7.4 LESSON Modeling Sustainability

Modeling Sustainability, Resilience,
and Adaptation

Learning Objectives

▪ Identify the criteria that can be used to evaluate whether

development is sustainable.

▪ Explain complex ecosystems.

Sustainable Development
Using resources in ways that preserve ecosystem services is
called sustainable development.
Sustainable development recognizes the links between
ecology and economics.

The Economy

exists in

(depends on)
Society
which exists in
(depends on)

The Environment

Multiple Choice

Using resources in a way to preserve ecosystem services.

• Economy Development

• Sustainable Development

• Societal Development

• Environmental Development

Drag and Drop

​

Placeholder

depends on ​

Placeholder

which depends on ​

Placeholder

Drag these tiles and drop them in the correct blank above

economy

society

environment

Renewable and Nonrenewable Resources

Renewable resource: a
resource that can be
produced by a healthy
ecosystem.
(wind, solar)

Nonrenewable resource: a
resource that cannot be
replenished or replaced by a
natural process.
(fossil fuels - oil, coal, gas)

Categorize

Options (8)

solar

wind

replaced by a healthy ecosystem

cannot be replaced by nature

oil

coal

natural gas

fossil fuels

Organize these options into the right categories

Renewable Resources

Nonrenewable Resources

Complex Ecosystems

Complex ecosystems can change unexpectedly into a very
different-looking ecosystem.

What would
happen if the
carnivorous fish
(in blue) were
overfished by
humans?

1

2

3

Reorder

Reorder the cascading effects that can happen in a complex ecosystem.

• Overfishing of large carnivorous fish

• decrease in large carnivorous fish

• increase in omnivorous small fish

• decrease in producers

1

2

3

4

• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4

Adding Humans

Humans have drastically
changed the environment, and
measures need to be taken to
promote sustainable
development in the future.

This model adds the
Anthroposphere to the four
spheres we looked at in the
carbon cycle unit.

Humans benefit from
ecosystem services performed
by nature - purifying water and
air, flood control, fertilizing soil.

Multiple Choice

What new sphere has been added to the four traditional spheres in nutrient cycles because of human impacts on the natural world.

• anthroposphere

• geosphere

• biosphere

• hydrosphere

• atmosphere

Multiple Choice

What are processes like water purification and fertilizing soil that are naturally performed by healthy ecosystems called?

• ecosystem services

• anthroposphere

• sustainable development

• location exchanges

Resilience

Resilience is the ability of a system to deal with change.
Sustainable development must be able to survive
environmental stresses such as droughts, floods, storms,
heat waves, cold snaps, and unexpected changes to
ecosystems due to climate change.

Multiple Choice

The ability of an ecosystem to deal with change, like droughts, storms and heat waves.

• development

• sustainability

• resilience

• climate change

Designing Solutions

Scientific research can have a positive impact on the
global environment by:
•recognizing a problem in the environment
•gathering data to document and analyze the problem and
identify its cause; and
•guiding changes in our behavior based on scientific
understanding

Example: in the 1980’s research into the thinning ozone
layer led to the banning of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)
which is leading to the return of the ozone layer.

Reorder

Reorder the steps to designing a solution to environmental problems.

• recognizing an environmental problem

• gathering data

• analyzing the problem

• identifying the cause

• guiding changes in society behavior

1

2

3

4

5

• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5