2 - Alpine Environments
Within this unit the students will explore the processes, challenges and opportunities that occur within international Alpine Environments. This will be achieved by looking at glaciers being part of a system of change. The consequences that climate change has on these fragile environments will also be investigated in conjunction with the pressure that a rise in population is having on our planet.
Figure One - Noun Project - Alps
Key Concept
Systems - How do environmental systems work in Alpine Environments to effect change? How does the open system work?
Related Concepts
Power - How powerful are glacial environments to change the natural landscape? Who holds the power to slow down or manage the effect of climate change in these fragile environments? Processes - What are the processes of weathering, erosion, transportation and deposition in Alpine Environments?
Global Context
Scientific and Technical Innovation - How is change monitored in Alpine environments? What technical innovations have and are taking place to cope with climate change in Alpine regions?
Statement of Inquiry
Scientific and technological innovators need to understand how power affects the processes that occur within systems.
Inquiry Questions
Factual Questions: Remembering facts and topics
How do Alpine glaciers gain and lose mass?
What is precipitation, accumulation, ablation, sublimation, basal melt, plucking and abrasion?
What does a cirque, U shaped valley, hanging valley, arete, pyramidal peak, erratic and moraine look like and how are they formed?
What are the impacts of climate change upon Alpine Environments (Switzerland and France - our local area)?
What is the impact of climate change upon the Alpine glaciers in the Hindy Kush Himalayan region and their associated river basins?
Conceptual Questions: Analysing big ideas
How is a glacier a system?
How does change impact the consequences of an Alpine system?
What value do glaciers and glaciated valleys have for humans?
How do 'text book' examples of landforms help to inform us of real systems?
Debatable Questions: Evaluating perspectives and developing theories
To what extent do Alpine environments hold opportunities for scientific and technical innovation?
To what extent can scientific and technical innovations hold the key to mitigate the process of climate change in Alpine regions?
