Topic 1.

3 Sustainability
Introduction to Sustainability
1. Define sustainability

2. List key milestones in the development of sustainability as a global concern, including important
conferences and reports. (List: Give a sequence of brief answers with no explanation.)

3. Suggest one example of a global perspective for managing resources sustainably and one example of a
local perspective for managing resources sustainably. Which one is more sustainable? (Suggest: Propose a
solution, hypothesis or other possible answer)

4. Complete the table below on the 3 pillars of sustainable

Pillar Description Example

Environmental

Social

Economic

http://www.mrgscience.com/
5. Identify a local ecosystem that could benefit from regeneration efforts. What actions could help restore
it?" (Identify: Provide an answer from a number of possibilities. Recognize and state briefly a
distinguishing fact or feature)

6. Reference the graph below.

a. Describe the general trend on the relationship between the country's economic activity (GDP per
capita) and its environmental impact (carbon emissions per capita) (Describe: Give detailed
account or picture of a situation, event, pattern or process.)

b. Based on the observed trend, suggest the implications about the balance between economic
development and environmental sustainability. (Suggest: Propose a solution, hypothesis or other
possible answer)

c. Choose one country from the graph. Identify specific factors that might contribute to its position
on the graph (Identify: Provide an answer from a number of possibilities. Recognize and state
briefly a
distinguishing fact or feature.)

http://www.mrgscience.com/
 7. State at least one advantage of measuring sustainability… (State: give a specific name, value or other brief
answer without explanation ore calculation)
a. ...on a local scale:
b. ...on a global scale:

Unsustainable Practices

8. Complete the table below. Identify two more of Nature's Principles. Add these to the table. For each one,
consider whether human beings behave sustainably or not. (Identify: Provide an answer from a number of
possibilities. Recognize and state briefly a distinguishing fact or feature.)

Nature's Unifying Principles Unsustainable Human Behaviour

.
Nature recycles all materials.

Nature uses chemistry and materials that are safe

for living beings.

Nature builds using abundant resources,

incorporating rare resources only sparingly.

http://www.mrgscience.com/
9. Find an example of ecosystem collapse caused by the unsustainable use of natural resources.
a. State the ecosystem collapse (State: Give a specific name, value or other brief answer without
explanation or calculation.)

b. Outline the causes of the collapse (Outline: Give a brief account or summary.)

c. Identify the solutions were used to reverse the decline? (Identify: Provide an answer from a
number of possibilities. Recognize and state briefly a distinguishing fact or feature.)

d. Evaluate the solution (Evaluate: Make an appraisal by weighing up the strengths and limitations.)

10. Outline the difference between sustainability and sustainable development (Outline: Give a brief account
or summary.)

11. Outline the concept of Green GDP (Outline: Give a brief account or summary.)

http://www.mrgscience.com/
Environmental Justice

12. Outline the role of environmental justice in sustainable development (Outline: Give a brief account or
summary.)

13. Look at the infographic. Describe the patterns you notice in the types of communities affected by
environmental injustices (Describe: Give detailed account or picture of a situation, event, pattern or
process.)

14. Reference the cartoon.

a. Identify the message of the cartoon (Identify: Provide an
answer from a number of possibilities. Recognize and state
briefly a distinguishing fact or feature.)

b. Suggest what the cartoon say about the issue of water

inequality (Suggest: Propose a solution, hypothesis or
other possible answer.)

c. State how inequalities lead to disparities in access to

water(State: Give a specific name, value or other brief
answer without explanation or calculation.)

http://www.mrgscience.com/
Sustainability
15. Select and analyse one environmental sustainability indicator, detailing what it measures, its units, and
whether higher or lower values are preferable for both social and environmental sustainability. (Analyse:
Break down in order to bring out the essential elements or structure. To identify parts and relationships,
and to interpret information to reach conclusion.)

● Energy Consumption:
● Air Quality Index (AQI):
● Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per Capita
● Human Development Index (HDI):
● Natural increase rate (NIR) of population
● Access to Clean Water and Sanitation:
● Gender Inequality Index (GII):
● Poverty Index:
● Economic Inequality (Gini Coefficient):

16. Distinguish between ecological footprint and biocapacity. (Distinguish: Make clear the difference between
two or more concepts items)

17. Reference the graph. Evaluate the

sustainability of VietNam (Evaluate:
Make an appraisal by weighing up the
strengths and limitations.)

http://www.mrgscience.com/
 18. List the factors that affect a countries ecological footprint (List: Give a sequence of brief answers with no
explanation.)

