Nov 11, 2012

Theme 1 - What does Sustainable development mean?



Raised in Vancouver and Toronto, Severn Cullis-Suzuki has been camping and hiking all her life. When she was 9 she started the Environmental Children's Organization (ECO), a small group of children committed to learning and teaching other kids about environmental issues. They were successful in many projects before 1992, when they raised enough money to go to the UN's Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro. Their aim was to remind the decision-makers of who their actions or inactions would ultimately affect. The goal was reached when 12 yr old Severn closed a Plenary Session with a powerful speech that received a standing ovation.


Severn Suzuki speaking at UN Earth Summit 1992

1.   What organization does she speak for?

2.   What is she fighting for?

3.   What is she afraid of?

4.   Why doesn’t she go fishing anymore?

5.   What has she dreamt of?

6.   What does she want the adults to realize?

7.   What are the four different environmental problems she talks about?

8.   How many people were there in the world at that time?

9.   How many species does she mention?

10.               What kind of bad habit from her country does she denounce?

11.               What are we afraid of?

12.               Why was she shocked when she arrived in Brazil?

13.               What does she want the northern countries to do?

14.               What are the main things she was taught at school?

15.               What is the sentence her father keeps telling her?