Student Worksheet

Thought-starter: Mango trees can also get damaged in tropical cyclones, and the fruit can be sunburnt in hot weather.

Warm-up activity

Read the Bananas and climate change in Australia fact sheet and answer the questions below:

If you lost three quarters of your crop of bananas this year, what do you think would happen to your income?

Imagine all the banana plantation farmers in Innisfail (Queensland) lose most of their harvest this year. What do you think will happen to the price of bananas in stores?

Why might this happen to prices?

This scenario actually happened to banana farmers in and around Innisfail in 2006. Cyclone Larry wiped out between 80 and 90% of the banana crop that year. Larry was the most destructive cyclone to hit Queensland in a century. Banana prices increased by around 500%.

If one kilogram of bananas cost $2.00 in 2005 and they increased in price by 500% in 2006, how much would a kilogram of bananas cost after the increase?

What is the price of bananas now? (TIP: visit a website of a supermarket that does online shopping)

What would happen if a storm hit Innisfail again tomorrow and caused the price of bananas to rise by 425% - how much would a kilogram of bananas cost after this increase?

What foods couldn’t you live without?

Do you think these foods are ‘safe’ with a changing climate? Why or why not?

Group investigation

The class will break into 7 groups and the teacher will assign each group with an Australian state or territory (combine the ACT and NSW into one group). Each groups should research:

a). The main types of food grown in their state or territory; and

b). The main climate change impacts predicted for their state or territory.

Each group should then produce an infographic (e.g. Piktochart) describing the potential impacts of climate change on the food production in their state or territory.

The infographics should include:

No more than 2 types of food grown in their state or territory;
Details about the climate change impacts on these 2 food types; and
A map highlighting the regions affected.

Homework

Food production is both a contributor to climate change and affected by climate change. Feeding the future population of the globe while sustaining a healthy planet will require a change to ways we think about (and eat) food.

Watch this clip and respond to the questions below:

Should we eat bugs? Emma Bryce (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rDqXwUS402I)

Summarise this video in 35 words or less:

What are three key points from this video:

1.

2.

3.

Would you eat bugs? Explain:

Supporting resources

Australian Government - Climate change impacts in Australia
CSIRO - Climate Change: Science and Solutions for Australia
WWF - Australia’s climate change hotspots
Australian Government - Cost of inaction
Earth Hour 2015 - climate change and food factsheet

Earth Hour - Feeding the Country

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