Mighty Mangroves

Last week we wrapped up the topic of biodiversity within rainforests and looked at what characteristics of rainforests make them particularly vulnerable. We also discussed the issue of responsibility for the rainforest- who should share the responsibility of protecting it and why. We continued our discussion about biodiversity by looking at mangroves in order to prepare for our trip to Watamu. We looked at some key vocabulary terms and the parts of a mangrove tree and looked at some metaphors to illustrate it's functions. Next we will tackle why mangroves are under threat- as a warm-up, take a look at the situation of a mangrove forest in Asia here. Remember that your research homework on rainforest organizations is due on Tuesday- no exceptions.

mangrove ecosystems

More PowerPoint presentations from Safiya Jetha

The Value of Rainforests

Today we continued our study of biodiversity by looking into the cultivation practices in rainforests and we posed the question- are they sustainable or not? We all know rainforests are valuable as a resource which is why we work to conserve it constantly. The responses to the questions on worksheet you received in class will be collected as a homework, so please ensure your answers to the questions are clearly written in your exercise book- the worksheet with links to the websites can be found here.

The Transoceanic highway opened to public vehicles earlier this year. There are many concerns about how the construction of this highway will impact its surroundings since it partially runs through the heart of the amazon rainforest. Find out how scientists are measuring these impacts here.

On Thursday, we will be discussing the article read in class today and also why rainforests are so vulunterable. We plan to move to Mangroves and biodiversity next to prepare for our Watamu trip. See you Thursday.