Check out our introductory video!
THE RESEARCH/PRODUCT
We, the group members, have conducted various research activities. For instance, we conducted case studies, recorded the results observed at our own place, took inspiration from newspaper articles, etc. To be precise, research work was accomplished by 4 methods: surfing the internet, reading informative articles in newspapers and books, watching useful videos, and taking a number of interviews. The method through which the most research was obtained, was surfing the internet, due to its growing popularity and vast utility.
A total of five people were interviewed, one who was an 'expert', as his occupation was a farmer, and four family members of ours. The one who owns the farmhouse in Surat was named Mr. Pravin, and was 41 years old. The names of the four family members were Ayush, Brinda, Kapil and Rupali, and were aged 13, 42, 42 and 47, respectively.
The summaries of the interviews are as follows:
Mr. Pravin
He is a businessman, but he also owns a farm. He said that there were many vegetables grown, however, cotton was the main produce. The farmland spread over an area of 20 acres. Water supply totally depended on the rain and did not spray water. Biodegradable waste produced in the houses nearby was encouraged to be decomposed. They minimized the usage of electricity in their farm by finding alternatives for fans and lights, like sunlight and wind. They have grown many fruits and vegetables in their farm. He said that growing plants had many advantages, for example, it gave shelter, oxygen, etc. He said that their budget is high as plants need to be taken care of on a regular basis, and have to hire workers to do so. But expenses could also be reduced if it rained often. He concluded that the hard work put behind all of this was to obtain a pure, clean and healthy produce, so they did not use fertilizers and pesticides in growing their crops. |
Ayush
He is a student of the 8th grade, and he said that you should eat food that is organic and which has not amounted much to the pollution in processes and while travelling. He preferred eating greener food, as an inspiration to others. But, moreover, he likes eating green. He believes that greener food should be cheaper as not many fertilizers and pesticides are used in the making of it. They may also not be involved in processes that pollute the environment. However, they are found to be costlier in a few places. In a day, he eats the regular number of meals, which is 4. They are breakfast, lunch, evening snacks and dinner. He is right that greener food does not pollute the environment as much as other food items. Some ways he suggested to eat greener, is by growing your own food, as you know that you will not be adding any fertilizers and pesticides to it. |
Brinda
She is a housewife, and she states that green vegetables should be packed with vitamins and minerals, which are low in calories and play a vital role in constructing a healthy diet. She prefers to eat greener food as it is good for the body, but also good for the environment. Her belief is that greener foods should be more expensive as it is more helpful for the body, and it doesn’t involve any chemicals. Also, it takes more time to grow green food, so there is a valid reason why it should be more expensive. In a day, she eats around 3 meals a day, but if she’s hungry, she would have a snack to munch on. She consumes all types of vegetables but green vegetables would be her daily portion because of its nutritional value. She tries her absolute best to buy organic food as it is 100% pure of any fertilizers and pesticides that can harm the meal by extracting its benefits. |
Kapil
He is 42 years old and is self-employed. He states that we should eat food which is greener and healthier, and which improves your health and immune system. He likes and prefers greener food items, as it has a good taste and it contains all types of nutrients. He also wants greener foods to be cheaper. In a period of 24 hours, he eats 4 meals which includes breakfast, lunch, snacks and dinner. He likes to consume as many greener vegetables as possible. He also wants to increase the number of fruits and vegetables in his diet, so that he stays healthier. His belief is that greener foods are easy to digest and easy to cook. He tries to buy greener food items as much as possible and thinks that by growing greener foods in your own premises, it will not contain pesticides and will not contain much carbon dioxide. |
Rupali
Her name is Rupali and she is 47 years old. She is a doctor. She says greener food are good for our body and easy to digest. She prefers to eat greener food than the food that harms the environment. Also, the price of the product should be costlier is they are not adding chemicals while making it. She says to eat at least two meals greener and healthier than normal food as it gives vitamins and minerals for our body and keeps are body fit, and also does not increase your weight. She further adds that one should not eat only unhealthy food everyday. She says that for people who are overweight, they should only eat healthy food for at least three months so that their weight decreases, and always buy food from a good store as it may be from a good farm where they grow food without chemicals.
Her name is Rupali and she is 47 years old. She is a doctor. She says greener food are good for our body and easy to digest. She prefers to eat greener food than the food that harms the environment. Also, the price of the product should be costlier is they are not adding chemicals while making it. She says to eat at least two meals greener and healthier than normal food as it gives vitamins and minerals for our body and keeps are body fit, and also does not increase your weight. She further adds that one should not eat only unhealthy food everyday. She says that for people who are overweight, they should only eat healthy food for at least three months so that their weight decreases, and always buy food from a good store as it may be from a good farm where they grow food without chemicals.
