CURRICULUM OVERVIEW


Intermediate students are better able to consider the social inequities they see in the world around them. By learning about the impacts of industrial activities on people living in communities around the world, students will analyze these impacts using an equity lens. To build their understanding of allyship, students will be encouraged to offer advocacy as a way to support the work that the people impacted are doing on their own behalf.


BACKGROUND INFORMATION


For students: Students should be familiar with the following concepts: • Advocacy • Self-advocacy • Allyship


For educators: It is essential that educators are familiar with the concept of environ- mental racism (a.k.a. environmental justice) prior to teaching this lesson.


Communities that experience intersec- tionality of environmental health effects, socio-economic challenges, and racial- ized discrimination are disproportionately impacted by environmental issues resulting from human activity, including resource extraction, production of goods, and the activities required to do these.


In preparation for this lesson, it is recom- mended that you familiarize yourself with the resources Tracking the battles for environmental justice: here are the world’s top 10 and the Environmental Jus-tice Atlas, which are the research tools for this lesson.


Supplemental resources for professional learning: Tese additional resources pro- vide a North American context for some important issues that have led to advocacy and action:


• Tere’s Something In Te Water: Envi- ronmental Racism in Indigenous & Black Communities by Ingrid R. G. Waldron examines the legacy of environmental racism and its health impacts in Canada, and the grassroots resistance activities against pollution by Indigenous and Black communities in Nova Scotia. Te book is available from Fernwood Publishing and the documentary of the same name, based on Waldron’s book, is currently available on Netflix.


40 ETFO VOICE | WINTER 2025


Other stories of communities impacted by environmental racism include:


• Remember Africville, a short film avail- able from the National Film Board


• Shelby Gilson’s article for the Pulitzer Centre’s project to amplify voices of the people of Grassy Narrows First Nation, who seek justice for widespread mercury poisoning in their community


• From the New School, an overview of environmental racism related to waste incineration in the U.S.


MATERIALS


Article: Tracking the battles for environ- mental justice: here are the world’s top 10 Online map: Environmental Justice Atlas - Global Atlas of Environmental Justice Computer and interactive whiteboard Chart paper or whiteboard for notes


ESSENTIAL GUIDING QUESTIONS


• Why do some groups of people experience the health impacts of industrial activity more than others?


• What are the barriers that contribute to this?


• Do laws provide protection for people? Or do they make it easier for industries to operate without concern for humans?


LESSON PLAN FRAMEWORK


CONNECT • Connect with students and their interests and experiences


• Connect students with each other


• Connect students with community (ex- perts, resources)


Steps:


1. Connecting industrial activity to envi- ronmental impacts on people: Walk around the classroom with a recycling bin and ask if students have anything that can go into recycling right now. Where does our recycling go aſter we toss it in the “blue box” and put it out for a truck? Aſter it gets to the plant, then what? Use this question to shiſt the discussion to waste. What about trash, where does that go? Where are waste sites located? Who runs the landfill? What happens if the landfill gets “full” and there’s no more space leſt; where


does the trash go then? What are some other ways that trash is disposed of? Take special note of any questions that may be leſt unanswered.


2. What are the industrial processes that are tied to making the things we need/want?


• Generate a list of industrial activities: this can include extraction/ harvesting of natural resources and any processing needed to get raw materials that we use in other industries; plants or processes used in production, packaging, and the ways we move materials and products from place to place. (Examples: forestry, paper making, mining, oil fields, frack- ing; nuclear plants, hydro-electric dams, coal-fired power plants; heavy equipment, trucking, rail, shipping, oil refineries; production of goods, agriculture, farming, animal production and processing.)


• What kind of resources do these indus- tries need to operate? (Buildings & infra- structure, energy, water, raw materials, human workers.)


• Where are these activities happening? What kind of waste results from harvest- ing raw materials and resources, trans- porting them to where they are used, and making the products they are used for? List types of waste, brainstorming ways to categorize (e.g., biodegradable, waste that affects ecosystems, recyclable, non-recyclable, air pollution).


• What kind of waste impacts humans the most, and in what ways? Invite students to share any news reports or stories they have heard, identifying:


• Who is affected by the waste and pro- cesses students identified?


• What (if any) protections are in place for the workers/community (i.e., laws)?


• Does everyone have the same protec- tion, or are some people more vulner- able? Why, or why not?


EXPLORE AND EMPOWER


• Explore a variety of resources available to you


• Empower students to make meaning of the big idea


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52