Agriculture in Education: an educational resource for Year 7–8 Design and Technologies

The Problems faced by Agriculture

Year 7–8DESIGN AND TECHNOLOGIES

This project is funded by the Australian Government, Department of Education and Training, through the Agriculture in Education Initiative.

This work is a derivative of Summer on Pixabay CC0 Public Domain

Climate Variability

• Australia has a variable climate

• It has the most variable climate of any continent

• Farmers face drought, floods, extreme heat and cold, cyclones and extreme storms.

Problem to be solved – Climate Variability

Setting the scene

discussdiscussdiscuss

SLIDE 1

The Problems faced by AgricultureThis work is a derivative of Drought on Pixabay CC0 Public Domain

Water Use

• Water management is very important in Australia as we never really have enough

• Water is a valuable resource

• It is important that farmers reduce/manage their water usage, soil erosion and increase produce outputs.

Problem to be solved – Water Use

Setting the scene

discussdiscussdiscuss

SLIDE 2

The Problems faced by AgricultureThis work is a derivative of windmill on Pixabay CC0 Public Domain

Pests and Weeds

• The agribusiness industry has an important role in helping to control weeds and pests

• Pests and weeds impact farm productivity and the natural ecosystems

• Using large amounts of pesticides and introducing foreign animals is not the best option. What should we do?

Problem to be solved – Pests and Weeds

Setting the scene

discussdiscussdiscuss

SLIDE 3

The Problems faced by AgricultureThis work is a derivative of Soil on Pixabay CC0 Public Domain

Increasing Productivity to Feed the World

• The world’s population increases daily

• Producing enough food (crops and animals) and fibre to feed and clothe the world’s population continues to be an issue for the agribusiness industry

Problem – Providing for the people

Setting the scene

discussdiscussdiscuss

SLIDE 4

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The Problems faced by AgricultureThis work is a derivative of Maize on Pixabay CC0 Public Domain

Feeding the World

• Seafood is seen as an effective means of feeding the world’s population

• Continued wild and ocean fishing is greatly impacting fish and seafood populations and their ecosystems

• How do we manage this?

Setting the scene

discussdiscussdiscuss

SLIDE 5

Problem To Be Solved – Feeding The People Fish and Seafood

Feeding the world’s population

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This work is a derivative of Fish Farm by IvanWalsh.com on Flickr (CC BY 2.0)

The Problems faced by Agriculture

Land management

• The world’s population is increasing

• The land and water we have available to grow crops, raise livestock and produce seafood is reducing

Problem to be solved – Land Management

Setting the scene

discussdiscuss

SLIDE 6

discuss

The Problems faced by AgricultureThis work is a derivative of Drought on Pixabay CC0 Public Domain

Waste Management

• Farms, like other businesses and our homes, create waste, such as general, animal and crop waste

• Having large amounts of waste isn’t ideal or good management

• So what should farmers do with their waste and how might it be helpful?

Problem to be solved – Waste Management

Setting the scene

discussdiscuss

SLIDE 6

discuss

The Problems faced by AgricultureThis work is a derivative of Garbage on Pixabay CC0 Public Domain

AgriFood Skills Australia

General inquiries:Phone: 02 6163 7200Fax: 02 6162 0610Email: reception@agrifoodskills.net.auWeb: www.agrifoodskills.net.au

LocationLevel 3, 10-12 Brisbane AvenueBartonACT 2600

Postal addressPO Box 5450KingstonACT 2604

Produced by

Developed by John Tucker c/o AgriFood Skills Australia

© AgriFood Skills Australia 2015

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia licence (except where indicated otherwise).

Cover image

This work is a derivative of Summer on Pixabay (no attribution required) CC0 Public Domain