Read And Respond (Text Book)
Question 1.
What was the impact when the household food crops were replaced by commercial farming ?
Answer:
The impact was far-reaching. It destroyed the local bio-diversity and the ability of the forests to conserve water. The rural population lacked firewood, clean drinking water, balanced diets, shelter and income.
Question 2.
What, according to Wangari Maathai, is the primary role of women of Africa?
Answer:
According to Wangari Maathai, the primary role of women of Africa is taking care of their families. They till the land and feed their families.
Question 3.
Why did the African women fail to meet their basic needs?
Answer:
The African women failed to meet their basic needs because of the degradation of their immediate environment and the introduction of commercial farming, replacing the growing of household crops. International traders controlled the prices of the produce by farmers and so they could not get a reasonable and just income.
Question 4.
How does environmental disruption and mismanagement affect life?
Answer:
Environmental disruption and mismanagement affect life by undermining the quality of our life and that of the future generations.
Question 5.
How does the tree become a symbol for peace and conflict resolution?
Answer:
The tree becomes a symbol for peace and conflict resolution because using trees was a symbol of peace. It was in keeping with a popular African tradition. The elders of Kikuyu carried a staff from the thigi tree (a huge shady tree, native to Africa). When they placed this staff between two disputing sides, they stopped fighting and sought reconciliation. Such practices are part of cultural heritage. They contribute to conserve habitats and peace.
Question 6.
What is the merit of having a feeling that we belong to a larger family?
Answer:
The merit of having a feeling that we belong to a larger family is that it will help to have a shift in our thinking. This shift is needed so that humanity stops threatening its life-support system. We are called to assist the Earth to heal her wounds. We have to embrace the whole creation in all its diversity, beauty and wonder and then only we can progress and live happy lives.
Question 7.
What, according to Wangari Maathai, is the challenge of our generation?
Answer:
According to Wangari Maathai, the challenge of our generation is restoring the beauty and wonder of the world by conserving our environment, fostered by democracy and fraternity.
Think And Write
Question 1.
What is the role of bio-diversity in maintaining environmental balance?
Answer:
Bio-diversity means the variety of all forms of life which make a balanced environment. The forms of life include both plants and animals. They mutually support each other. If you destroy the forests, the animals will lose their habitat. It will also lead to droughts and soil erosion. Soon the environment will be destroyed because of this imbalance. Thus bio-diversity is essential for maintaining environmental balance.
Question 2.
Identify the needs of the present women, and compare them with those of the women of Kenya at the time of Wangari Maathai.
Answer:
The present women have much greater needs than the women of Kenya at the time of Wangari Maathai. The Kenyan women of those days needed only simple things like firewood, clean drinking water, balanced diets, shelter and some income. But today’s women need good education, equality with men in job opportunities and as well as leadership positions. They want an atmosphere in which they can develop to their full potential.
Question 3.
“Women are often the first to become aware of environmental damage, says Wangari Maathai. What is your opinion?
Answer:
The statement of Wangari Maathai is quite right in the case of the Kenyan women of her time because their needs were simple – firewood, clean drinking water, balanced diets, shelter and some income. But today’s women are quite different and the statement can’t be applied to them. They are more concerned with good life and changing fashions.
Question 4.
What is the impact of commercial farming on the rural community?
Answer:
Commercial fanning has a detrimental effect on the rural community. It destroys the local bio-diversity and the ability of the forests to conserve water. Moreover, international traders control the prices of the commercial produce by farmers and so they can’t get a reasonable and just income. This adversely affects their standard of living.
Question 5.
How does degradation of environment trigger off poverty and conflict?
Answer:
Degradation of environment triggers off poverty and conflict, A degraded environment leads to a fight for scarce resources. It leads to poverty and conflict. There is also the injustice of international economic arrangements. The widespread destruction of the ecosystems, mainly through deforestation, climatic instability and contamination of the soil and water lead to extreme poverty and riots.
Question 6.
Explain the term ‘sustainable development’.
Answer:
These days we hear a lot about sustainable development. Sustainable development is the development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
When a Sapling is Planted (Speech) Edumate Questions and Answers
Question 1.
