At the completion of this unit, the students should be able to answer the following key questions (as per the Sask. Learning curriculum):  1. What is sustainability?  2. How does biodiversity indicate the health of an ecosystem?  3. What natural factors affect the stability of an ecosystem  4. How do energy and matter flow through an ecosystem?  5. How do human activities affect the sustainability of an ecosystem  6. How can humans in general improve the sustainability of our ecosystems?

What is Sustainability

 Sustainability is the ability to endure  In Ecology – the ability of an ecosystem to stay healthy and thrive.

Human impact…  What is your ecological footprint?  What are some things you can do to improve your ecological footprint?  Why should we care?  How does the information from each of the quizes compare?

 How does our footprint (canadians) compare to other countries? What ‘s the difference between the countries i.e. what makes it worse or better?

Websites  

 Find a place outside, look around.  How many different plants and animals do you see. List them (describe/ draw a picture if you don’t know the name).  Look at the ground in the area you are in. How many plants and animals do you see in the immediate area.

What is biodiversity?

Biodiversity within Ecosystems  Biodiversity of an ecosystem is the measurement of the number of species within that ecosystem.  It involves the dynamic abilities of species to adapt to and survive in an ever changing world.  There are presently over 10 million different species on Earth.

 Each member of an ecosystem is a valuable participant in the stability of that area.  All organisms have a niche, or role to play within that ecosystem. Whether they are predators, prey, producers or decomposers, their position is valuable to the sustainability of the region.

 Even now, biodiversity is disappearing at an alarming rate. It has been estimated that nearly 50% of all mammals and birds could become extinct within the next century

Vocabulary – define the following:  abiotic  biodiversity  biosphere  biotic  ecological footprint  ecosystems  efficiency  energy  matter  overexploit  productivity  resilience  stability