This short video uses compelling images of climate change impacts to present the top five nations in 2018 contributing to global carbon emissions.
The video lists a few reasons for each country's large contribution to annual carbon emissions.
Teaching Tips
Positives
This video could be a great introduction to discussing the human causes of climate change.
The images are striking.
Additional Prerequisites
Students should be familiar with the concept of fossil fuel-driven economic growth. This course may be useful in introducing the topic.
Differentiation
Consider having students guess which countries are the top five emitters before watching the video. Have them explain their thoughts and reasoning behind their predictions.
Have students generate a list of questions they are curious about as they watch the video (watching a few times through may be helpful). Then have students work in pairs to research and answer the questions.
This resource explores the top five carbon emitters in the world. It explains how population and economic growth are causing CO2 levels to further increase. This is insightful and recommended for teaching.
Standards
Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS)
ESS3: Earth and Human Activity
MS-ESS3-4 Construct an argument supported by evidence for how increases in human population and per-capita consumption of natural resources impact Earth's systems.
MS-ESS3-5 Ask questions to clarify evidence of the factors that have caused the rise in global temperatures over the past century.
College, Career, and Civic Life (C3) Standards
Dimension 2: Geography
D2.Geo.11.9-12 Evaluate how economic globalization and the expanding use of scarce resources contribute to conflict and cooperation within and among countries.