‘Together we have planted over 30 million trees that provide fuel, food, shelter and income….’
Wangari Maathai, in her Nobel Prize acceptance speech speaks about the importance of planting trees. Draft a speech to be delivered in your school assembly highlighting the importance of tree planting on 5th June, World Environment Day.
Answer:
Respected principal, dear teachers and friends,
Today is World Environment Day and therefore I will talk about the preservation of our Environment. Trees play a big role in such preservation, as, without trees, the earth will degenerate into some kind of desert.
Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “Nature never hurries, atom by atom, little by little, she achieves her work.” He is very right when we think how the trees grow taking their time to reach their full status as trees. Before a tree becomes a full-fledged tree it passes through many stages – seed, seedling, sapling and then tree. Some trees take years to become real trees. But look at man! How cruelly he cuts them down in just a few minutes to use it as fuel, for furniture work, construction works and even to make paper. Sometimes man destroys entire forests to convert into farmlands or to make factories and residential areas. Large scale deforestation brings about climatic changes. Even in Kerala there are climatic changes because of the large scale destruction of forests.
Trees absorb the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and supply us oxygen. They prevent the soil from eroding. They help in blocking the clouds and bring rain. They supply us a lot of forest products like honey, wax and different kind of herbs and roots. Nowadays forests are converted into National Parks attracting tourists from all over the world. That way also, trees bring money. Thus forests help us in so many ways and so destroying them will be suicidal.
We all should emulate Wangari Maathai, the Kenyan lady and the Nobel Prize Winner, who led a crusade against deforestation. She wanted each person to plant some trees as his duty to help himself and also posterity. In India we had the Chipko Movement. When the contractors came to cut down the trees, the women from the locality rushed to the forest and stood near the trees embracing them. Chipko in Hindi means embrace. The men who came to cut down the trees had to go back because of the people embracing the trees.
John Keats, the famous English Romantic poet said, “A thing of beauty is a joy forever.” I believe a tree is a thing beauty and we should do our best to preserve our trees and plant new ones. Today let’s pledge that each one of us will plant at least ten trees. Remember it is not enough to plant trees, but make sure that they grow by giving the trees adequate care.
Let’s make the earth green once again!
Question 2.
We pollute our water bodies by dumping garbage and plastic materials. It is high time we stopped such activities. Imagine that you are the secretary of the Youth Club in your locality. Prepare a letter to the editor of a daily highlighting the threat caused by the dumping of plastic materials in rivers and streams.
Answer:
Liz James
Std XII
St. George’s HSS
Edappally
6 June 2017
The Editor
Times of India
Kochi
Sir,
Sub: Polluting Water by dumping garbage and plastic materials
The other day I was with my friend on the bank of the Periyar River, near Aluva. As I was standing there I saw a man coming with two bags full of garbage and throwing them into the river. What a heinous crime he is doing! Thousands of people use the water from Periyar for drinking and other home uses. And here is a man living nearthe bank of the river polluting it with garbage and plastic wastes. I thought it was as dirty as excreting in one’s own sitting room!
It is unfortunate that people are not aware of the damage they are doing to the rivers and other water bodies by dumping our garbage and plastic material there. Such actions not only pollute the water but also make the water unfit even for fish and other water creatures. I feel strict action should be taken against people who pollute water bodies. There should be observation teams posted at strategic points so that they can catch the culprits and give them proper punishments.
In Kerala we boast of 44 rivers and streams. But how many of them are clean? Many of them are so unclean that if the waterfalls on our body, the body starts itching! I think there should be awareness programmes organized especially for the people living close to the water bodies. Offenders much be seriously punished as a deterrent to future would-be culprits.
Liz James
Question 3.
The Environment Club of your school is organising a trekking trip to Silent Valley. What are the instructions that you, as the secretary of the club will give to your teammates before starting the trip? Write three instructions.
Answer:
Trekking Trip to Silent Valley
- Wear canvas shoes for the trip. Slippers and leather shoes will make trekking very hard.
- Carry enough drinking water with you. Even the bottled water we buy in the shops along the road might not be clean.
