Chemistry | Economy | Geography | Mother Language | Physics
Pedagogic content
- Globalization
- Environmental and societal impacts
- Economic challenges
- Sustainable development principles
Pre-requisites
New competencies targeted
STUDENTS WILL BE ABLE TO:
- Understand globalization by a concrete example
- Be aware of environmental and societal impacts of manufactured goods
- Understand economic and social issues
- Develop a critical sense on our consumption
DESCRIPTION
PREPARATION:
Print a world map
Bring a pair of jeans with a clothing label and 10 envelopes with the HDI of each of the countries
Bring samples of materials
IMPLEMENTATION:
Ask the following questions:
- Where are the jeans produced?
- Where is it distributed? The students place the corresponding thumbtacks on the map
- What materials is it made of? Plastic, cotton, metal, wool, sand etc. Specify that everything with a strange name (acrylic, viscose, polyester, etc.) is a kind of plastic, therefore petroleum.
To make the animation fun, the teacher offers samples of each material in envelopes to illustrate the countries of origin:
- Cotton: production in Benin
- Spool of thread: cotton spinning in Pakistan
- Blue powder: indigo dye in Italy
- Pieces of jeans: cutting and assembling in Tunisia
- Sand: wash in Turkey
- Elastane: polyester fiber introduced in Japan
- Zipper: produced in France
- Button: brass from Namibia
For each material, place a country pushpin on the map. For each country, it is possible to illustrate the production conditions by photos to be projected or printed and the energy consumption by calculating the carbon footprint of the distances for example.
Using a colored thread, join the thumbtacks on the map to see the route taken by the item of clothing. It is possible at this stage to calculate the number of kilometers travelled by the clothe for each stage and to discuss the transportation mod of fashion products (boats, planes, roads) and their environmental impact.
On each envelope note the HDI of the country. This information is mirrored with the price of textiles. Thus, the group is gradually becoming aware of the societal and environmental impacts of the manufacture and distribution of textiles. This step also addresses the unequal distribution of wealth.
For a pair of jeans costing 35 euros:
- 15.75 euros for the trader
- 14 euros for the brand
- 1.75 euros for transport
- 3.5 euros for production cost
- 1 euro for the basic wages of workers
It is possible to introduce the notions of environmental labels (Max Havelaar, AB, FSC, etc.)
- What do you do with old jeans?
List answer on the board This allows to approach the notions of repair, reuse, recycling etc.
Additional Info
| Type of Activity: | Experimental activities |
| Target Audience: | From 12 years old |
| Place: | Classroom |
| Material need: |
World map: Dowload and print in A3 format Thumbtacks (20) 1 pair of cisors 1 pair of jeans (cut the pocket (elastane), the zipper and the button) 10 envelopes 1 marker Colored thread, a little bit of cotton, a spool of thread, blue powder (like dry paint), a few pieces of jeans and sand |
| Duration of Activity: |
PREPARATION:
2 hours 1 hour Step 1: 5 minutes Step 2: 20 minutes Step 3: 20 minutes Step 4: 15 minutes |
| Authorship and ressources conditions to use: | GRAINE Île-de-France - No commercial use |
| Links: | |
| Topic of this Experiences: | Energy: Production and resources |
| Additional resources: | Pdf Version |