Tracking Global Changes in Forest Cover

Topic

Resource Type

Level

High School — General High School — AP/IB College

Saved By

20 Users

View in Spanish

Description

This activity guides the analysis of a published scientific figure from a study that investigated annual global losses in forests over time.

In this study, scientists used satellite imagery to estimate the amounts of forest that were lost annually, across the globe, from 2000 to 2012. Although most tropical countries showed an overall increase in forest loss over time, others experienced the opposite trend, possibly due to differences in government policies. The figure compares the annual forest loss in two different tropical countries, Indonesia (left) and Brazil (right), over the 12-year study period.

The “Educator Materials” document includes a captioned figure, background information, graph interpretation, and discussion questions. The “Student Handout” includes a captioned figure and background information.

Student Learning Targets

Analyze and interpret data from a scientific figure.
Describe trends in annual forest losses and why they may differ among countries.

Estimated Time

Within one 50-minute class period.

Key Terms

bar graph, deforestation, environmental policy, Landsat, p value, satellite, trend line

Primary Literature

Hansen, M. C., P. V. Potapov, R. Moore, M. Hancher, S. A. Turubanova, A. Tyukavina, D. Thau, et al. “High-Resolution Global Maps of 21st-Century Forest Cover Change.” Science 342, 6160 (2013): 850–853. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1244693.

To access this article, set up a free AAAS account.