- In the Silent Valley you will find rare species of animals like the lion-tailed monkeys. Don’t feed them. Always stay together in the group.
Question 4.
Imagine that a vast area of paddy fields in your locality was filled up by a construction company for executing a villa project. Prepare an article to be published in a newspaper on the negative impact of filling up paddy fields.
You may use the hints given below.
(Hints: paddy fields – a complete eco system – streams around the fields – home to micro-organisms – filling of land required to construct buildings – living beings like storks, fish, tadpoles etc. affected.)
Answer:
Tampering With The Ecosystem.
An ecosystem is a community of living organisms in conjunction with the nonliving components of their environment interacting as a system. The nonliving components include things like air, water and soil. These biotic and abiotic components are regarded as linked together through nutrient cycles and energy flows. Eco systems can be big or small.
The Durbar Construction Company Limited is filling up a vast area of paddy fields in my area, Meloor, Chalakudy. The company is executing a villa project aimed at the rich people. These are luxury villas with swimming pools and various kinds of courts for playing badminton and volleyball. There is also provision to play cricket there. There will be different clubs for pastime.
The Durbar Construction Company is least bothered about the negative impact of filling up the paddy fields. They are destroying a complete ecosystem as they are also filling up the many small streams that criss-cross the paddy fields. The eco system is a home to different microorganisms and also living beings like storks, fish tadpoles and the like. The area is very famous for fresh water fish and people come from different areas to buy cheap fresh water fish from Meloor. But with the coming of the villa project, all this will be a thing of the past.
Being in a low-lying area, these paddy fields and the tiny streams were a source of good water to the people in the nearby areas. When these paddy fields are filled up the rain water will not sink into the ground resulting in the lack of water in the wells and ponds of nearby places. The current drought has already brought problems to the people and the proposed villa project will only worsen the situation.
The government has rules which prohibit the filling up of paddy fields for construction work. But the rules have many loopholes and greedy people exploit these loopholes to their advantage. If things go unchecked like this we will soon have a lot of concrete jungles and not paddy fields in our State.
Question 5.
‘As I was growing up, I witnessed forests being cleared and replaced by commercial plantations, which destroyed local bio-diversity and the capacity of forests to conserve water’, says Wangari Maathai. You must have come across newspaper reports on mass destruction of forests. Write an essay on the impact of deforestation.
Answer:
Impact Of Deforestation:
With the growth of the world population, there is an increasing need for space. Land is needed for agricultural, industrial and most importantly urban needs to contain cities. People find an easy solution in “Deforestation”. Deforestation means the felling of trees and clearing of forest to make that land available for residential, commercial or industrial purposes.
Deforestation can also be seen as removal of forests leading to several imbalances ecologically and environmentally. What make deforestation alarming are the immediate and long term effects it is bound to cause. Some predictions state that the rainforests of the world will be destroyed completely if deforestation continues at its current pace.
Deforestation or clearance occurs due to several reasons. They include agricultural activities, logging, urbanization, desertification of land and soil erosion, mining and forest fires. As can be seen, most of them are caused by man whereas a couple of them – like desertification and forest fires – could be natural causes. But even those are aided by man through defective use of land and carelessness.
The effects of Deforestation are calamitous. Deforestation brings climate imbalance. It increases global warming. It causes soil erosion. It causes floods in some areas and droughts in some other areas. There is the danger of wild life extinction. Unless we become sensible and conserve our forests we are willingly causing our doom. If we destroy nature, nature has a way of destroying us. Nature has patience but it can run out at any time and once it runs out only God can save us!
Question 6.
A notice on the activities of the Environment Club of your school was prepared by Anu. There are some errors in the matter. Edit it.
Many activities has been organised by our Environment Club this year. The club plan to conduct a seminar on water conservation next month. Interested members are requested for sending the synopsis of their papers. Kindly register your names at the earlier.
Answer:
Question 7.
Imagine that you are visiting the Kallar Eco tourism Project as part of a field trip conducted by the Forest Club of your school Before entering the forest area, you meet the officer in charge to enquire about the rules, security measures etc. Write the likely conversation.
