How Can We Reduce Our Environmental Footprint One Food at a Time?

Positives

• By the end of the article, students have an actionable way to reduce their environmental footprint and tackle climate change.
• The resource includes additional lesson ideas, related articles, and a glossary of key terms.
• The article is also available in Bulgarian.
  

Additional Prerequisites

• Teachers must fill in a form with their name, email, and school information to access the teacher's key, which includes answers to the comprehension questions.
• Students should be familiar with the causes of climate change and the importance of access to fresh water.
• Although the information in the article can be applied globally, the study and some of the data mentioned in the video are focused on the United States.

Differentiation

• It may be helpful for some students to use the video version of the article.
• Younger students can work in pairs to answer the comprehension questions.
• More advanced students can look into the sources of emissions from producing different foods or read the original research paper.
  
• The lesson plan ideas and related articles listed include experiments, worksheets, and videos that can be used to better students' understanding of the environmental effects of food production.
• As an extension, have students research five more foods and potential substitutes using this Environmental Impacts of Food Data Explorer. Have students address the issues related to land use and water use, including deforestation, water pollution, and biodiversity loss.
  
• Use this other lesson to have students learn more about how food production affects the planet and this video to teach students about the environmental impact of beef.