Lesson video

Hello, everybody.

Welcome to today's lesson from the unit, "What can we do about global problems?" My name is Mrs. Hastings.

I am very excited to be teaching you today, and I look forward to taking you through our learning journey.

So by the end of today's lesson, you should be able to critically examine different arguments about climate change and explain what actions we can take to address climate change.

Now, some of the learning in today's lesson is going to be quite challenging.

You're really gonna have to think hard and come up with some arguments about actions against climate change, and some of the different views that people might have about climate change.

But I think it's gonna be great.

I think we're gonna learn loads, and you are going to make really excellent progress.

So because today's lesson is quite a lot about opinions, and different arguments, and different viewpoints, there's some really important ground rules that we need to follow.

So let's make sure that we listen to others.

It's okay to disagree with each other, but we should listen properly before making assumptions or deciding how to respond.

When disagreeing, challenge the statement, not the person.

Respect privacy.

We can discuss examples, but do not use names or descriptions that identify anyone, including ourselves.

Choose your level of participation.

So everybody has the right to choose not to answer a question or join in a discussion.

We never put anyone on the spot.

And no judgement.

We can explore beliefs and misunderstandings about a topic without fear of being judged.

So if we follow these ground rules, then I'm sure we'll have an excellent lesson today.

So here are today's keywords.

There's four of them all together.

Climate change.

These are the long-term changes in the Earth's weather patterns and temperatures often caused by human activities such as burning fossil fuels, deforestation, and pollution.

Global warming, this is the gradual increase in the Earth's average temperature caused by human activities that release gases, such as carbon dioxide, that trap heat in the atmosphere.

Fossil fuels, this is natural energy sources like coal, oil, and natural gas that release harmful gases into the atmosphere.

And deforestation.

This means the cutting down or clearing of trees and forests, usually for farming, logging, or development.

So there are three parts to our learning cycle today, and the first one of our learning cycle is what are the consequences of climate change? So that's the first part that we are going to be looking at in our second learning cycle.

We are going to look at what arguments does sceptics of climate change give.

And in our third learning cycle, how do climate ch campaigners take action? So let's start with our first learning cycle.

What are the consequences of climate change? Here you can see a photograph of a power plant burning fossil fuels, releasing some of those emissions into the atmosphere.

So why is climate change happening? Climate change is happening because the Earth's temperature is rising over time.

The Earth has warned by approximately 1.

2 degrees centigrade as of 2025 since the late 1800s.

This is called global warming.

And whilst that might not sound like a big number, 1.

2 degrees centigrade in about a hundred years or just over a hundred years, it can have a big impact.

Scientists have proven that human activities like burning fossil fuels and deforestation have exacerbated climate change.

The word exacerbated means has made it worse, and that's a scientific fact.

So how does burning fossil fuels contribute to climate change? I wonder if you could pause the video for a second and have a conversation with the person sat next to you.

What do you know maybe already from other learning that you've had or from conversations that you've had about the burning of fossil fuels? How does that contribute to climate change? Pause the video.

Okay, well done for having those conversations.

So let's think about how does burning fossil fuels contribute to climate change? Fossil fuels like coal, oil, and gas are burned for energy and release harmful gases like carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide, and those go into the air.

These gases then trap heat in the atmosphere.

So the atmosphere is around the Earth and is like a shield around the Earth.

And these gases, by being trapped inside the atmosphere, create what's called a greenhouse effect and global warming.

The more fossil fuels we burn, the faster the Earth heats up, and this leads to climate change.

So you can see the diagram here it shows the greenhouse effect and global warming.

So what you've got here is you've got the sun's rays coming down to Earth, and then they bounce back off the Earth.

Now lots of that heat escapes back into space, but some of it is trapped inside the atmosphere, like I said, that shield, which has got thicker because of the greenhouse gases.

And so those greenhouse gases in the atmosphere trap the heat, and that warms the Earth up.

And because that warms the Earth up, that has led to that temperature increase of 1.

2 degrees since the late 1800s.

So what about deforestation? How's deforestation contributing to climate change? Again, pause the video and have a conversation with the person sat next to you.

What do you know about deforestation and how that might be contributing to climate change? Pause the video now.

Okay, so here you can see a photograph of logging workers clearing a forest.

So let's have a look at how deforestation is contributing to climate change.

So really importantly, trees help to absorb carbon dioxide from the air.

So when trees are cut down, they can't suck up that carbon dioxide anymore.

And remember that carbon dioxide is one of those greenhouse gases that is contributing to the greenhouse effect and global warming.

So the carbon dioxide that was in the trees goes back into the air, and that adds to global warming.