Answer:
Student Leader: Good morning, Sir. I have some doubts to clarify.
Officer: Good morning! Go ahead and ask me what you want to ask.
SL: Can we take photographs of the various things we see there?
Officer: Yes, you can. But be careful. Last week a boy fell into the river as he was taking a selfie standing at an edge of a rock.
SL: How long can we stay in the resort area?
Officer: You can stay up to 6.00 p.m.
SL: How far is the Meenutty Falls from here?
Officer: It is not far. You can easily walk to the place.
SL: Can we get into the Kallar River? Can we swim in it?
Officer: Yes, you can. The water is clean. But at places it could be deep. So enter the water only if you know how to swim.
SL: Is food available for outsiders in the resort?
Officer: Yes, you can get Kerala Style lunch, tea and snacks at reasonable prices.
SL: Is there anything that you would like to tell us?
Officer: Yes. This is a plastic free zone. Don’t take any plastic bags or bottles with you. Don’t throw any items here and there. Use the dustbins in case you want to drop something.
SL: Thank you, Sir!
Officer: Okay! Enjoy your trip!
Question 8.
A river that flows through your village is contaminated because of human waste and dumping of garbage. Draft an e-mail to the editor of a leading national daily, highlighting this issue.
Answer:
[email protected]
Sir,
Sub: Contaminating Chalakudy River Chalakudy River passes through my village of Meloor. A few decades ago the water in the river was clean and we could use it even for drinking purposes. But now it is so unclean that even if we take a bath in it, our bodies start itching. The water smells foul.
One of the reasons for the water to become so dirty is the ignorance of the people. They have the misconception that a flowing river is never dirty. Since the dirt is immediately washed away, they imagine that there is no problem in throwing the garbage in it. But when thousands of people do that, the garbage gets collected at places and it begins to rot and thus it pollutes the water.
People wash their kitchen utensils, and dishes and soiled clothes in the river. This also makes the water dirty. The worst thing is that the people who do not have toilets in their homes excrete on the banks of the river and they wash themselves in the river. When it rains all the excreta is washed into the river. Imagine how dirty the water can get with human excreta. People have been doing it for long. But in the past the population was small and it was not so much noticed. But with the increased number of people living along the banks, the problem has become very acute.
The authorities must ensure that people don’t throw their garbage in the river. They also should make sure that there toilets in the homes of people and they don’t make the banks of the river their toilets. Culprits must be seriously punished as a deterrent to prospective offenders.
Let’s keep the river clean, it is our life-line.
Antony Mundakkal
Question 9.
Prepare a profile of Wangari Maathai using the hints given below.
- Wangari Maathai – born 1st April, 1940-Kenyan environmental and political activist
- Founded Green Belt Movement
- Planting of trees, environmental conservation and women’s rights
- Sustainable development
- Right to Livelihood Award -1986
- The first African woman to receive the Nobel Prize -2004
- Died – 25th September, 2011
Answer:
Wangari Maathai.
Wangari Maathai is a Kenyan. She is an environmental and political activist. She was born on 1 April 1940. From her very childhood she developed a love for Nature and the Environment. Alarmed at the way deforestation was taking place in Kenya and the world at large, she founded the Green Belt Movement. She wanted people to plant trees and protect them and not to destroy them. She thought that trees are the umbrellas that shaded the earth from the scorching heat of the sun. She advocated environmental conservation and she fought for women’s rights.
She propagated sustainable development. She won many awards. In 1986 she was given the Right to Livelihood Award. In 2004 she received the Nobel Prize. She was the first African woman go get a Nobel Prize. She did a lot for environmental protection. She breathed her last on 25 September 2011.
Question 10.
Imagine that you are the editor of your school blog. Prepare a blog entry on how the Environment Club of your school developed a garden of medicinal plants.
Answer:
The Place of Herbs in Our Lives The Environment Club of our School has a well developed Garden of Medicinal Plants. Medicinal plants have become very important in our modern day life. One of the reasons for that is the popularity Ayurveda is getting internationally. Many VIPs from different countries come to Kerala for Ayurveda Treatment. In Ayurveda type of treatment, herbs or medicinal plants play a big role.
