Responsive progress

Last night, Aggie emailed me some information she had picked out from the living planet report, I then put that into a rough script as an idea of how we could use the information to make a story. heres the script:

Our earth has a big problem. Us. We are using more than Earth can provide.

·      We can cut trees faster than they mature,

·      Harvest more fish than oceans replenish

·      Emit more carbon into the atmosphere than forests and oceans can absorb

·      Carbon from burning fossil fuels has been the dominant component of humanity’s Ecological Footprint for more than half a century, and remains on an upward trend

·      In 1961, carbon was 36 per cent of our total Footprint; by 2010, it comprised 53 per cent.

·      Low-income countries have the smallest Footprint, but suffer the greatest ecosystem losses.

·      Populations of mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians and fish, has (fallen by half) declined by 52 per cent since 1970

·       

What we are doing to fuel our needs is destroying everything else

·      But oil concessions have been allocated across 85 per cent of the park

·      Drilling for oil could lead to habitat degradation and see the park lose its protected status and World Heritage Site listing, leaving its wildlife increasingly vulnerable.

·      Globally, habitat loss and degradation, exploitation through hunting and fishing and climate change are the main threats facing the world’s biodiversity

·      They have contributed to a decline of 52 per cent since 1970

·      Terrestrial species (animals that live predominantly or entirely on land) declined by 39% between 1970 and 2010. Causes:

o   Loss of habitat to make way for human use

§  For agriculture, urban development and energy production.

·      Freshwater species declined by 76%. Causes:

o   Loss of habitat and fragmentation, pollution and invasive species

·      Forest ecosystems provide shelter, livelihoods, water, fuel and food security for more than 2 billion people.

·      Food production accounts for around 70% of water use and 30% of energy use globally.

And theres a bigger problem

·      World population is growing at a fast rate

Meaning that our problems are only going to get worse, unless we start doing something to improve our planet

We do not inherit the Earth from our ancestors; we borrow it from our children

We can:

·      Produce Better – reduce inputs and waste, manage resources sustainably, scale-up renewable energy production.

·      Consume more wisely – through low-Footprint lifestyles, sustainable energy use and healthier food consumption patterns

·      Equitable resource governance – Share available resources, make fair and ecologically informed choices, measure success beyond GDP

Examples of solutions in action today:

·      Wind power provided for 57.4% of Denmark’s electricity consumption in December 2013

·      In Chile, Conservationists are working with partners to protect one of the world’s most important marine ecosystems.

·      In Australia, More efficient sugar farming practices are helping to conserve the Great Barrier Reef by reducing the impact of chemical and soil run-off.

·      In South Africa, Smart land-use planning has helped restore a critical wetland, allowing commercial tree plantations and a World Heritage Site to thrive side by side.

Changing our course and finding alternative pathways will not be easy. But it can be done.

We know where we want to be

We know how to get there

Now we need to get moving.

So I emailed that to Aggie and she came up with a rough beginning of a storyboard that she brought to the lesson. This is what she did:

And this was it in a more finished form:

So when we met up today, we really got stuck into it and were determined to create a finished storyboard. We did it!! :D 

 Here is our storyboard. I will write a description of what is happening to explain:

So firstly we have an image of the earth with handwriting over the top saying the earth has a big problem. 'The earth' is all fancy writing that is on one line and will continue through the whole piece. in the third scene, the line cuts through a tree 'we cut trees' and it falls over 'faster than they mature' 'harvest more fish than oceans can replenish' a little fish swims across then the nets come up full of fish. the line carries on and goes over the outline of a car and writes in the smoke 'emits more carbon' 'into the atmosphere than forests and oceans can absorb''what we are doing to fuel our needs is destroying everything else'

'Drilling for oil' oil starts glowing all over, 'carbon development' starts off with trees but they go down and disappear and skyscrapers appear in their place. 'energy production' power plants that are smoking 'this all contributes to habitat loss and degradation' 'causing a massive drop in population' the next page start with lots of land animals and they slowly disappear 1 by 1 'decline by 39%, the same happens for freshwater animals 'decline by 76% and marine 'decline by 39%' 'and theres another problem' 

'Our population is growing at a fast rate' babies appear at the bottom. 'meaning these problems aren't going to get better' 'unless we do something' 'protect nature' Someone planting a tree. 'reduce waste' image of a recycling bin' 'consume more wisely' wind turbines turning. 'Changing our future will not be easy' 'but it can still be done' 'we know where we want to be, we know how to get there, now we need to get moving' WWF image of logo appears.

Aggie is going to start doing the drawings and assets soon and send me them as she goes so i can start working as soon as possible. In the meantime I am going to create an animatic to try and show what is happening in real time, to see if it works and to see how long it will be, this will show us if we need to make changes before we start the real thing.