Activities

Makah whaling (Council of Europe, n.d.)

●        To develop critical thinking, skills to present an argument and consensus-building skills

●        To develop attitudes of open-mindedness to cultural differences.

Part 1. Introduction to the environmental and cultural issues (30 minutes)

1. Explain that this activity is about environmental and cultural rights. It centres on a wish by the Makah nation to resume whaling and the opposition to this from conservationists and others.

2. Tell the group about the Makah and explain that the confrontation has been going on for many years and the legal costs are escalating without producing a lasting result. The conservationists have used reckless methods that have put their own and other people’s lives at risk and some members of the Makah are so frustrated that they have broken the law and whaled illegally. It is a very unsatisfactory situation for all and it seems to be time that the parties try to get together to see what they have in common and to find a solution.

3. Introduce some of the issues by asking participants to indicate their response to the following questions by standing “high or low”. (For how to use this technique, see this section). Read out the following statements one at a time:

• People’s customs should be respected so long as they do not abuse human rights.

• We should respect people’s right to be free to choose what they eat; to be vegans, vegetarians or to eat meat.

• The food we eat should be produced using environmentally friendly methods.

• Animal husbandry should not include cruel methods such as intensive rearing or cruel ways of slaughtering.

• Cultural traditions are very important for people and should be respected.

• Whales should not be hunted, even for cultural purposes.

Part 2. A simulated meeting to try to break the deadlock between the Makah tribe and opponents to whaling. (90 minutes)

1. Remind the group that fierce battles, both literally and legally, have been going on for years and that now is the time to try to find a solution. This activity is a simulated meeting hosted by an imaginary organization called Crest (Culture, Rights, Environment, Sustainability and Talk). Crest is an independent organization that works to bring a human rights perspective to environmental issues. They are committed to promoting understanding through dialogue. The simulation is a meeting chaired by Crest between four groups:

a. The Makah tribe who wish to resume whaling

b. High North Alliance, an umbrella organization representing whalers and sealers that works for the future of coastal cultures and the sustainable use of marine mammal resources. The HNA supports the Makah.

c. Sea Shepherd, an organization that investigates and documents violations of international laws, regulations and treaties protecting marine wildlife species. They oppose the Makah’s request.

d. Greenpeace, environmental activists who oppose whaling.

2. Crest’s role is to facilitate a discussion that will focus on five questions:

• Why are whales important?

• Are grey whales an endangered species?

• Why should the Makah be stopped from eating whale meat?

• Could the Makah’s ritual of hunting whales be modified?

• If an agreement can be reached, what sort of monitoring will be needed to ensure that the whales are protected?

3. Ask for four volunteers to represent Crest and divide the rest of the group equally into four small groups. Hand out the role cards. The groups have 30 minutes to discuss the information and to consider their positions and supporting arguments on the five questions.

4. When the groups are ready, bring everyone together in plenary and call on the people representing Crest to take the chair. The meeting should last 60 minutes.

5. Crest opens the meeting with a short statement about the human rights and environmental frame of the discussions and restates that the purpose of the meeting is to share information and discuss the issues, as formulated by the five questions. The Makah tribe follow by stating their case. Then the topics are for open discussion.

6. At the end of the discussion Crest should sum up. Take a short break and then go on to the debriefing and evaluation.

• Was it difficult to take the different roles?

• What was the most interesting thing people learnt?

• What made the best arguments? Appeals to the emotions or rational, logical arguments?

• How hard was it to see the other side of the argument? How hard was it to accept it?

• How much common ground was there over each of the five questions?

• In real life, how hard is it to accept other people’s cultural practices that participants find either rude, incomprehensible or unethical?

• At what point does the cultural clash become discrimination?

• How difficult is it to be open-minded about cultural differences?

• Does globalization inevitably lead to loss of culture? Is a changed culture a lost culture? Shouldn’t we see cultural change as a positive process in a changing world?

• Which human rights were at stake in this activity?

• Conflicting legal claims to rights are usually resolved in the courts. Is this a fair way to resolve human rights issues?

• Which should be prioritized, the claims of people to food and life or environmental protection and preservation of species?

Finish the session by doing another round of “high or low” to see if people have moved in their attitudes to the issues of whaling. Repeat the same questions as you asked in part 1

Pens and papers for note taking

Calculate your ecological footprint

●        become aware of the individual responsibility in saving the planet

●        get a global awareness of the imbalance in the use of resources around the world

●        learn ways in which we can change those habits

●        learn about an inspiring international initiative and a community of environmentalists

Explain that with the use of an online footprint calculator, the participants will do an individual assessment of their impact and then in groups they will have some time to share their results and thoughts. They will have 10-15’ to complete the questionnaire and 10-15’ to discuss in their groups (Total 25’)

Split the participants into small groups of 3-4 people and let them work for 25’.

When the time and the whole group is present, do a debriefing.

Some participants might not know the meaning of some words, make sure you are prepared to explain them.

Prepare some questions for the debriefing but be open and ready to follow the discussion if it diverges to different path which is equally relevant and important.

Invite the participants to share their overall feelings and reaction to this experience. Give 1-2 minutes just to let the steam off.

The results:

Encourage people to share something which they found surprising in their results.

Now what?

Ask people what changes are they planning to do (if so) in their habits.

Which changes are easy and which might seem impossible?

Think of people with different socioeconomic and educational background. What can be their challenges for adopting more eco-friendly habits?

Could you push for a change on a greater scale?

…

Device with internet connection (smartphone, laptop, tablet etc)

The participants move physically in the space to form their groups and gather all together again. They can do this activity on their phones or any other device they might have available.

Online:

The participants can be split into groups using the feature of Zoom platform.

Start small – but start now!

●        To reflect on the opportunities, challenges and solutions related to a social intervention

The initiative should be small-scale, simple and achievable within the realistic capacities of the participants.

They should prepare to present their idea to the whole group and point out what they thing are the strong and weak points of their idea.

When the time is up, all the groups gather again to present their ideas.

After the presentation of each group, the rest of the participants are invited to provide feedback.

-How did the process make you feel?

-What practical problems emerged during the process?

-What do you take with you from this activity?

https://ctb.ku.edu/en/developing-intervention

stationery materials (papers, pens, markers etc)

The participants move physically in the space to form their groups and gather all together again. The guidelines can be accessed by the participants through their personal devices or can be printed and handed out to the groups (to be avoided). The presentation can be prepared in any way the participants want to experiment with.

*It is strongly advised to be careful with the use of materials in order not to produce trash that could otherwise be avoided.

Online:

The participants can be split into groups using the feature of Zoom platform. The presentation can be prepared digitally through power point for example, and the presentation can be facilitated using the shared screen feature.