Ayurveda has been practised in India in India since 2000 B.C. The Ayurvedic treatment is entirely based on herbs, which have certain medicinal value or property. In the ancient times, the Indian sages believed that Ayurvedic herbs are one-stop solutions to cure a number of health related problems and diseases. Most of the Ayurvedic herbs are free of side effects or reactions. This is the reason why Ayurveda is growing in popularity across the globe. In our garden we have herbs like ginseng, aloe, sandalwood, red clover, burdock, bayberry, black pepper, cinnamon, myrrh, and safflower. They are used to heal wounds, sores and boils. Then we have marshmallow which is used as antacids.
Turmeric is an antibiotic herb. To reduce fever and the production of heat caused by the condition, certain antipyretic herbs such as black pepper, sandalwood, safflower and brihati are used. We also have anti-septic herbs like aloe, sandalwood and chitrak. Cardamom, does and peppermint are aromatic herbs that increase our appetite. Herbs such as Chamomile, chrysanthemum, coriander, fennel, peppermint, and spearmint, ajwan, basil, calamus, cardamom, cinnamon, ginger, and turmeric are helpful in promoting good blood circulation. Therefore, they are used as cardiac stimulants. Ginger, eucalyptus, wild cherry and cloves are also expectorants.
We grow these and we encourage the people to use them because most allopathic medicines have very adverse side effects.
John Sebastian, 26 June 2016
Question 11.
A debate is conducted by the English Club of your school on the topic, Environment is not important when it comes to development. I Imagine that you are one of the debaters opposing the topic. Write your argument in a paragraph. There should be at least four points.
Answer:
I feel it is quite wrong to say that environment is not important when it comes to development. I agree that development is necessary. Development, primarily, is to make people have a happy and comfortable life. I don’t agree with a development where environment is adversely affected. If the environment is not good how can people live a comfortable life? When we speak of environment, we generally include the air, the water, the soil and flora and fauna of the place.
Even if we build big houses and factories and produce a lot of things there, what use do they have if the air is polluted and we can’t even breathe it? Development may give us so many things, but if the water is polluted how can we manage? By destroying the soil, the flora and fauna how we say we are developing? Development must be sustainable. It must be done in such a way we preserve our environment to have pure air, clean water and good soil creating an atmosphere where the flora and fauna can flourish enriching the place.
Question 12.
The Nature Club of your school decides to cultivate food crops in a space available in the school campus. Prepare a brief write-up of about 100 words to be included in a pamphlet emphasizing the need to cultivate food crops and develop farming as a culture.
Answer:
Our School’S Paddy Fields
We have been hearing a lot about the contaminated rice we have been getting from neighbouring States. To get bumper harvests they use a lot of artificial fertilizers, insecticides and dangerous chemicals to increase the size and quantity of the paddy they harvest. The result is that the rice we get here is unhealthy. But we have no choice as we do not produce enough rice for our needs. Rice being our staple food we ought to get it from outside.
It is in the circumstances we decided to cultivate paddy in the extra space available in the school campus. The Nature Club suggested this idea to the school management and they were very happy with the idea. The students, both boys and girls, were enthusiastic about it. We decided that the paddy we produce in our school will be 100% organic. We tilled the land and planted seedlings. There was provision for irrigation.
We used only natural fertilizers like cow-dung, ash and compost. We used homemade concoctions with tobacco, soap etc. to control the pests. We pulled the weeds by hand. We were able to get a bumper harvest and it was shared among the students and teachers. We were all happy that at least for a few days we all could enjoy pure rice.
Question 13.
Read the following excerpt and answer the questions that follow.
“My inspiration comes from my childhood experiences and observations of nature in rural Kenya. As I was growing up, I witnessed forests being cleared arid replaced by commercial plantations, which destroyed local biodiversity and the capacity of the forests to conserve water.”
a) What inspired Wangari Maathai to become an environmentalist?
b) What was the impact when forests were replaced by commercial farming?
c) What does ‘biodiversity’ mean?