19. Complete the table below on the strengths and limitations of using ecological footprint as a sustainability
indicator

Strengths Limitations

It is a useful snapshot of the sustainability of a

population’s lifestyle

It uses approximations of actual figures that cannot be

accurately calculated

It is negative in approach, so could be perceived as

demotivating

20. The figure below shows the volume of

water needed to produce various food
products. Analyse the data carefully,
then answer the questions.
a. Identify the products that
have the highest levels of
water usage. Identify: Provide
an answer from a number of
possibilities. Recognize and
state briefly a distinguishing
fact or feature.)

http://www.mrgscience.com/
 b. Suggest why some products require a much larger volume of water than others? (Suggest:
Propose a solution, hypothesis or other possible answer.)

c. Suggest how this knowledge be used to reduce the water footprint of an individual or society?
(Suggest: Propose a solution, hypothesis or other possible answer.)

d. Suggest how realistic is it to expect an individual or society to reduce their water footprint by
changing food and drink consumption? Suggest the strengths and limitations of this
approach?(Suggest: Propose a solution, hypothesis or other possible answer.)

UN Sustainable Development Goals

21. Complete the table on the uses and weaknesses of the SDGs

Uses Limitations

Common ground: the common set of goals, targets and

indicators makes it easier for governments, businesses
and other organisations to use the same language for
policies.

Lack of context: because the same set of goals, targets,

and indicators are used for all countries, there may not
be enough attention to contextual challenges faced by
some countries

Ambition: the SDGs are the first time that countries

have outlined socio-ecological goals for the planet; the
fact that they are hard to achieve shows ambition

Data: Some targets do not have adequate indicators so

there are SDGs that are not measured adequately

http://www.mrgscience.com/
Planetary Boundary Model
22. Outline the planetary boundaries model. (Outline: Give a brief account or summary.)

23. Reference the image.

a. Identify the specific boundaries that
have been crossed and by how much
(Identify: Provide an answer from a
number of possibilities. Recognize and
state briefly a distinguishing fact or
feature.)

b. Suggest measures that can be taken to

reverse or halt the progression beyond
these boundaries (Suggest: Propose a
solution, hypothesis or other possible
answer)

24. Complete the table on the use and limitations of the planetary boundaries model

Uses Limitations

Data incomplete: focuses only on ecological systems and

does not consider the human dimension necessary to
take action for environmental justice;

Focus on complex systems: highlights the need to focus

on more than climate change (which dominates
discussion);

Local usefulness: the focus on global boundaries may

not be a useful guide for local and country-level action.

http://www.mrgscience.com/
Doughnut Economics

25. Outline the doughnut economics model (Outline: Give a brief account or summary.)

26. Complete the table on the use and limitations of the doughnut economics model

Uses Limitations

Difficult paradigm shift: rejects the goal of economic

growth that most governments and businesses still aim
for; shifting worldviews has been difficult

Developing: being used at different scales (for example,

countries, cities, neighbourhoods, businesses) to
support action on sustainability.

27. Discuss the concepts of regenerative and distributive design within the context of sustainable
development (Discuss: Offer a considered and balanced review that includes a range of
arguments, factors or hypotheses. Opinions or conclusions should be presented clearly and
supported by appropriate evidence)

Circular economy

28. Distinguish between a linear and circular economy. (Distinguish: Make clear the difference
between two or more concepts items.)

29. The butterfly diagram from the Ellen MacArthur Foundation is a useful illustration of the circular
economy.

http://www.mrgscience.com/
 a. Summarize the main points made in the video. (Summarize: Abstract a general theme or
major point(s).)

b. Why is it called the “butterfly diagram”

30. Complete the table on the use and limitations of the circular economy model

Uses Limitations

Eco-ignorance: lack of environmental awareness by

consumers and companies;

Localvore: improvement of local food networks and

support of local communities

Reconsumption changed consumer habits.

Citizen Scientists

31. Explain the role of a citizen scientist in contributing to environmental research and conservation.
Beyond the examples discussed in class, provide at least one additional named example of a
citizen science project and describe its objectives and impact (Explain: Give a detailed account
including reasons or causes; Describe: Give detailed account or picture of a situation, event,
pattern or process.)

http://www.mrgscience.com/
ESS can be like learning a new language. So many words are not commonly used in everyday English. This can be
challenging. To help you keep up with ESS Terms, you will need to create your own ESS DICTIONARY. You should
add to this over the year and keep it in your notebook or on a page file THAT YOU CAN UPDATE AND ADD TO
EASILY. Most of the vocabulary words can be found either on your STUDY GUIDE or at mrgscience.com.

You will be responsible for learning the words and their meaning. Periodic quizzes will be given on the words. So,
make your dictionary creative and you will remember the words more easily.

KEY TERMS

planetary boundaries

ecological footprint

tipping point

diversity

justice

indicators

sustainability

doughnut economics

circular economy

renewable resources

non-renewable resources

biocapacity

regeneration

http://www.mrgscience.com/