Earth as Home Lesson
"An Island Home"

Activity (Allow 45 to 60 minutes for 2 or 3 days)

The students will act as owners and developers of a lush, 14-square kilometer tropical island. Groups of students will select the forms and extent of development on their island by considering the benefits of the development and the risks their actions pose for the island and the planet.

The activity is best scheduled over 2 or 3 days, depending on the level of sophistication in student planning and the extent to which each team will report to the entire class upon completion of the project.

Materials

1. For each group of three to five students:
2. Large physical map of the world
3. Graph paper
4. Drawing paper
5. Colored pencils
6. Reference materials on rain forests and coral reefs (see classroom resources)

Procedure

1. Say this to the class:

   Congratulations. You have just been awarded ownership of a tropical island in recognition of your concern for the environment and your wisdom in management. As owners of this island, you have some responsibilities.

   First, it is important to create jobs for your fellow citizens. There is a native population living in thatch-roofed huts and subsisting on fish, fruit, and nuts. Second, you must develop your island as a model environment for business and for natural habitats.

   The island is covered by virgin rain forest and is surrounded by well-developed coral reefs. Both of these types of ecological systems are in danger all over the world. The island is in your care. Consider your actions carefully.

2. As a class, brainstorm the possible range of businesses that could be developed on a tropical island. A few suggestions to get the class thinking:
   • Scuba diving resort
   • Timber company
   • Pharmaceutical research station
   • Golf resort
   • Naval base
   • These and other suggestions can be written on the board for students to select a topic of interest.

3. Discuss the ways the outcomes of this project could be presented. Use the list below for possibilities:
   • A scale map of the island using graph paper
   • A physical map of the island using white drawing paper
   • A brochure, with a map, advertising the company and island
   • A group report about the island and its efforts to protect the environment.

4. Form interest groups of three to five students. Provide resources from the suggested list or from your school library for discussions about the importance of rain forest and coral reef ecosystems. Discuss rain forest destruction. What is the benefit? What are the immediate and long-term costs? Who pays?

5. Once the students have discussed some characteristics of a rain forest and coral reef, focus the students' thoughts on the business opportunities these environments offer and the risks associated with these enterprises in a fragile environment. Have students complete the third column on the following chart as they explore the impacts of their particular businesses. The chart can be duplicated to hand out.

6. Have each team report on the specific solutions that they propose to counter the risks presented by their development plans.

Questions

Extensions

1. This exercise can be done using other environments including wetlands, deserts, polar regions, etc. Adjust the text of the story and the project requirements accordingly.

2. Ask teams of students what components would be necessary to create a habitable environment on another planet. What unique equipment and risks would have to be considered for such a project? For example, what would it take to transform an area on the planet Mars to make it acceptable for human habitation? (Mars has no ocean and four times the land area of the Earth.)

3. Groups of students can create a model of their island.

For the Teacher

Landau, Elaine, 1990, Tropical rain forests around the world: New York, Franklin Watts, 64 p.