What do you think?

Aim: to get an idea of which statements relating to sustainable living are of most concern to the young people and which create most differences of opinion.

Age group: 11-15, 16+.

Number of participants: 15-20.

Time required: 20 minutes.

Resources needed: the list of statements (below), something to mark out lines on the ground.

What to do:

Draw two lines on the floor dividing the space into three equal parts.

Explain that you have to go and stand on the ‘agree’ or the ‘disagree’ side in response to the statements. Try to think and respond quickly. If you are in the middle you are not sure what you think or you think that ‘it depends’. You might be asked why.

Read out each of the following statements in turn:

• Shoppers cannot change the way goods are made;
• If we don’t spend on one thing we’ll spend on another;
• People always spend or save what money they have, hardly anyone gives any away;
• Live simply so other may simply live.
• Wearing the right clothes is just as important as how they were made;
• It is better to follow what others are doing than be different because of something you believe in;
• I want my bank to give me the best interest, even if they invest in companies that exploit their workers;
• It’s easy to live your life according to your beliefs;
• Those that have more lifestyle choices (what to buy, where to go, what to do with free time) should act to help those that have very few choices, by consuming less.
• The only thing I will think about when looking for a job is the money I’ll make;
• It’s OK to take money from rich people and give it to poor people.

For statements where opinions vary, someone in each area should say why they are there.

After all the statements finish off the activity in one group. Which were the controversial statements – the ones with the most varied opinions? Can you see why people disagreed?

Are there statements where everyone was agreed? Try to create a quick checklist entitled ‘A better way to live’. E.g. ‘Don’t do things just because of others’, ‘We need to share the world’s resources’, and so on.