We invited the people to be part of our project, and they too, were pretty excited about this. We did not have to get on the backs of somebody to get their interviews. Therefore, all the people solemnly dedicated their precious time and responded to us.
All of the group members designed the interview questions and interviewed their own family members, using the questionnaire built. As for the 'expert', he was interviewed through an online video conferencing platform, Google Meet, by Samarth and Thiru. The questionnaire was built by Yash and Vansh, for the interview with Mr. Pravin. The results were processed by Samarth, Thiru, Yash and Vansh.
CONCLUSION TO MAIN RESEARCH QUESTION AND SUB-QUESTIONS
Main Research Question:
- How can you make your meals greener?
Include the big O:
When you eat organic, don't just picture the healthy food you are putting in your body, picture the healthy ecosystems which produced that food, the workers who are safer from chemicals, the land, water, and air that is being protected, and the wildlife that is being allowed to thrive.
Feast on fair trade fair:
Fair trade certified food ensures a proper wage and working conditions for those who harvest and handle it. But fair trade is green for the environment as well.
Go local:
Buying seasonal, local food is a boon for the environment for a lot of reasons. Since most food travels many miles to reach your table (1,500 miles, on average), locally sourced food cuts back on the climate-change impacts of transportation. Local food also generally uses less packaging, is fresher and tastier, and comes in more varieties. It also supports small local growers and lets them get more for their produce by not having to spend so much on packing, processing, refrigeration, marketing, and shipping.
Don't follow the pack:
Instead of buying foods that come in extensive packaging (most of which is petroleum-based plastics) look for unpackaged or minimally packaged foods, experiment with bringing your own containers and buying in bulk, or pick brands that use bio-based plastic packing. And of course, try and recycle or reuse any packaging you end up with.
Compost the leftovers:
Composting leftovers will ease the burden on the landfill, give you great soil, and keep your kitchen waste basket from smelling.
Grow your own produce:
You can grow your own food in the garden, in the greenhouse, in the window box, or something fancier. Even urbanites can get quite a bit of good eats from not much space.
Composting leftovers will ease the burden on the landfill, give you great soil, and keep your kitchen waste basket from smelling.
Grow your own produce:
You can grow your own food in the garden, in the greenhouse, in the window box, or something fancier. Even urbanites can get quite a bit of good eats from not much space.
To and from is important too:
Just as buying locally grown food cuts on "miles per calorie," buying from local sellers cuts back on emissions, fuel consumption, and unnecessary traffic.
Just enough:
Put some extra planning into the amount of food you cook and you will cut back on waste. If it's something that will spoil quickly, try to avoid making more than you or your family can eat. If you've got extra, make a friend happy with a home cooked surprise. If it's a bigger affair, give the leftovers to those who may need it more.
Just as buying locally grown food cuts on "miles per calorie," buying from local sellers cuts back on emissions, fuel consumption, and unnecessary traffic.
Just enough:
Put some extra planning into the amount of food you cook and you will cut back on waste. If it's something that will spoil quickly, try to avoid making more than you or your family can eat. If you've got extra, make a friend happy with a home cooked surprise. If it's a bigger affair, give the leftovers to those who may need it more.
Eat it raw:
Many people swear by the benefits of eating raw. Whatever the health advantages may be, preparing raw food consumes less energy and because raw food is usually fresh by definition, it is more likely to be locally grown.
Ease up on the meat:
Meat is the most resource-intensive food on the table and eating less of it can be the single most green move a person makes. Producing meat requires huge amounts of water, grain, land, and other inputs including hormones and antibiotics, and leads to pollution of soil, air, and water. A pound of beef requires around 12,000 gallons of water to produce, compared to 60 gallons for a pound of potatoes. If you're a meat eater, for starters, try cutting out a serving of meat each week. Going vegetarian or vegan is a profoundly meaningful environmental choice.
Many people swear by the benefits of eating raw. Whatever the health advantages may be, preparing raw food consumes less energy and because raw food is usually fresh by definition, it is more likely to be locally grown.
Ease up on the meat:
Meat is the most resource-intensive food on the table and eating less of it can be the single most green move a person makes. Producing meat requires huge amounts of water, grain, land, and other inputs including hormones and antibiotics, and leads to pollution of soil, air, and water. A pound of beef requires around 12,000 gallons of water to produce, compared to 60 gallons for a pound of potatoes. If you're a meat eater, for starters, try cutting out a serving of meat each week. Going vegetarian or vegan is a profoundly meaningful environmental choice.
Plan what you eat in advance:
Planning what to eat in advance can minimize the amount of food you waste and save you money. It also helps in preparing just the right amount of food.
Research sub-questions 1, 2 and 3:
Planning what to eat in advance can minimize the amount of food you waste and save you money. It also helps in preparing just the right amount of food.
