The Reading / Listening - Ecocide - Level 4

There could be a new law to make ecocide a crime. Ecocide is the destruction of the world's ecosystems. Lawyers are proposing to make ecocide a crime like those of crimes against humanity, war crimes and genocide. A university professor and a former judge at the International Criminal Court are leading this plan. Several European countries and island nations at risk from rising sea levels support it. A UK politician said ecocide should be a crime.

A professor spoke about the time being right to use the power of international criminal law to protect our environment. He wants to hold governments and multi-national corporations accountable for their environmental damage. An ecocide foundation said: "In most cases ecocide is likely to be a corporate crime." It added that ecocide involved "mass, systematic or widespread destruction.... Amazon deforestation on a huge scale."

Try the same news story at these levels:

    Ecocide - Level 5 or  Ecocide - Level 6

Sources
  • https://www.theguardian.com/law/2020/nov/30/international-lawyers-draft-plan-to-criminalise-ecosystem-destruction
  • https://www.commondreams.org/news/2020/11/30/end-impunity-deliberate-destruction-planet-international-lawyers-drafting-plan
  • https://www.republicworld.com/world-news/rest-of-the-world-news/international-lawyers-draft-law-against-environmental-destruction-to-criminalise-ecocide.html


Make sure you try all of the online activities for this reading and listening - There are dictations, multiple choice activities, drag and drop activities, sentence jumbles, which word activities, text reconstructions, spelling, gap fills and a whole lot more. Please enjoy :-)

Phrase Matching

Paragraph 1

  1. There could be a
  2. make ecocide
  3. the destruction of the
  4. Lawyers are proposing to make
  5. war crimes and
  6. island
  7. at risk from
  8. ecocide should
  1. nations
  2. ecocide a crime
  3. be a crime
  4. genocide
  5. rising sea levels
  6. world's ecosystems
  7. new law
  8. a crime

Paragraph 2

  1. A professor spoke about the time
  2. international criminal
  3. multi-national
  4. accountable for their environmental
  5. An ecocide
  6. likely to be a corporate
  7. systematic or widespread
  8. Amazon deforestation on a huge
  1. damage
  2. scale
  3. foundation
  4. being right
  5. destruction
  6. corporations
  7. crime
  8. law

Listening — Listen and fill in the gaps

There could be a new (1) ___________________ ecocide a crime. Ecocide is the destruction of the world's ecosystems. Lawyers                      (2) ___________________ make ecocide a crime like those of crimes against humanity, war (3) ___________________. A university professor and a (4) ___________________ the International Criminal Court are leading this plan. Several European countries and island                              (5) ___________________ from rising sea levels support it. A UK politician said ecocide should (6) ___________________.

A professor spoke about the (7) ___________________ to use the power of international (8) ___________________ protect our environment. He wants to hold governments and multi-national corporations (9) ___________________ environmental damage. An ecocide foundation said: "In most cases ecocide is likely to be (10) ___________________." It added that (11) ___________________, systematic or widespread destruction.... Amazon deforestation on (12) ___________________."

Put a slash (/) where the spaces are

Therecouldbeanewlawtomakeecocideacrime.Ecocideisthedestructi
onoftheworld'secosystems.Lawyersareproposingtomakeecocideacr
imelikethoseofcrimesagainsthumanity,warcrimesandgenocide.Auni
versityprofessorandaformerjudgeattheInternationalCriminalCourta
releadingthisplan.SeveralEuropeancountriesandislandnationsatrisk
fromrisingsealevelssupportit.AUKpoliticiansaidecocideshouldbeacri
me.Aprofessorspokeaboutthetimebeingrighttousethepowerofintern
ationalcriminallawtoprotectourenvironment.Hewantstoholdgovern
mentsandmulti-nationalcorporationsaccountablefortheirenvironm
entaldamage.Anecocidefoundationsaid:"Inmostcasesecocideislikel
ytobeacorporatecrime."Itaddedthatecocideinvolved"mass,systema
ticorwidespreaddestruction....Amazondeforestationonahugescale."

Student survey

Write five GOOD questions about this topic in the table. Do this in pairs. Each student must write the questions on his / her own paper. When you have finished, interview other students. Write down their answers.

(Please look at page 12 of the PDF to see a photocopiable example of this activity.)

Discussion — Write your own questions

STUDENT A’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student B)

(a) ________________

(b) ________________

(c) ________________

(d) ________________

(e) ________________

(f) ________________

(g) ________________

(h) ________________

STUDENT B’s QUESTIONS (Do not show these to student A)

(i) ________________

(j) ________________

(k) ________________

(l) ________________

(m) ________________

(n) ________________

(o) ________________

(p) ________________

Free writing

Write about this topic for 10 minutes. Comment on your partner’s paper.

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Answers

(Please check your answers against the article above.

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