Answer:
a) Her childhood experiences and observations of nature in rural Kenya.
b) It destroyed biodiversity and the capacity of the forests to conserve water.
c) Biodiversity means the variety of living things in an environment.
Question 14.
“Later, they became aware of the widespread destruction of the ecosystems, especially through deforestation. Climatic instability and contamination of the soil and waters – all contributed to excruciating poverty and subsequent riots.”
a) Who are referred to as ‘they’ here?
b) What was the chief cause of the destruction of ecosystem?
c) What contributed to excruciating poverty and subsequent riots?
d) What does the word’ excruciating’ mean?
Answer:
a) The women of Kenya.
b) Deforestation.
c) Climatic instability and contamination of the soil and water contributed to excruciating poverty and subsequent riots.
d) agonizing
Question 15.
Imagine that you have won the ‘Student Excellence Award’ from your school. The award is given on the basis of the student’s character and performance in both curricular and co-curricular activities. After having received the award, you are expected to deliver an Award acceptance speech. Draft the speech.
Answer:
Respected principal, dear teachers and friends,
I feel quite elated to stand here today and make this acceptance speech. I was surprised and even shocked, so to say, to know that I was chosen for awarding the Student Excellence Award. I don’t really know if I deserve it. But since the Principal and the teachers have decided that I am the one to be given that Award, I believe they are right.
I understand that the Award is given on the basis of a student’s performance both in the curricular and co-curricular activities. I had always believed that education is training for life. Learning a few facts, figures and formulae does not make a man educated. Along with the knowledge, I believe, we should development our personality, interpersonal skills and also leadership qualities.
My academic performance has been always good because both my parents are teachers and they used to help me a lot. I would dedicate this reward to them for all the help they gave to me, not only as parents but as my role models.
I have been active in sports and games. I believe in the Latin saying “Mens sana in corpore sano”. It means a healthy mind in a healthy body. If the mind is to be healthy body has to be healthy. I used to take part in different games and sports. I am glad that lam the badminton champion of this school. I also got the 1st Prize for long jump in the last school sports meet.
I think the authorities chose me for the Award looking to my social activities also. As the Chairman of the Social Club, I had organized a programme to collect funds for the surgery of one of our classmates who needed a kidney transplant. His family could not afford it. We were able to collect money and get the surgery done. As he sits there and looks at me and smiles, I feel quite proud and happy.
I am indebted to many people for this Award. Primarily I am grateful to my Principal and the teachers. But I should especially mention my English teacher who always prompted me to do my best. He used to inspire me with his stories of great men like John F. Kennedy, Nelson Mandela, Abdul Kalam and Mahatma Gandhi. He taught me that ‘No pain, no gain’. Thank you, Sir, for all that you did to me. I also thank my classmates who have been with me always – in my tragedies and triumphs.
Thankyou, all!
Activity – I (Formal speech)
Imagine that you have won the National Green
Corps (NGC) Award for coordinating the activities of your school eco club. The award would be given away by the Governor of the State, in the presence of the Chief Minister and certain other dignitaries. You are supposed to deliver a speech after receiving the award. Draft the speech you would deliver.
Tips: Gratitude for the award
Explanation of your activities
Your response to the award
Advice/exhortation to the audience
Answer:
Your Excellency the Governor, the Honourable Chief Minister and other dignitaries, respected Principal, staff members and parents, my dear students, ladies and gentlemen,
Good Afternoon!
As I stand here I feel greatly honoured because our school is the first school in the State to receive this prestigious Award. As .the Coordinator of our Eco Club, I feel that we are singularly lucky to become the recipients of this Award. This Award is not just for me but for the entire members of the Eco Club and also for the Principal and Staff who have been doing their best to encourage us in our eco-friendly activities.
We did two things which I believe made us eligible for this Award. First of all with the help of the Forest Department, we planted saplings on the roadsides and other places which we felt need trees. Each member of the club ensured that at least 300 saplings were planted by him or through his efforts. With 200 members in our club, we planted a minimum of 60,000 trees this year. We feel trees are the umbrellas that protect the earth from the scorching sun in different ways. Not only they give shade and sometimes fruits, but they also increase rainfall and prevent soil erosion. Deforestation will make our earth a big desert.
