Conserving Nature for Future Generations

John Riley, NCC's chief science officer

When John Riley was a child,
there was a slogan: "Leave no child inside". He spent a lot of time exploring local wild places. It was popular among friends to know stuff about animals and trees. In his high school years, he hitchhiked to British Columbia and back twice, just for sport. Together with his siblings he took care of a big family garden that supplied food for the family.

Now John is the chief science officer at Nature Conservancy Canada. He takes care of spaces and species for future generations.

He says that Canada is multicultural and it is also multi-ecological. The best part of his job is that he can enjoy this diversity across Canada.

"It is urgent to get the job done, before it is too late – to be able to give such an assurance of successful conservation to our supporters and to the youth who are looking over our shoulders", says John.
"Let's make this a year that counts! For nature, for now, for ever." 

 
 

TASKS

1. Explain the meaning of the following words:

A

slogan

wild

popular

stuff

hitchhike

siblings

youth

 

B

species

multicultural

multi-ecological

diversity

urgent

assurance

conservation

looking over one's shoulder

 

2. Comprehension questions:

1. Who is John Riley?
   

1. What is NCC?
   
2. Why is Canada multi-ecological?
   
3. Why are youth looking over their shoulders?
   

   
    

   
    

3. Discussion questions

1. Which wild places in Canada do you know?
   
2. Check the NCC website and find what places and species they have put on their list.
   
3. Why is nature conservancy important for future generations?
   
4. How would you rank the importance of: individuals, conservancy groups and organizations and government in the role of nature conservation? Explain your point.
   

 

4. GRAMMAR

Use the past form of the verbs in brackets:

Beryl Ivey ______ (be) a passionate advocate for conservation, especially in her native South-western Ontario.

She deeply _______ (love) nature. She _______ (create) conservation areas along the Niagara Escarpment.

She _______ ( live) much of her life in London, Ontario. Her mother _________ (grow up) in England's Lake District and _______ (tell) Beryl stories about it. Mrs. Ivey _________ (pass) this passion down to her own four children.

Their work with the Ivey Foundation supports many causes, including the Nature Conservancy of Canada.

Mrs. Ivey ____________ (pass away) on Christmas Day 2007. In her will, she _______ (make) a $1-million

bequest to NCC.

 

 

1. Order the words in this message:
   

   
    

environment     all     role     to     in     a     our

we         have     preserving        play

 

 

 

1. Supply these synonyms for the words underlined in the text:
   

 

cottage, generosity, researchers, endangered, shore, deciduous, properties, habitat, flora, honour, expeditions, Woods, fauna

Conserving nature for a lifetime and beyond ,

The Bickford Oak Forest (1) is one of the NCC pieces of land (2) that's benefited from Mrs. Ivey's passion and unselfishness (3) and is named in her family's respect (4): the Ivey Research Station at Middle Point Woods on the eastern coast (5) of Pelee Island. This mature, 69-acre (28- hectare) leaf shedding (6) forest growing on sand dunes provides essential home (7) for both rare plants (8)- including the nationally threatened Common Hoptree and Wild Hyacinth – and animals (9) - such as the endangered Smallmouth Salamander. It's also the location of a recently renovated country house,(10)

that can accommodate up to eight researchers on multi-day research and restoration trips (11).

Thanks to the financial contributions of Beryl and Richard Ivey, it will be home base for scientists (12)
to study and protect the ecologically diverse and threatened (13) area for many, many years to come.

Farmer Schmidt

Farmer Michael Schmidt, a 54-year-old dairy farmer, thinks milk is healthier before it is pasteurized. But Canadian health officials do not think so. They think it is not safe. They say it is illegal to sell milk or cream that has not been pasteurized or sterilized.
However, it is legal to drink unpasteurized milk. So farmer Schmidt and 150 other people started the cow-share co-op. Together, they owned 30 cows at Mr. Schmidt's southern Ontario Glencolton Farms. They drank raw milk from their cows. They thought they had right to choose what to put in their body.
One day police raided the farm and Michael Schmidt was brought to court. After three years he was acquitted of 19 charges. Justice of the Peace said in this case Mr. Schmidt did not break the law because he was not selling to the public at large.

What do you think about:
• Michael Schmidt
• Cow-share co-op
• Drinking unpasteurized milk
• Laws regarding consumption of food

Questions for discussion:
1. What kind of food processing do you know?
2. Which food do we preserve to keep it long?
3. What is the most usual way of preserving meet/fish/vegetables /fruit in your country?
4. How do people in your country look after seeds/ reproduction of crops or animals / animal breeds?
5. Which animal or plant species do you know that are at risk of extinction ? What do people do to save those species?

