Module 6: LIFE BELOW WATER (SDG14) - Vifin Course Creator

Objectives

In Denmark, there is no tradition for eating seaweed, even though Denmark is surrounded by water. However, there is a fast-growing movement towards eating more vegetarian food. Is it possible to transfer that movement to the production of food from the sea and change the production from meat to algae? How can students contribute to that change?

The production of fish via fishponds has had a bad influence on the environment and will affect biodiversity, whether it is the fishing methods that destroy the seabed or pollution from aquaculture. However, we need the sea to feed the people of the world, so how can it be done sustainably?

This activity has these phases:

A. Students should have a positive experience of using seaweed as food, and practical experience in harvesting seaweed and turning it into an edible product.

B. Students need to become wiser about the uses of seaweed.

C. Students should make small commercials or other commercials that make others change their eating habits.

D. Students evaluate their work by doing interviews with adults

Activity details

Ages:

12 - 15

Duration.

One day to visit a place where it´s possible to harvest the seaweed and afterwards returning to the school and make seaweed chips. You can skip this activity and serve some prepared seaweed chips and eventually make a blind test with ordinary chips and seaweed chips.

1 x 45 minutes to investigate the possibilities to use seaweed

3 x 45 minutes to make a handbook and the commercials

1x45 minutes to choose three of the completed commercials and prepare questions for an interview.

Homework:

Show the commercials to an adult and conduct the interview

1 X 45 minutes to evaluate the interviews.

Lesson 1

A. In Denmark, it is possible to eat all kinds of seaweed as long as it was not found in a polluted watercourse or if it grows in a bay with stagnant water. It is most tasteful in springtime, where you harvest the new shoot. Recipe: See annex

B. Students must find different uses for seaweed.

30 minutes: The team is divided into groups of 3, who work together to find as many places as you can use seaweed and algae and write it down. They can explain how to get hold of the seaweed, how it is processed, what products it is used for and whether and how it is environmentally friendly. The list may be printed out so it can be brought to:

15 min: 2 double circles (See Annex). The students talk about the uses of the seaweed that the other party does not have. The other parties ask questions for its use. The circle is moved 3 times. The materials are gathered after the exercise.

C. 3 x 45 minutes: The students continue to work in groups. They now only have to work with the new products, where as a society, we have to change our eating habits. They should discuss in groups what would make them change their habits. Students choose a product and must now come up with good ideas that can change people's habits so that they will eat the new products. Then an advertisement is made which advertises their product.

Advertisements can be made in different ways. Students can do:

A short commercial
An information film
An animated film
A poster
A screencast

The teacher decides whether to choose among the possibilities, or everybody should use the same category.

D. Students must individually prepare questions for a focus person. It could be their parents or other people they show the commercials. Some of the questions need to be asked both before and after the films are shown so that they can be evaluated.

The questions are gathered on a platform, e.g., “Paddle” (www.paddle.com ). The class discusses which questions are good for evaluating the commercials, so that they become wiser about whether they work. There must also be questions, in relation to what it generally takes for people to be ready to change habits. Questions are selected so that they are the same questions that all students ask. These questions may be made in a tool such as Google Analytics.

Students now individually select 3 commercials. As homework, they need to find a focus person who watches the movies and who asks the prepared questions.

Tips for the teacher

Depending on the age of the students and the skills of making source criticism, the teacher can find some links in their languages or in English

E.g.: https://www.greatbritishchefs.com/how-to-cook/how-to-cook-with-seaweed

You can bring some seaweed chips if the students have not produced some themselves. They can use them for the commercials

It would be perfect to find a business that is in the process of establishing itself with seaweed as a sales product and entering into a collaboration with them.

It would be a good idea if you also work with a course on advertising before or after this exercise.