So that trapped carbon dioxide that the leaves have been sucking up is actually released when they're cut down and goes into the air.

So not only is the tree now unable to absorb any of the carbon dioxide, actually, what it had absorbed already goes back into the atmosphere.

Fewer trees also means less oxygen.

So trees breathe out oxygen.

We breathe in oxygen.

That's really important for us.

So it means less oxygen in the air, and it means more carbon because they're not capturing and trapping that carbon.

And it all just, again, exacerbates, makes that situation much, much worse and contributes to the greenhouse effect much more strongly.

So let's check our understanding then of why is climate change happening.

So why is climate change happening? Is it A, the Earth is getting closer to the sun each year, B, due to human activities like burning fossil fuels, or C, the Earth temperature is rising over time? Why is climate change happening, A, B, or C? It is due to human activities like burning fossil fuels, so answer B, and due to the Earth's temperature is rising over time, so C.

Because of those human activities like burning fossil fuels and creation of the greenhouse effect that's leading to the Earth's temperature rising over time, which image shows the burning of fossil fuels? Does image A show the burning of fossil fuels, image B, or image C? Okay, it is answer C.

Well done if you got that right.

Answer A shows deforestation, and B is a diagram demonstrating the greenhouse effect.

So whilst the Earth warming by 1.

2 degrees centigrade since the late 1800s might feel like and seem like a very small increase, it does have significant consequences.

Okay, it's leading to climate change.

So what do you think are the consequences of climate change, the changes in those weather patterns, the changes in our climate? Have a think.

Speak to the person next to you.

Okay, so let's have a look at some of the consequences of climate change.

These include rising temperatures.

That means more heat waves and some areas might become unlivable because of those heat waves, and therefore it risks lives.

Okay.

Extreme weather events.

Climate change is creating more frequent and stronger storms and hurricanes, typhoons, and floods.

And again, that is a risk to lives, livelihoods, and homes.

And we can see there a photograph of a flooded street in Fowey in Cornwall.

Really high levels of water up against those shops, those businesses.

And glaciers and polar ice caps are melting.

And this is rising the sea levels, risking flooding to coastal areas and islands, but also it then obviously has an impact on habitats.

And we can see a photograph of polar bears on their melting ice caps.

And if the polar ice caps are melting, then it endangers animals like polar bears.

Climate change also disrupts ecosystems. Animals and plants may struggle to survive in the changing environments, and habitats may be destroyed.

So again, we can see here some photographs of crops that have been destroyed by typhoons.

Obviously, that's gonna impact on our food supplies, but also potentially damage and destroy the habitats of animals.

Orangutans here whose forests have been chopped down and created palm oil plantations in their place.

And through that deforestation, which is leading to climate change, it's also obviously leading to habitat loss.

And forest fires.

We hear on the news about fires in forests that have travelled then into cities and into villages and towns, and destroyed people's homes, but obviously also destroying the habitats of animals and plants that live in those forests.

It impacts food and water shortages.

So droughts, flooding, and fires can affect crops, and water supplies, and risk human and animal lives.

And climate change can create health problems. Warmer temperatures can cause more diseases to spread.

The increased air pollution can cause lung conditions like asthma.

And so therefore it has an impact on human health.

So, do the consequences of climate change affect everyone equally? What do you think? Do the consequences of climate change affect everyone equally? The impacts of climate change are felt differently by different communities.

So some areas, especially low-income countries, often experience the worse effects.

Places like Bangladesh, which might be considered a low-income country, has experienced really severe flooding in recent years.

As a result of climate change.

Maybe low-income countries in parts of Africa have experienced severe drought, which has affected their crops, and therefore maybe created food shortages as well.

Higher income countries, so like the UK, the USA, China, India, they're often responsible for significant proportion of the activities that are actually contributing to climate change.

So often it's disproportionate.

So the ones who are burning more fossil fuels, who are deforesting their forests and their woods to create farms for logging, they are the ones that are causing climate change more through their human activities, but perhaps impacted less by climate change because they've got money to be able to mitigate against climate change.

Whereas the low income countries who aren't deforesting, aren't burning fossil fuels are often more impacted by the effects of climate change.

It's a global phenomenon.

As a result, many people believe it's important for those who have contributed the most to climate change, to take responsibility for addressing the issue and helping those most affected.

So let's check our understanding.

I'd like you to fill in the blanks for this paragraph.

The impacts of climate change are felt differently by different what? Low-income countries often experience the what effects? Many believe that higher income countries, which are responsible for a large portion of the activities which contributes to climate change should take what for helping those most affected? So pause video and complete those blanks.