Passive Voice

Use the Passive Voice of the verbs in brackets:

1. Millions of plastic bottles __________ (use) worldwide, leaving a heavy footprint on the planet.

2. The PET used for plastic bottles __________ (make) from petroleum.

3. By manufacturing PET plastic water bottles, greenhouse gas emissions four times weight of the bottles _________ (create).

4. In 2007, 130 million beverage bottles __________ (discard) in B.C.

5. Toxic metals and chemicals _________ (contain) in bottled water.

6. By manufacturing the PET, some cancer causing substances ______ (release) into the environment.

7. Our health _________ (affect) by the phthalates in bottled water.

8. By filling and transporting the bottles the total GHG emissions _________ (increase)

9. In making, filling and transporting of an average 500 ml PET bottle 16 – 28% of its volume of crude oil _________ (require)

10. Bottled water that _______ (sell) in Canada comes from both local bottling plants and international sources, including France and Fiji.

11. Bottled water _________ (produce) by some of the biggest companies in the world, including Coca Cola, Nestle and Pepsi.

12. More and more bottling plants _________ (locate) on pristine streams, causing reversals in groundwater flows.

13. About 72% of the bottles _______ (recycle) in B.C., and they mainly end up as carpets, fabrics or similar products that cannot ________(recycle) again.

Source: Toxic Free Canada 2009

Live Green!

Use the correct tense of the verbs in brackets:

1. If residents _____ (be) to eat 50 per cent of their food from a local source, the reduction of emissions _____ (be) similar to the family owning a hybrid.

2. If you ______(think) of installing a hardwood floor, ______ (consider) reclaimed materials or look for new wood products that are certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) Canada.

3. If you ______ (use)use low-flow shower heads, you ______ (use) 70% less water than standard shower.

4. If you ________ (install) new kitchen cabinetry, _______ (avoid) those made with particleboard boxes that may leach harmful gases like urea formaldehyde resin.

5. If you ________ (plan) native flowers, trees and grasses in your garden, you ________ (minimize) the need for pesticides and watering.

6. If you _______ (have) a party, ______ (make) it a charitable affair!

These sentences can also be used for a Find a Partner game, so that they are split in halves and given out to students who have to find their matching half.

INDIRECT SPEECH

Mayor Miller on Toronto's Efforts
Insert missing links in these complex sentences:

Mayor David Miller said the international community is cool to Canada, _____ he said he was feeling love for Toronto at the Copenhagen Climate Change Summit, _______ he attended as co-chair of the C40 group of urban mayors.
The C40 group's goals were modest ______ Miller said they're moving to complete them, ________ signing a carbon funding pact _________ will allow municipalities _____ access green funding for projects ________ reduce their carbon footprint.
"Our goal here is two things: ______ to demonstrate _______ the cities are acting _____ national governments can act, and ________ to ask national governments to engage in this and resource cities."
Miller said in general, the conference has confirmed for him _______ Toronto is on the right track environmentally, __________ he noted _______ Copenhagen is much more bicycle friendly than Toronto _______ he was impressed with the larger reliance on wind power.
When asked _______ he would like to see more windmills in Toronto, Miller replied ______ the Island airport would be a good spot.

Answers: but, where/which, and, particularly, that, to, that, first, how, so, secondly, that, although, that, and, where, that.

Indirect Speech

Inuit Want Share of Global Fund
Turn the indirect speech into direct:
The head of Canada's main Inuit organization says her people deserve a share of any global fund created to help people adapt to a warming planet.
Mary Simon, in Canada's delegation to the Copenhagen climate conference, says money should be made available to populations at risk in both developing and developed countries.

Indirect Speech

Secretary General Optimistic about Deal
Turn indirect sentences from this text into direct, and direct into indirect:

UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon, predicted yesterday that a robust agreement to combat climate change will be reached in Copenhagen and implemented immediately.
"From all corners of the globe we see unprecedented momentum for a deal", the UN chief told reporters. 'I'm encouraged and optimistic."
Ban said for the Copenhagen conference to be a success, the agreement must include ambitious reductions in carbon emissions by developed countries as well as ambitious actions by poorer developing countries to curb emissions.
Rich nations must also provide financial support and to help developing countries, he said.