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World Cultures 11

Unit Latin America

Name:________________________
Block:_______
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.
Lively, it just looks like a beautiful large rainforest.
Click on Overview and review the information, including the visuals. List the 8 nations that the Amazon
rainforest is located in.
- Brazil
-Ecuador
-

Bolivia

- Venezuela

Peru

- Guyana

Colombia

- Surname

2. 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?
- Food
- Wood
-

Medicine

- Water

3. What makes rainforests special?


Carbon Sink
4. 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 85
b. Amazon 17
5. Scroll down to the Why They Matter section. Scroll through the three images and review the captions.
List and explain why rainforests matter.
a. Food
b. Water
c. Medicine
6. 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
Sloth
Tree-dweller, sluggish, live in tropical rain forests, eats leaves, twigs and buds.
River Dolphin
Lives only in fresh water, Estimated population in the tens of thousands.
Jaguar
Can swim, climb, and like large areas of tropical rain forests.
Part II (Native Peoples): Use www.survivalinternational.org/about/amazontribes to learn about the native
peoples of the Amazon rainforest.
7. How many people live in the Amazon rainforest, and how are they organized?

There are one million Indians and they are divided into around 400 tribes.
8. To what extent have they had contact with outsiders? Explain your response.
Outsiders want their land because of the oil there.
9. 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.
They grow their own food, they use spears, live in villages, and government regularly ride rough-shod over their
rights.
We buy our food, not everyone hunts, we dont live in villages, and we are a democracy.
10. 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.
Their land rights are very important to them because thats their home but everyone else wants their land
because they know that there is oil there.
11. 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!
12. 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
1,870 square miles of rain forest were
Pass more laws about deforestation and
destroyed between August 2013 and July

have more protest. Get the word out about

2014. In addition to being home to around

it.

one-third of the planets biodiversity, the


Amazon is considered one of the worlds
most important natural defenses against
global warming because of its capacity to
Mining/Drilling

absorb huge amounts of carbon dioxide.


Not only does gold and diamond mining

They need to be more forceful with the law

have a harmful environmental impact in the

and coming up with new laws, honestly they

Amazon, but the rise in small-scale, illegal

need to make them understand not to do it.

mining activities is causing a resurgence of


malaria in Venezuela, which used to be a
world leader in managing the disease.
Crime

13. Go to edition.cnn.com/2013/07/25/sport/football/football-brazil-world-cup-manaus/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?

14. How did the regions emphasis on environmental protection influence the stadium project?

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