Author: Owner

Food and Environmental Responsibility
~ Independent Inquiry Activity ~

You are to choose ONE topic from the following list of topics and investigate it thoroughly using outside sources such as the Internet, magazines, newspapers and books. While you may want to include your own thoughts on the topic you select, you need facts that are researched and properly referenced. I have provided some inquiry questions for each topic to get you thinking but your investigation should not stop here…what else can you find out on your topic? What would you like to find out about your topic? 

 1.	Local Foods vs. Imported Foods – What foods do we import? Why? What is the difference in quality? Taste? Price? What is the effect on the environment for each? Provide specific examples.

 2.	Organic Foods – What does it mean for a food to be labeled “organic”? 
Are they really better for us? How do they compare in price? Taste? Quality? Investigate both sides of the organic vs. non-organic debate.

 3.	Food Cooperatives and Community Gardens – What are they? Where are they located? Why are they becoming popular or desirable for communities? Are there advantages or disadvantages? What is the long-term outlook for these initiatives? 

 4.	Sustainable Farming – What is it? How can farmers ensure there will still be good land to grow food 100 years from now? How has global warming and climate change affected farming? What are some other issues related to farming and the environment?  

 5.	Recycling Programs – How can people reduce, reuse and recycle with regard to food (or food waste), cooking methods, cooking appliances? How can people be more conscious of the environment, in general? What can be done at school? In your community? In the province? In the country? 
How can farming be better at recycling?

 6.	Water – Calculate your personal water “footprint” (how much water you use daily or weekly). Reflect on ways you could minimize your water footprint. Suggest some ways people can reduce water use. Provide some statistics on water usage in Canada. Explain why we need to conserve water. 
How are you going to present this information? 

I will leave this up to you! There are many ways in which to present your findings:
•	Fact sheet
•	Brochure
•	Electronic slide show (use googledocs and submit to 	janeniez@ed.amdsb.ca) 
•	Report
•	Poster
•	Video
•	Other method…..talk to your teacher to get approval first!

** Don’t forget to include some credible (preferably Canadian!) sources in your research and reference them on a separate page in APA format somewhere in/on your Independent Inquiry Activity. 

Due date: ____________________________________________

Food and Environmental Responsibility: Independent Inquiry Activity Rubric
| 4 | 3 | 2 | 1

Thinking
- answers key questions on topic
- investigates more on topic
- uses appropriate sources and references in APA format

-thorough investigation of topic
-excellent variety of sources
-excellent use of APA format

-considerable investigation of topic
-good variety of sources
-good use of APA format

-some investigation of topic
-some variety of sources
-some use of APA format

-limited investigation of topic
-limited variety of sources
-limited use of APA format

Communication
- communicates topic clearly in chosen format
- spelling and grammar

-communicates topic with a high degree of effectiveness

-communicates topic with considerable effectiveness

-communicates topic with some effectiveness

-communicates topic with limited effectiveness