Units 1 – National University – Virtual English III

Objective: In this worksheet, you will practice how to describe and provide information
about a local or global issue that you are interested in.
1. Watch the video about Engaging Youth on Global Climate Issues and do the following
activities.
A. Watch the video and complete the gaps with the correct words. (Observen los
comentarios para tener información al respecto) (Be ready to be asked to read any
parts of the text)
Engaging Youth on Global Climate Issues
Climate change is one the greatest challenges humanity has been facing over the past few
years and we’ll have to do something about it. And I’m glad that the youngest is doing
something about it.
Today _more than_ ever the issue of climate change is at the center of global debates
For millions of years life on earth has arrived under cool and temperature conditions;
however, temperatures are now gradually increasing. Since 1998, we have experienced
eight of the warmest years ever recorded with ice caps melting and species slowly
disappearing worldwide .It is now imperative for future generations to get involved in
solving this matter. And all begins with us.
“This is the largest ever climate change demonstration in UK history”
“Climate change is happening and we’re the cause of it.”
“Evidence on men make global warming.” 
I’m very much confident to see the level of commitment and knowledge that the youth is
bringing in this topic and, therefore, it gives me real hope that the planet will be in very
good hands when the time comes. 
Global warming is the increase of the earth average surface temperature due to
greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide trapping heat that would, otherwise, escape the
planet.
The melting of icecaps due to increased temperatures is just one example of how global
warming is negatively affecting our environment. It is a major warning sign of what can
occur with climate change as it affects every aspect of life on earth. The number of polar
bears is drastically reducing as their natural habitat is destroyed while sea levels continue
to raise threatening coastal regions. 
“Breaking news: a historical storm is about to make landfall, hurricane Sandy.”
Hurricanes and other storms are likely to become stronger and spread diseases such as
malaria affected by climate change posing serious threats to mankind. 
It is, thus, undeniable that climate change is one of the biggest issues that humanity is
faced with today.
B. Find 7 verbs and 7 nouns related to this issue (Climate Change) and put them in the
table.

Verbs Nouns
Warm Storm
Change Earth
 Units 1 – National University – Virtual English III

Melt Ice caps

Melt Men
Affect Planet
Spread Environment
Destroy Habitat

2. Read the following text about deforestation by Wayne Ellwood and do the next activities.
A. Read the text and complete the gaps with the correct form of the verbs in parenthesis
either with simple past or simple present according to the situation. (Miren los
comentarios para saber más sobre cómo se estructura un texto donde se hable de
un problema)
Will we lose our forests? By Wayne Ellwood

Deforestation refers to the decrease in forest areas across the world that are lost for other
is

uses such as agricultural croplands, urbanization, or mining activities. It   (be)

very bad for plants and animals, and for people who need forests to live. Forests
make store

 (make) it possible for us to live comfortably on Earth. They  (store)

filter are

carbon,  (filter) air and water and stop floods. They   (be) home to 80
give

per cent of the world’s biodiversity. Trees  (give) food, homes and medicines. A
come

quarter of modern medicines   (come) from forest plants.

Why are forests disappearing?

covered

At the time of the Roman Empire, thick forests   (cover) 80 per cent of Europe.
covered

In the middle ages, forests  (cover) 40 per cent of Europe. By 500 BCE half of
had

England   (have) no forests. Today, the oldest forests in Europe are nearly all
gone. In Ireland, for example, there are forests on only one per cent of the land. The
is cleared

same   (be) true in North America. They   (clear) forests fast in the
18th and 19th centuries.
 Units 1 – National University – Virtual English III

w ere

By the end of the 20th century, there   (be) farms and houses in place of many
w as

of America’s forests. Fifty years ago, there   (be) thick tropical rainforest in
Rondônia. Today, it is one of the most deforested parts of the Brazilian Amazon. 100,000
square kilometres of forest have gone from the state since 1978.

came

Many poor people from the crowded coastal areas  (come) here in the 1970s
when roads were built. They came for land and opportunity. First came loggers, who cut
the trees. Then settlers came and cleared the remaining trees to plant maize and soy.
kept

Finally, landowners came and   (keep) cattle. Two-thirds of Brazil’s deforested

land is used for cattle.

B. Write down 2 closed questions in simple present and 3 closed questions in simple
past about the text.
Be ready to answer any questions about the text that your classmates may have
written down.
Example:
Simple Present Question
Q: Who is deforestation bad for?
A: Deforestation is bad for plants, animals, and for people
Simple Past Question
Q: Who came here in the 1970s?
A: Many poor people from the crowded coastal areas 

Simple Present Questions Simple Past Questions

1. What does deforestation mean? 1. What percentage of forests covered
Europe in the Middle Ages?
2. Why are forests important? 2. What happened in North America in the
18th and 19th centuries?
3. Can we start to fix this problem? 3. Why did settlers cut down trees?

3. Get in contact with one classmate who has the online meeting the same day as you and
think about the issues that Medellin or the places where you are from might be facing right
now, choose one and describe it as in the text by Wayne Ellwood.
 Units 1 – National University – Virtual English III

Una vez hayan escogido el problema, consígnenlo en el formato de problemas

escogidos (les recomiendo mirar antes el formato para cerciorarse de que su
problema no ha sido escogido previamente en el mismo lugar ya que de ser así,
deberán escoger otro)
To write the text of your problem, consider the questions provided before:
Paragraph 1
1. What is the problem?
2. What does this problem refer to?
3. Why is this problem bad?
Subsequent Paragraphs
1. How did the problem start?
2. What are the causes of the problem?
3. What is the current state of the problem?
Escriban su texto en inglés aquí y estén preparados para responder las preguntas.

Noise, a silent pollutant that affects health in Medellín.

Noise pollution refers to the noise caused by human activities and produces
negative effects on the hearing, physical and mental health of living beings. The
main causes of noise pollution are activities related to transportation, building,
public works, and industries, among others.
This pollution leaves us with a long list of negative consequences on our health
such as: sleep disturbance, stress, hearing loss, irritability, headache, depressive
states, among other mental and physical problems; socially it can lead to isolation
and inability to communicate properly.
Currently Medellín is noisy, traffic, industry and commercial areas contribute to the
city exceeding the noise levels allowed by the norm and presents a constant
growth of means of transport, these being the main generators of noise pollution
due to abuse of horns and cornets. To this we add that the city was not planned to
house so many cars, because its streets are narrow and surrounded by buildings,
which generates the "cannon effect" that increases decibels above the average,
pollution acoustics became a landscape element, since citizens are used to being
an element that is always there. But in reality, the short, medium and long term
damage to health is latent.