The second thing we did was encouraging especially homemakers to have a kitchen garden. We know that most of the vegetables and fruits we eat come from other states. These vegetables and fruits are full of insecticides and dangerous preservatives. By constantly consuming these things we are prone to become sick. So we encourage households to produce as many vegetables and fruits as they can. With some efforts every household can produce something. With the help of the Agriculture Department, we distributed free seeds and seedlings to households and many people have come to tell us that they have started producing different vegetables and fruits in their own yards or even on their terraces.
I must thank each member of our Club in a special way for his/her contribution to the overall efforts of the Club. We also thank the Principal and Staff members for their unstinted cooperation and support in our efforts. We also thank the Forest and agriculture Departments for their support.
This Award will make us work harder to make our place greener as we feel we have greater responsibilities now. We call our State ‘God’s own country’. The picture of that country is with full of trees, plants and creepers on whose bows hang delicious fruits and delicate flowers with the humming of bees and butterflies in all seasons! We can definitely make our State a real Paradise if we all join hands and do our bit in our new initiative which is called ‘Greenery Programme’.
Thank you all!
Activity – II (Adverb/Adverb Phrase/Adverb clause)
Read the notes given on p. 112 and 113.
Question 1.
Now read the passage on p. 113 and make a list of adverbs, adverb phrases and adverb clauses.
Answer:
Adverbs: always, finally, absolutely, away
Adverb phrases: from the time, at first (2 times), for a while
Adverb clause: When she was six years old
Question 2.
Now, read the notes and the examples on the difference between adverb phrase and adverb clause.
Convert the simple sentences on page 113 into complex sentences:
Answer:
- I don’t know when he will arrive.
- Doyouknowwherehelives?
- He could not see properly because it was dark.
- They can’t solve the problem because it is too complicated.
- I can’t life the box because it is too heavy.
Activity – III (Let’s edit):
Question 1.
Look at the excerpt from the speech, ‘When a Sapling is Planted’, on p. 113. There are a few mistakes in it. Find out the mistakes and correct them.
Answer:
It is thirty years since we started this work. Activities that devastate the societies and environment continue unabated. Today we are faced with a challenge that calls for a shift in our thinking, so that humanity stops threatening its life-support system. We are called to assist the Earth to heal her wounds and in the process heal our own, indeed, to embrace the whole of creation in all its diversity, beauty and wonder.
Question 2.
The Tourism club of Middleton Public school, Calcutta, has decided to conduct a trip to the ecotourism project at Thenmala. The secretary drafted a letter to be sent to the travel agent through a member of the executive committee of the club, Here is the letter. ft has got certain errors in it. Read the letter carefully and edit it.
Answer:
Dear Sir/Madam,
Sub: Enquiry regarding tourist spots at Thenmala.
The students of the Tourism Club of our school have been planning to make a trip to Thenmala. It is to take place in the last week of September. In this connection, one of the executive committee members is being sent to your office to collect information about the spots (venues) to be visited.
I would be grateful if a travel brochure which gives details of the places of attraction, available facilities for accommodation and good hotels is sent through him so that we make the necessary arrangements prior to our trip.
Yours faithfully,
Meenakshi Varma
Secretary, Tourism Club
Read And Enjoy:
Towards the end of her speech Wangari Maathai nostalgically recalls the natural world she inherited from her parents. But with the passage of time it has been destroyed. We have the same feelings like Wangari. Think of the condition of our State. What has happened to the vast stretches of water-logged paddy fields and the creatures living around us? Why aren’t we self-reliant in the production of food materials? Read the poem and see how the poet looks at these issues.
When a Sapling is Planted (Speech) About The Author
Wangari Maathai is a Kenyan. She is an environmental and political activist. In the 1970s she founded the Green Belt Movement. It is an environmental NGO, focussing on the planting of trees, conservation and women’s rights. She got the Nobel Prize in 2004 for her contribution to sustainable development, democracy and peace. This speech was made on 10 December, 2004 at Oslo.
