Citizenship at key stage 4    (Year 10-11)

• Pupils brainstorm / concept map what they already know about local action plans for sustainable development (Local Agenda 21), drawing on their general knowledge and previous learning in geography and science.
• Using a range of information sources, eg school-based sources, the local library, websites (including the local authority site), visits from local authority or Local Agenda 21 representatives, pupils investigate:
• where did Agenda 21 originate? Pupils find out about the Agenda 21 agreement drawn up at the Rio Earth Summit in 1992. They could also find out about how international agreements on sustainable development signed up to by national governments impact on both national and local government policies, eg by investigating how the UK government is implementing the 1997 Kyoto Protocol on greenhouse emissions, which takes effect in 2002
• what are the plans and priorities for sustainable development in their local authority? How is their success being measured, ie what are the criteria for and indicators of their success? Are young people consulted on policies? How?
• Pupils share their findings as a class, and agree on related issues and areas to be investigated further by small groups.

• Pupils work in groups to undertake an enquiry into different areas affected by Local Agenda 21, eg food, transport, waste. They consider the impact of policies for sustainable development on individuals and organisations by carrying out an audit of products, resources and services. A focus for the enquiry should be selected.
• Taking the food they consume as an example, pupils consider which foods are produced locally and which are produced elsewhere. They also consider what has happened to the food during its preparation for sale. Has it been processed, packaged or transported? How far has it been transported to the shops (the number of miles an item of food is transported can be referred to as 'food miles')? What are the points of sale of food products in the local area? Are there any new developments, eg farmers' markets, organic food shops or locally sourced goods in supermarkets?
• Pupils assess the services that members of the group have used during the past week, eg transport, health, recycling, leisure. How many services were provided by the local authority, by commercial organisations or by public/private partnerships?
• On a local area base map, pupils mark the location of features related to locally sourced food, eg markets, shops, farms, and of the services that they have used, eg leisure facilities, local libraries, recycling centres, community centres.
• The survey could be broadened to compare the groups' findings with those from a wider section of the school/local community. Pupils devise a questionnaire to find out what products, services and resources are used and to take views on the impact of sustainable policies.
• In groups, pupils use case studies to investigate the impact of Local Agenda 21 on organisations in their community, eg a local industry, the local council, a shopping centre, their school. What does each organisation do? Where is it located? What resources/services does it use? What does it produce? Does the organisation have a policy on sustainable development? What measures have been introduced to make it more sustainable? Are these monitored and evaluated? If appropriate, pupils could invite members of the organisation to discuss changes within their industry/service and the policies and legislation that have had an impact.
• Pupils compare their findings with the published targets in the Local Agenda 21 Plan and consider how the situation has changed since the Plan was published. They present a 'progress update' comparing their own findings with those of the local council. They draw conclusions about how sustainable the local area is and whether there have been improvements in the last three years.

• In one or more of the following ways pupils present the results of their findings to other pupils and members of the local community:
• writing posters to explain the local issues and options
• writing leaflets/newspapers to explain the issues locally for sustainable development policy and encouraging other pupils to join the debate
• creating a website or page on the school website which updates pupils, parents and others on the local issues and school involvement/events
• organising school assemblies to explain the local issues and inform other pupils
• holding debates with Local Agenda 21 member organisations
• writing proposals for discussion in class and at the school council
• sending proposals which have been discussed at the school council to the Local Agenda 21 group/committee, suggesting how the school could be involved in discussing future priorities and planning future action
• Pupils reflect on what they have learnt about the impact of local policies and priorities for sustainable development, and on how they use their right to be consulted by the local authority to contribute responsibly to local decision-making.