Year 10 Science · Unit 4 · Lesson 9

Sustainability and the Future

Foundation Worksheet

Name

Date

Class

Learning Goals

Define sustainability and the principle of intergenerational equity.
Describe the difference between a linear economy and a circular economy.
Recall the circular economy hierarchy: reduce, reuse, repair, remanufacture, recycle.

Warm Up

Fill the gap

Choose the correct word from the word bank to complete each sentence. Use each word once. Two words will not be used.

sustainability linear circular recycle reuse planetary boundaries intergenerational equity renewable repair

1. means meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

2. A economy follows a "take, make, waste" path: raw materials are taken, made into products, and thrown away.

3. A economy keeps materials in use for as long as possible through strategies such as reuse, repair, and remanufacture.

4. Using a glass bottle again for its original purpose, instead of buying a new one, is an example of the strategy called .

5. Recovering the raw materials, such as the metals, from an old phone at the end of its life is called , which is the last resort in the circular hierarchy.

6. Fixing a broken product so it can keep being used, instead of replacing it, is the strategy called .

7. The principle of states that future generations have the right to inherit an environment at least as good as the one we inherited.

Your Turn

Sort it!

Write each item from the pool into the correct column of the table below.

Take raw materials, make a product, throw it in landfill Refill a drink bottle instead of buying a new one Melt down old aluminium cans to make new ones Single-use plastic packaging sent to landfill Take a broken laptop to a repair cafe to be fixed Rebuild a car engine using reclaimed parts Dig up new resources for every product made Donate second-hand clothing so it is worn again

Linear economy

Circular economy

Show What You Know

1. In your own words, what does it mean for development to be "sustainable"?

Recall 2 marks

2. List the five strategies of the circular economy hierarchy in order, from the most preferred to the least preferred.

Recall 2 marks

3. Why is recycling described as the "last resort" rather than the best strategy in a circular economy?

Recall 2 marks

Wrap Up

In one sentence, what was the main idea of this lesson?

Answer Key

For teacher or self-marking use. Accept answers with the same meaning.

Fill the gap

1. sustainability 2. linear 3. circular 4. reuse 5. recycle 6. repair 7. intergenerational equity
(Unused words: planetary boundaries, renewable.)

Sort it!

Linear economy: Take raw materials, make a product, throw it in landfill; Single-use plastic packaging sent to landfill; Dig up new resources for every product made.
Circular economy: Refill a drink bottle instead of buying a new one; Melt down old aluminium cans to make new ones; Take a broken laptop to a repair cafe to be fixed; Rebuild a car engine using reclaimed parts; Donate second-hand clothing so it is worn again.

Show What You Know

1. Sustainable development meets the needs of people today without reducing the ability of future generations to meet their own needs; it uses resources at a rate that does not exhaust them or damage the environment for the future.

2. Reduce (or refuse), reuse, repair, remanufacture, recycle, in that order from most preferred to least preferred.

3. Recycling is the last resort because it still uses energy and often downcycles materials into lower-quality products, so it loses value. Reducing, reusing, repairing, and remanufacturing keep more of the original material and energy in use, so they are preferred.