Class assignment for February 5, 2008

INFORMATION NEEDED BEFORE YOU PROCEED:
PLEASE SIT WITH YOUR COUNTRY TEAM PRIOR TO BEGINNING THE ACTIVITY!

Ethiopia Jonathan Cheung, Ama Kwakye, Rachel Geissler, Michela Infantino, Mariel Elia
Jordan John Harden, Bernard Jones, Samantha Goodman, Maria Gonzalez, Ashley Aydin
Israel Lianna Inzarillo, Veronica Geager, Dominique Johnson, Melissa Laurore, Michelle Shed
India Janell McBean, Katherine McGrann, Steven Rivera, Jaclyn Mallozzi, Sarah Berfond
Sudan Kaitlin Moriarty, Maria Vasquez, Emily Marks, Kristina Catanese, Anam Baig

(If your name is missing, please see the teacher covering the class and make sure you are added to a group. DO NOT switch groups if you see your name.)

So, here we are. My first absence and I am trusting you will all conduct yourselves as if I were there. I have told you that your assignment will be waiting for you on the blog and here it is, posted for you all.

Materials needed: computers with internet access; group list.
Time Allotted: Two full class periods. You will not be finished on Tuesday, this will continue Wednesday.

Introduction:
Water is essential to all forms of life on earth and it is central to many of the world's religions. Although most of the world's surface is composed of water, only 1% of that water is fresh water. As the world's population grows, as available sources of fresh water begin to disappear, or as nations pollute the water supply, a lack of fresh water will no longer remain an isolated issue. It threatens the quality of human life by causing crop failures, transmitting water-born diseases, and creating violent conflicts as governments, unable to cope with such complex economic and social issues, become more aggressive in an effort to satisfy their peoples or search for 'scapegoats' to justify their own failed policies.

World Bank officials have suggested that the next world war might very well be fought, not over oil or politics, but over water. As world population figures increase and water resources become more scarce, water will become a matter of national security. Where problems caused by access to fresh water become mixed up with religion and power politics, the situation can become explosive.

How can the world prepare itself to deal with problems as these? One way to understand better the importance of water on politics is to focus on a few countries where the situation is becoming acute and to simulate the problem solving process which might be used by world leaders.

Task:
In the following simulation you will first be organized into what diplomats refer to as a 'country team'. You will examine the forces which shape policy within that Third World nation, examine the problem of water scarcity globally, come to consensus on a national water policy, write a proposal to solve the problem, and, finally, debate the various proposals prepared by your classmates in a simulation of a United Nations Task Force set up to resolve issues related to water scarcity.

Ask yourself the following questions to help you identify with your role as a citizen of the world.

What do you think it would be like to live where you did not have adequate water to survive?

How would you survive?

How would you feel if a country which bordered yours began to build a dam that would divert water upon which you depended for survival to serve the citizens of that other country?

What problems would such a dam create within your country?

How do you think leaders of your government might respond to such a move on the part of the neighboring government?

Can these problems be solved by organizations like the United Nations ?

What happens if citizens from your country begin to invade the borders of another in search of scarce resources?

Resources:

The issue of managing the world's water sources is not just important to scientists. It is vital to your survival and is likely to affect the way you will be living in the 21st century. But, you may ask, where do I look for the specialized information I need? Below are a few suggestions which all of you are expected to read and study:
Managing fragile ecosystems:Combating desertification and drought

http://www.fao.org/WAICENT/FAOINFO/SUSTDEV/EPdirect/EPre0031.htm

Stage One:

Read the articles assigned for the entire class, and identify a few of the most serious problems which are connected to water rights.

Stage Two:

The class will be divided into 'country teams' (see above) and you and your team will represent one of the following developing nations:
Ethiopia
Jordan
Israel
India
Sudan

At this stage of the process you must begin to gather information about your assigned country which will help you understand its problems and represent its viewpoint effectively. This information might include:

identifying your major sources of fresh water;
identifying any problems which your nation is having such as ethnic conflicts within your nation or disagreements with other countries in your region;
briefly describe how decisions are made in your country

Stage Three:

Part A
The members of your team or delegation will be composed of individuals who have special responsibilities or roles to perform. These are listed below. Assign the specific jobs indicated below and complete the tasks assigned to that 'character'. The success of the coming debate will depend on how well you play your part. Since there are more roles than group members, I would like you to decide, as a group which roles you will research together.

Delegate to the United Nations
The Environmentalist
The Human Rights Activist
The National Leader
The Religious Leader
The Zero Population Growth Expert

Part B
After reading the links assigned to your 'character', meet in a 'job alike' (that is, with those who were assigned the same character as you in other countries). In the 'job alike' phase, discuss the information you gathered, your viewpoint,and your assigned task. The purpose of this phase is to make sure that you can be a strong advocate for your character's views and insure that the discussions and debate which follow will have sufficient depth and complexity to reflect the real world situtation.

Part C
Now return to your country teams. The National Leader is to guide the discussion at this stage. Every member of the group should be a strong advocate for your viewpoint as you develop a consensus on about 4-5 points which you believe your nation can support in a resolution.
Stage Four: In your country team, formulate a position in the form of a United Nations Resolution which proposes a workable way to solve the problem of water scarcity while insuring that each (Your delegate to the United Nations should be prepared to teach you the correct format!)

Stage Five

Defend your nation's position in an imaginary United Nations Committee meeting.

Stage Six

After completing the United Nations simulation, we will conduct a 'debriefing' in class to evaluate what you have learned about the importance of water to sustainable communities and make some observations about policy options.