants in Iowa.

1.  Summarize the regulations Iowans must follow from the introduction.

2.  List l0 species that are threatened or endangered.  Explain WHY they are endangered, in your opinion, and give a piece of evidence to support your claim.

Biodiversity Questions

Think of your species or program that was studied.

• How is the health and stability of the ecosystem in which you live related to biodiversity and your species?
• When does a species 'change' change the biodiversity of a locale?
• Are human efforts to preserve a species enough?  In the big scheme of things, should we just let nature take its course?
• If a species is eliminated, how critical is that?

• What are the root causes of  biodiversity loss?
• Is it possible to 'abandon' a biome?
• What impact will biodiversity loss have on humans and other life?
• How can we protect biodiversity?

http://sciencecases.lib.buffalo.edu/cs/files/matrix.pdf

What is the Optimal Carrying Capacity

Nine Meals

Food Security

Food Production Index


===================
Carrying Capacity Calculations are tough.

http://www.biog1105-1106.org/demos/106/unit09/media/16.carryingcapacity.pdf


=================

One last consideration

Textbook, Chapter 5, Sections 4-5-6


Define quality life vs. definition survival.  Using that, you are going identify a set of four solutions that will help with population control (poster or other) and a rationale for your choices.   When you get done, express three cultural or religious values that influenced your choice.

Tragedy of the Commons

Real Life Examples of the Tragedy of the Commons

===========


Read sections 1-4 of Chapter 5 of The Habitable Planet.   Generate a list of ten or more  questions that you think need to be answered in terms of impact on biomes, effects on the commons, and what we have valued since the industrial revolution.   You should have 6-10 questions.   Upload these to a Google Doc and share with me.

===========


Learn about the three types of population pyramids using the link. 

Population Pyramids by Country

Population Pyramid and Life Expectancy