How+does+access+to+clean+water+affect+women's+issues+and+education+internationally?

LESSON SEVEN:
What are food emergencies and why do they happen?

DESCRIPTION:
Students will learn about the issue of food emergencies and begin to develop ideas about why they exist and what steps might be taken to address them.

TEACHER BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
A food emergency can arise from different kinds of situations. They can result from natural disasters such as earthquakes, floods, and tsunamis, as well as manmade problems, like political unrest, armed conflict, and forced displacement of people. Natural disasters cause food emergencies not only destroy food stocks and crops, but they also displace thousands of people. Even if the country had been self-sufficient before the storm or earthquake, the population will depend on foreign aid if most of their agricultural production has been damaged.

Similar to natural disasters, armed conflicts force civilians to flee, and they are consequently cut off from food markets and humanitarian aid. At the same time, the rebel groups and armed forces deliberately destroy harvests and livestock, as opposed to situations where the environment itself attacks crops. Nevertheless, the results are the same: the disruption of agricultural production, the displacement of farmers and workers as well as isolation of large portions of the population that would both buy and sell in food markets.

PREPARATION:
Print and preview materials.

STEP BY STEP PLAN:
//Anticipate//: Ask students to brainstorm possible answers to the following questions: “What is a food emergency?” “Why would one start?”

//Introduce the Lesson//: Explain how this lesson will examine a sub-topic of the issue of food security. Students should be on the lookout for ideas to discuss during moderated caucuses and possible resolutions on the day of the conference.

//Inform//: Support students in understanding the Food Emergencies section of the Food Security Topic Guide.

Synthesize: Ask students to use the //Draft Resolution Template// to write a resolution that proposes solutions to the issue of food emergencies. Students should reference their //Make It Happen// Worksheet and their notes from this lesson to get ideas. In addition to giving students an opportunity to synthesize their understanding from this lesson, writing draft resolution will make it easier for students to create position papers during lesson 15.

Checks for Understanding: Consider one or more of these culminating activities for exit tickets, homework assignments, or formative assessments.
 * Identify: Ask students to complete a Fryer model on the term, Food Emergencies.
 * Evaluate: Ask students to make a persuasive argument in which they explain which type of food emergency is easier to resolve: food emergencies caused by civil war or food emergencies caused by natural disasters.
 * Compare/Contrast: Ask students to compare and contrast the issues of malnutrition and food emergencies

//Skill Building Extension: Consider asking students to practice public speaking by reading out loud, or spontaneously giving, a short speech describing the issue of malnutrition. Consider grading students on these short speeches using the criteria for ‘presentation skills’ in __Preparing Students for Model United Nations Conferences – Mini-Activities that Build 21st Century Skills.__// //Skill Building Extension: Consider asking students to play ‘reverse 20 questions’ after listening to one of their classmates present a moderate or extreme resolution. See page 20 of __Preparing Students for Model United Nations Conferences – Mini-Activities that Build 21st Century Skills__// //Content Extension (Food Prices): Direct students the photo gallery on micro-gardening in Caracas, Venezuela. Ask students to use the pictures to identify what actions people take to diversity their diet and get needed nutrients://