Okay, so let's check our understandings.

The impacts of climate change have felt differently by different communities.

Low-income countries often experience the worst effects.

Many believe that higher income countries which are responsible for a large portion of the activities which contribute to climate change should take responsibility for helping those most affected.

Well done if you've got those three words correct.

So onto our first practise task for today's lesson.

So I would like you to explain why is climate change happening.

Explain your answer to your learning partner using the following key terms, fossil fuels, global warming, and deforestation.

So explain your answer to your learning partner, making sure that you include those three terms. So pause the video now whilst you complete that task.

Well done for completing that task.

So I asked you to answer the question, why is climate change happening? And I ask you to explain your answer to your learning partner, making sure that you included three key terms, fossil fuels, deforestation, and global warming.

So your discussions may have included, climate change is happening because the Earth's temperature is rising over time.

This is largely due to human activities like burning fossil fuels and deforestation.

Fossil fuels like coal, oil, and gas are burned for energy, releasing harmful gases like carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide.

These gases trap heat in the atmosphere, which leads to global warming.

Deforestation also contributes to climate change 'cause trees help absorb carbon dioxide from the air, but can no longer do this when they're cut down.

Fewer trees also means less oxygen and more carbon in the air making the situation worse.

So well done for completing that task.

So the second part of our practise task for the first learning cycle I'd like you to complete is to make a list of at least three consequences of climate change.

And for each consequence, write one sentence explaining how it impacts people and the environment.

So pause the video whilst you complete the second task.

well done for completing that task.

So I asked you to make a list of at least three consequences of climate change.

And for each consequence, write one sentence explaining how it impacts people and the environment.

So you may have included the following.

These aren't the only answers.

This is just an example of what you might have included.

One, extreme weather events.

Storms, hurricanes, and typhoons are getting stronger due to climate change.

These can cause flooding, destroy crops, homes, and businesses, and put people's lives in danger.

Two, melting ice.

As the polar ice caps melt, sea levels rise and coast and island communities, as well as animals, lose their homes.

And three, food and water shortages.

Droughts, flooding, and fires can affect crops and water supplies, risking human and animal lives.

Well done for completing that learning cycle.

We're moving on to our second one now.

So the second part of our learning cycle is what arguments do sceptics of climate change give? So the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the IPCC, is a group of scientists and experts from around the world who study and report on climate change.

They assess the science, impacts of climate change, and solutions to climate change, and provide governments with up-to-date information.

According to the IPCC, 97%, 97% of scientists agree that human actions are mainly causing climate change.

So the burning of fossil fuels and deforestation, amongst other human actions, are causing climate change according to 97% of scientists.

The IPCC also maintained that the current rate of global warming is much faster than anything in the Earth's history.

However, some people call climate change sceptics argue about what is causing climate change.

So sceptic is someone who doesn't necessarily believe the facts and what the scientists are saying.

Some climate change sceptics argue that climate change is part of Earth's natural cycles, and temperatures have always fluctuated over time.

Actions to combat climate change, like reducing fossil fuel use, could harm businesses, jobs, and economic growth.

The effects of climate change are exaggerated, and that the impact will not be as severe as predicted, so that people are exaggerating those impacts.

The accuracy of climate models and data used to predict future changes can be questioned.

They don't necessarily believe that what scientists think is going to happen will actually happen.

They don't think that the climate models are accurate.

So what do some sceptics of climate change argue? Let's check our understanding of that.

A, that climate change is caused by human activities and immediate action is needed.

B, that climate change is part of the Earth's natural cycles and temperatures have always fluctuated.

Or C, the effects of climate change are not exaggerated and action should be taken to prevent it.

So what do some sceptics of climate change argue, A, B, or C? So they argue B, climate change is part of Earth's natural cycles and temperatures have always fluctuated.

That's one the arguments that climate change sceptics give.

Well done if you got that right.

Donald Trump, you may have heard of him.

He's the president of the United States of America and has had a first term, and, in 2025, is currently just become president for a second term.

And he's a well-known sceptic of climate change.

He's made statements and taken actions that question the seriousness of climate change, including referring to climate change as a hoax.

So saying that it's is not a real thing, it's not really happening.

Withdrawing the USA from the Paris Climate Agreement, a global pact limiting global warming.

So he did that in his first term as president.

And when he became president again in January 2025, that is one of the first things he did.

So the president before him, Joe Biden, had signed back up to it, and then President Trump has taken the USA out of it again very quickly after he became president the second time around.

He is a strong supporter of fossil fuel industries, and rolling back environmental regulations to promote these industries.