– Wangari Maathai
When a Sapling is Planted (Speech) Summary in English
Page 108: Your Majesties, your Royal Highnesses, Honourable Members of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen,
I am the first African woman to receive this Prize. I accept it on behalf of the people of Kenya, and Africa and the world. I am especially concerned with women and the girl child. I hope it will encourage them to raise their voices and become leaders.
My inspiration comes from my childhood experiences and observations of nature in rural Kenya. As I was growing up, I noticed that forests were cleared and were replaced by commercial plantations. This destroys the local bio¬diversity and the ability of the forests to conserve water.
In 1977 we started the Green Belt Movement. I was then responding to the needs of rural women. They lacked firewood, clean drinking water, balanced diets, shelter and income.
Page 109: In Africa women are the primary caretakers. They till the land and feed their families. As a result they are the first to notice the environmental damage as resources become scarce, making it difficult for them to maintain their families.
It was becoming difficult for women to meet their basic needs. This was because of the degradation of their immediate environment and the introduction of commercial farming, replacing the growing of household crops. International traders controlled the prices of the produce by farmers and so they could not get a reasonable and just income. When the environment is destroyed, plundered and mismanaged, we undermine the quality of our life and that of the future generations.
Tree planting became a natural choice to satisfy the basic needs of women. Tree planting is simple. It guarantees quick and successful results in a reasonable amount of time. It sustains interest and commitment.
We have planted 30 million trees which provided fuel, food, shelter and income, which helps in children’s education and household needs. The activity creates employment and improves soil and watersheds.
Initially the work was difficult. The people were unaware that a degraded environment leads to a fight for scarce resources. It leads to poverty and conflict. They also did not know the injustice of international economic arrangements. Later they came to know the widespread destruction of the ecosystems, mainly through deforestation, climatic instability and contamination of the soil and water. All these led to extreme poverty and riots.
At the early stage, the Green Belt Movement did not concern itself with issues like democracy and peace. Soon it became clear that only a democratic set-up can implement schemes for responsible governance of the environment. Thus the tree became a symbol for democratic struggle in Kenya. Citizens were mobilized to challenge widespread abuse of power, corruption and environmental mismanagement.
Page 110: Soon the tree also became a symbol of peace and conflict resolution, especially during ethnic conflicts. Using trees as a symbol of peace is in keeping with a popular African tradition. The elders of Kikuyu carried a staff from the thigi tree. When they placed this staff between two disputing sides, they stopped fighting and sought reconciliation. Such practices are part of cultural heritage. They contribute to conserve habitats and peace.
It is now 30 years since we started this work. Activities that destroy the environment and societies continue. We have to have a shift in our thinking so that humanity stops threatening its life-support system. We are called to assist the Earth to heal her wounds, and heal our own. We have to embrace the whole creation in all its diversity, beauty and wonder. This will happen only if we see ourselves as members of a large family, which has shared our evolutionary process.
There can be no peace without equitable development. There can be no development without sustainable management of the environment in a democratic and peaceful condition.
In the course of history, humanity has to often shift to a new level of understanding, to reach a higher moral ground. We have to remove our fears and give hope to each other. Time for that has come.
I call on world leaders to expand democratic spaces and build fair and just societies. Then only the creativity and energy of the citizens will flourish. I call upon the young people to work hard to achieve their long-term dreams. They have the energy and creativity to shape a sustainable future. The young people are the gift to their communities and the world. They are our hope and our future.
Page 111: As I conclude, I think of my childhood. I would visit a stream next to our home to fetch water for my mother. I would drink water straight from the stream. Playing among the arrowroot leaves, I tried, without success, to pick strands of frogs’ eggs, thinking that they were beads. But every time I touched them they broke. Later, I saw thousands of tadpoles, black, energetic and wriggling through the Clearwater against the background of the brown earth. This is the world I inherited from my parents.
But now the stream has dried up. Women walk long distances for water which is not even clean. Children will never know what they have lost. The challenge is to restore the home of the tadpoles and give back to our children a world of beauty and wonder.
Thank you very much.
When a Sapling is Planted (Speech) Summary in Malayalam
When a Sapling is Planted (Speech) Meanings
