Civic Education for Sustainability

The air is an essential resource for the existence of life on earth. It is a mixture of gases, containing  around  79% nitrogen,  around  20%  oxygen and around one percent of other gases.

The development of agriculture, industry, and transportation, over the last centuries  have led to a continuing increase in air pollution. The pollution affects life on earth, both domestically and globally, causing of morbidity,  global warming  / climate change and the formation of the ozone hole.

In order to stop the deteriorating situation, and to reduce the environmental damage, citizens of the world should be able to understand the causes and consequences of air pollution, and should be provided with the skills that will allow them to reduce their contribution to the pollution.

Students will have a better understanding of the air pollution sources,  about the possible pollutants and about air pollution consequences. They will be able to understand the relationships between local and global air pollution, and climate changes. They will know how they can reduce their impact on air pollution in their daily life.

The knowledge they will acquire may be a stage that might affect their daily pro-environmental behaviour, which will reduce their contribution to air pollution.

• The main sources of air pollution: natural and man-made.
  
• The air pollutants: gases, particulate matter (PM) and secondary air pollutants
  
• Regional air pollution issues: acid rain, smog
  
• Global air pollution issues: the ozone hole, the greenhouse effect / global warming
  
• Air pollution effects on health
  
• Air pollution monitoring
  
• How to reduce their contribution to the air pollution
  
• International conventions  and agreements to reduce air pollution
  
• Indoor pollutants

Activity 1:

The students will be divided into groups. Each group will present a specific issue dealing with the subject of air pollution and prepare a power point presentation. 

Examples:

·         The main sources of air pollution: natural and manmade.

·         The air pollutants: gases, particulate matter (PM) and secondary air pollutants

·         Regional air pollution issues: acid rain, smog

·         Global air pollution issues: the ozone hole, the greenhouse effect / global warming

·         Air pollution effects on health

·         Air pollution monitoring

·         How to reduce their contribution to the air pollution

·         International conventions and agreements to reduce air pollution

·         Indoor pollutants

Activity 2:

The students /teacher will suggest a dilemma involving an issue regarding to  air pollution.  Then the students will be divided into groups of interest.  The groups will debate these issues selecting representatives presenting the pros and the cons relating to each issue.

Examples:

1.       Constructing a new highway within the city.

2.        Building a refinery within a populated area.

3.        Building a nuclear power plant within a populated area.

4.        Building a coal-based power plant within a populated area.

5.       Using an electrical car instead of a fuel car.

Activity 3:

Watch the movies:  An Inconvenient Truth / Al Gore, and  Before the Flood/ Leanardo DiCaprio

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zbEnOYtsXHA