So again, one of the first things he said when he became president again in 2025 was "Burn, baby, burn." So he wants to bring back fossil fuels and make sure that fossil fuel businesses are protected.

And he questions the extent to which human activity is responsible for climate change.

And obviously, the USA is the world's biggest strongest power.

And so for the president of the USA to be saying these things is going to have quite a big impact across the world.

So true or false.

Donald Trump is a high-profile supporter of climate action, and as president, he's increased environmental regulations.

Is that true or false? It is false.

Why? Donald Trump is a well-known sceptic of climate change.

He has referred to climate change as a hoax and has supported the fossil fuel industry by rolling back environmental regulations, not increasing them.

So let's go onto our practise task for this cycle.

So Sean is sceptical about climate change.

He's a climate change sceptic.

I'd like you to write a response to him explaining what the IPCC has discovered.

So Sean says, "I'm sceptical about climate change being caused by human activity, like burning fossil fuels and deforestation.

Surely climate change happens are naturally as part of the Earth's cycles.

I also think that the actions to combat climate change will harm our economy, and that the effects have been exaggerated." So can you write a response to him explaining what the IPCC has discovered? Pause the video whilst you do that.

Well done for completing that task.

So Sean, we saw, was sceptical about climate change.

I asked you to write a response to him explaining what the IPCC has discovered.

So you might have said, "Hi, Sean, I understand your scepticism, but I really don't agree with it.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the IPCC, is made up of scientists and experts from all over the world who study and report on climate change.

They've concluded that human activities, like burning fossil fuels and deforestation, are mainly causing the rise in global temperatures.

While it's true the Earth's climate has naturally changed over time, the IPCC explains that the rate of global warming we're seeing now is much faster than anything in Earth's history, and it's closely linked to human actions." Well done for completing that.

So let's go on third learning in today's lesson.

So how do climate campaigners take action? Several campaign groups and non-governmental organisations, NGOs, work to tackle climate change, including Greenpeace, 350.

org, World Wide Fund for Nature, and Friends of the Earth.

So these are all organisations and campaign groups that really believe that human action is contributing to climate change and they want to try to persuade those climate change sceptics to change their minds and to take action against climate change and try to stop the Earth's temperatures from rising any further.

So they focus on raising awareness, advocating for policy changes, so that means change in policy by the government, trying to persuade the government to introduce policies that will support climate action and prevent things like burning fossil fuels and deforestation.

They organise protests and campaigns to reduce the effects of climate change.

So let's have a look at Greenpeace as a case study.

So Greenpeace is an international non-governmental organisation that works to solve environmental problems. Their actions have included arctic oil drilling protests.

So in 2013, activists climbed a Russian oil rig to stop drilling fossil fuels.

Deforestation campaigns in 2010, activists urged Nestle to stop using palm oil from companies causing deforestation.

So palm oil is a natural product.

It comes from the palm plant.

And what's happening in places like Malaysia and Indonesia is the forests were being cut down for palm oil plantations, and this was destroying the habitats of animals like orangutans, proboscis monkeys, pygmy elephants, and endangering them.

And so Greenpeace campaigned against the deforestation of the rainforests to try to then farm this palm oil and urged big companies like Nestle to stop using palm oil from those plantations that had caused deforestation.

Fossil fuel divestment.

So investment means to invest in.

Divestment means to go out.

So they continue to call on banks, universities, and governments to stop investing in fossil fuels, and maybe start investing more in renewable energies and renewable sources.

And that led them to also the promotion of renewable energy.

So they advocate for more investment in renewable energy.

Think about renewable energy.

That means things like wind because it will never run out.

Solar, the sun, not going to run out, et cetera.

They lobby governments.

So they helped to push for the Paris Climate Agreement in 2015.

So they persistently lobby governments to change their policies and to make sure that they are putting climate action at the forefront of their policies.

Another case study we're gonna have a look at is the World Wide Fund for Nature, the WWF, So this is an international NGO, and their goal is to protect nature and reduce the impacts of climate change on wildlife and people.

And you may have seen their logo is a panda, which is very endangered species.

So their actions include protecting forests.

They work to stop deforestation and illegal logging in places like the Amazon Rainforest, where huge parts, if ever you look at kind of Google maps, before and after, huge parts of the Amazon have been destroyed and farms have been put up in place instead.

They promote the use of renewable energies.

So they push the use of renewable energy like wind and solar, instead of burning fossil fuels.

They raise awareness.

They use campaigns like Earth Hour where people around the world turn off their lights for one hour to draw attention to their cause, 'cause lots of our electricity is created or has been created by burning fossil fuels.

A lot of companies are now pushing for more renewable energy, not the use of fossil fuels because of the campaigns of people like Greenpeace and WWF.

