World Cultures 11

Unit Latin America

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The Amazon Rainforest Internet Assignment

Purpose: This assignments goal is to expose you to basic facts about the Amazon rainforest as well as
introduce you to some of the wildlife and people that live inside it. You will also understand how the rainforest
affects the nations and people of South America and how it is facing unique challenges in the modern world.
Part I (Overview): Use www.worldwildlife.org/places/amazon and follow the directions carefully to
complete this assignment.
1.
Review the photograph. Choose one descriptive word (adjective) that comes to mind and
explain how it relates to the image.
When I look at this picture the first word that comes to mind is crowded. I think crowded because
everything is right next to each other.
2.
Click on Overview and review the information, including the visuals. List the 8 nations
that the Amazon rainforest is located in.
- Brazil
- Colombia
-

Bolivia

Peru

Ecuador

- Venezuela
- Guyana
- Suriname and French Guiana

3.
Click on Forest Habitat and review the information there, including the visuals. A forest can
vary based on several factors. What are these four factors?
Latitude
- Local Soil
4.

Rainfall

- Prevailing temperatures

What makes rainforests special?

5.
Worldwide, how quickly is deforestation occurring? How quickly is it occurring in the Amazon?
Use statistics from the reading to explain your answer.
a. Worldwide Around 46-58 square miles of forest is being lost every year.
b. Amazon In the last 50 years, the amazon has lost at least 17% of its forest
due to humans.
6.
Scroll down to the Why They Matter section. Scroll through the three images and review the
captions. List and explain why rainforests matter.
a. 80% of the worlds animals live in rain forests.
b. Forests provide us resources, such as air, water and shelter.
c. Forests soak up all the carbon dioxide and store it.
7.
Return to the main page (www.worldwildlife.org/places/amazon) and scroll down to the
Species section. Choose three animals found in the Amazon and describe them in the chart.
Animal
Description
Snow Leopard
The Snow Leopards build allows it to climb up steep mountains. Its hind legs
allow it to jump 6 times the length of its body. The long tail provides balance and
agility and also protects it from the cold.
Tiger
Tigers rely on its sight and sound rather than smell. They typically hunt alone.

They give birth every 2-2.5 years. Tigers prefer to be alone.

Orangutan
They prefer to live alone. They make nests up in trees and different types of
vegetation so they can sleep at night and rest during the day.
Part II (Native Peoples): Use www.survivalinternational.org/about/amazontribes to learn about the native
peoples of the Amazon rainforest.
8.
How many people live in the Amazon rainforest, and how are they organized?
1 million Indians live in the Amazon. There are about 400 tribes who all have their own language, culture
and way of life.
9.
To what extent have they had contact with outsiders? Explain your response.
Most of the tribes have had contact with outsiders for hundreds of years, however, some tribes dont have
any contact at all. Theres a high risk of disease exposure that comes with outsider contact, so some tribes
take caution.
10.
Create a t-chart that compares and contrasts your daily life with that of the people of the
Amazon. Include at least four points of comparison.
My Daily Life
I go to the store to buy my food.
I live in one place.
My family owns our house and the land
we live on.
If I need access to weapons, theyre all
machine made.

Tribes of the Amazons Daily Life

Tribes hunt and grow their own food.
Many of these tribes are nomadic tribes
and only stay in one place for a day or so.
Brazil Indians have no land ownership
rights.
Tribes make their own weapons.

11.
Why are land rights so important to the Amazon tribes? Read the text and watch the video clip
in the Land = Life section to answer this question.

12.
Do you think most Americans agree with the viewpoint expressed by the woman in the video
clip? Explain.

Part III (Current Challenges): Use www.theguardian.com/environment/amazon-rainforest to research

some of the current challenges facing the Amazon rainforest. Please be mature in handling photographs of
native people, as their dress is quite different from ours!
13.
Choose articles that interest you about each of the topics in the chart. Read them and complete
the chart.
Challenge
Impact (2 sentences)
Possible Solutions (2 sentences)
Deforestation
A man named Ezequiel Antonio Castanhan
They could fine him when he gets out of
is responsible for taking part in the
jail. With the money, they could use it to
Amazons deforestation. He created an
start restoring the land.
operation that took illegal land, but he was
arrested.

Mining/Drilling

Crime

A US oil drilling company is cutting oil

lines in a tribes land. There are sculptures
built by this tribe that the company doesnt
care about and theyre ruining them.
There have been natives that were murdered
for trying to defend their land. This is bad
because it makes natives less willing to let
outsiders in

This company just needs to respect the

tribes sculptures. They worked hard on
these things and dont deserved to have it
ruined.
People need to stop killing natives for
defending their land. This is their land and
if you want to come on it, you have to
respect it,

14.
Go to edition.cnn.com/2013/07/25/sport/football/football-brazil-world-cupmanaus/index.html and review the article there. What challenges did the rainforest pose for Brazil in its
efforts to prepare for the 2014 World Cup?
The stadium is placed right in front of the Amazon. Many are nervous because they think that people
could ruin the rain forest even more and mess with the people.
15.
How did the regions emphasis on environmental protection influence the stadium project?
They wanted to construction of the stadium to be more green. People also said that they needed to
know exactly what was going on so that they didnt secretly ruin the forest.