From Lorne Young | Upper Canada College, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, email | 416-488-1125 ext 3411

Content: Throughout this three-week (110 hour) integrated curriculum unit for grades 7-9 (adaptable to higher or lower grades) several general principles are emphasized and employed to maximize the benefits of an integrated unit. The systems approach, whole systems thinking and the underlying principle of synergy are the central, core concepts that all of the curricular areas will revolve around.

The following scenario is presented to the class:

The Synergetic Organization for Sustainability on Earth (SOS Earth) is recruiting/advertising for 4 individuals to make up a Research Team that will be spending 5 years on an uninhabited, ecologically sensitive island off the coast of British Columbia. The goal of this team is to be a model for the rest of the planet and to demonstrate that it is possible to live sustainably with the environment, without degrading it, for an extended period of time while doing important research on endangered species. The team must accomplish the following:

• Design a research station where the 4 team members will be able to live sustainably and self-sufficiently for the 5-year term
• Design an energy production system that will provide sufficient energy for the station
• Design a food and water production system for the 5 years
• Design a waste and recycling system
• All of this within the climatic and geographical limits of the island
• The design of the station and its components should be constructed to a realistic scale, ie research into the requirements and appropriate size of the various components is necessary

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