But if electricity is produced by burning fossil fuels, if you turn your lights off for one hour for Earth Day, then it's going to reduce the impact of those burning fossil fuels.

And preparing for climate change impacts.

They work with local communities and governments to help protect nature and people in those communities and to reduce the devastation, so to try to mitigate against the effects of climate change.

So let's check our understanding.

How does WWF campaign against climate change? Do it by A, encouraging the use of more fossil fuels to increase energy production, B, by promoting the planting of more trees but not addressing deforestation, or C, by protecting forests, promoting renewable energy, and raising awareness.

So how does WWF campaign against climate change, A, B, or C? It is C.

They campaign by protecting forests, promoting renewable energy, and raising awareness.

There are also many individuals who can campaign for climate change.

Can you think of any? Just pause the video for a second and talk with the person sat next to you.

Who do you know that campaigns for climate action, individual people? So the one that you may have come up with, who's very well known is Greta Thunberg.

So Greta Thunberg is a young activist from Sweden who started the Fridays for Future movement inspiring pupils worldwide strike from school for climate action.

And she was only 15 at the time she started this, and she now has grown her profile and speaks at the United Nations, et cetera.

Autumn Peltier is a young indigenous activist in Canada who advocates for water protection, and speaks out against pollution, climate change.

David Attenborough, a famous British broadcaster naturalist who use his platform to raise awareness about the environmental crisis and the need for urgent actions.

If you ever watched any of his programmes like "Planet Earth," there is often a message about the impact of climate change on the environment, but also maybe plastic pollution and things like that on the environment as well.

So he definitely uses that as a platform to show and demonstrate the impact that our activities are having on nature.

And Mikaela Loach is a British climate justice activist and author who uses social media campaigning and writing to inspire others to get involved.

So lots of these individuals will also work with these organisations, these NGOs, but they are also high profile and use their platforms to raise their awareness.

And so climate campaigners have taken action by, not just the organisations but these individuals as well, raising awareness via media campaigns, organising protests and actions, pressuring governments to introduce more sustainable policies, boycotting companies with harmful climate practises.

A boycott is where you stop using something.

So it might be a boycott of let's say Nestle products because that was one of the companies that Greenpeace were particularly targeting.

So they would boycott buying, stop buying Nestle products.

Pushing for the use of renewable energy.

promoting the protection of natural ecosystems, encouraging sustainable practises in communities, calling for global cooperation to tackle climate change, And that's really important because climate change affects everyone everywhere.

So it needs global action.

It isn't something that can just be done by one country or one individual.

They also campaign against new fossil fuel projects.

So check our understanding.

Which of the following are ways climate change campaigners raise awareness and take action? A, do they organise protest campaigns and boycotts? B, pressure governments to introduce sustainable policies, C, promote the use of fossil fuels to power economies, or D, encourage sustainable practises in communities.

Which of those answers are correct, A, B, C, or D? Okay.

Well done If you notice that A is correct, that B is correct, and that D is correct.

There were three correct answers to how campaigners raise awareness and take action against climate change.

So the practise task that I'd like you to complete now is to sort the actions of the organisations that campaign against climate change into the correct headings on the table.

So you've got Greenpeace, and you've got the World Wide Fund for Nature.

So look at those bullet points underneath and decide which ones are the ways that Greenpeace have campaigned and which are the ones that are the ways that World Wide Fund for Nature have campaigned.

So pause video now whilst you complete that task.

Well done for completing that task.

So I asked you to sort the actions of the organisations that campaign against climate change into the correct headings on the table.

So your answers should look like this.

Greenpeace, you should have arctic oil drilling protests, fossil fuel divestment, promoting renewable energy, protecting against deforestation, and lobbying governments.

And for the World Wide Fund for Nature, protecting against deforestation, raising awareness through campaigns like Earth Hour, promoting renewable energy, and helping communities prepare for climate change impacts.

So well done for completing that task.

So, in summary, what have we learned today about what actions can we take to address climate change? Well done.

Loads of learning today.

You've been thinking really hard and really critically, and there's been a lot to go through.

So in summary, global warming is the process of the Earth heating up largely due to human activities such as burning fossil fuels and deforestation.

This has led to climate change.

Some climate change sceptics believe that the science behind global warming is inaccurate.

However, the IPCC says that 97% of scientists agree that human actions are mainly causing climate change.

There are significant consequences of climate change that impact our global environment and global communities.

Activists, both NGOs and individuals, campaign in different ways to highlight the impacts of climate change.

Well done for all the learning you've done today, and I really look forward to seeing you again soon.