Climate educator guide, activity 5: investments in forest carbon

• This resource is of great value in targeting the year 10 geography content descriptions about the implications of world views for management of the environment, and the application of human-environment systems thinking to environmental change. It also contributes to students attaining the achievement standard in year 10 geography. The case study supports student discussion about the views held by community members, forestry managers and conservation groups in relation to deforestation and climate change in Guatemala. It also supports discussion about forest protection, sustainable management practices, carbon credit initiatives and the costs associated with implementing activities that reduce deforestation.
• This resource is of substantial value in targeting the sustainability cross-curriculum priority, particularly the organising idea that the interdependence of human and ecological systems underpins sustainable patterns of living. The case study highlights the beliefs that better stewardship can be achieved by improving education services, such as training local people as forest managers, and that the ability to generate monetary value from forests through schemes such as carbon credits can help protect forests in developing nations.
• This resource is of some value in targeting the year 10 science content description about the reliance of global systems on interactions involving the Earth's spheres. The introduction highlights the interaction between the biosphere and atmosphere in relation to the role of forests as carbon sinks for atmospheric carbon dioxide.

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