Research sub-questions 1, 2 and 3:
- Observation of food habits of each group member on a regular day (no weekends).
- Calculation of the amount of CO2 emission.
- Describe the meals each group member eats on a regular day (including snacks in between meals).
- Explain how your food contributes to the emission of CO2. What factors should be taken into account if we want to calculate this emission?
- Use www.eatlowcarbon.org and try to find out how much your meals contribute to global warming.
Below, you can find a table that shows the food items each group member ate on a weekday, and the CO2 emissions he caused.
How to calculate the CO2 emission?
The CO2 emission is determined by multiplying the impact of one serving of that food by the times it is eaten in a year, based on the weekly estimates submitted by the user.
Research sub-questions 4 and 5:
- Devise meals.
- Devise meals for one day that are greener than your average meals. Ingredients/recipes.
- Negotiate with the family members and serve those meals for at least one day. Did you encounter any problems? Did the family member enjoy the food? Was eating greener cheaper or more expensive. Explain.
Breakfast: I eat almonds, drink a cup of green tea and eat a plate of vegetable oats.
Ingredients - hot water and a ready-made packet of green tea. For oats, boil the oats with vegetables like yellow bell pepper and corn. After boiling put salt and black pepper powder and the breakfast is ready.
Lunch: I drink a bowl of hot corn soup and eat a lattice burger.
Ingredients - For soup, boil vegetables like corn and then after boiling put corn starch and a chopped carrot, and let it boil for a minute. Then put salt and black pepper. For the burger, take a bun and put mayonnaise and cheese sauce on it, and then put a lattice. Also add tomato slices and a kidney beans patty. Your meal is ready.
Snacks: Fruits like dragon fruit and green apple, and a protein bar.
Ingredients – For the protein bar, take some random nuts, for example, walnuts, and almonds and put them in a large bowl. Then, whip up the magic sauce that binds all of these ingredients together, using brown rice syrup, honey and a bit of vanilla. Then, really quick, pour it over the nut mixture, stir it all up, and then pressed it into a parchment-lined baking pan to form a bar. Then, once the bars cool down to room temperature, chop them into pieces; it is ready to be eaten.
Dinner: I eat a plate of salad and drink a glass of orange juice.
Ingredients - For salad, put broccoli, zucchini and spinaches, then mix with salt, black pepper and herbs. For juice, peel two or three oranges. Put them in a juicer and put two or three pieces of ice to make it cold, and your meal is ready.
Ingredients - hot water and a ready-made packet of green tea. For oats, boil the oats with vegetables like yellow bell pepper and corn. After boiling put salt and black pepper powder and the breakfast is ready.
Lunch: I drink a bowl of hot corn soup and eat a lattice burger.
Ingredients - For soup, boil vegetables like corn and then after boiling put corn starch and a chopped carrot, and let it boil for a minute. Then put salt and black pepper. For the burger, take a bun and put mayonnaise and cheese sauce on it, and then put a lattice. Also add tomato slices and a kidney beans patty. Your meal is ready.
Snacks: Fruits like dragon fruit and green apple, and a protein bar.
Ingredients – For the protein bar, take some random nuts, for example, walnuts, and almonds and put them in a large bowl. Then, whip up the magic sauce that binds all of these ingredients together, using brown rice syrup, honey and a bit of vanilla. Then, really quick, pour it over the nut mixture, stir it all up, and then pressed it into a parchment-lined baking pan to form a bar. Then, once the bars cool down to room temperature, chop them into pieces; it is ready to be eaten.
Dinner: I eat a plate of salad and drink a glass of orange juice.
Ingredients - For salad, put broccoli, zucchini and spinaches, then mix with salt, black pepper and herbs. For juice, peel two or three oranges. Put them in a juicer and put two or three pieces of ice to make it cold, and your meal is ready.
Question and Answer Time
|
B - Was the greener food cheaper or costlier? |
C - Did my family members like the food? |
DOCUMENTATION OF ENTIRE GROUP RESEARCH
MEANING OF ‘MY GREEN MEAL’
WHAT HAPPENS TO YOUR BODY WHEN YOU EAT TOO MUCH?
What you eat also affects your mind, body and emotions. Recent studies suggest overeating, or consuming foods high in fats and sugars for an extended period, can impair cognitive function. One over-the-top meal won't ruin your health. Plus, too much guilt about eating habits can lead you to deny yourself. This can make you feel deprived and then cause you to binge again in an unhealthy cycle.
Eating a large meal can affect your sleep, your weight and your organs over the short and long term. Overeating can lead to unwanted weight gain, and carrying excess weight can increase your cancer risk.
But it’s not just about the unwanted calories. Overeating affects your body in a variety of ways. So, what happens to your body when you overeat?
MEANING OF ‘MY GREEN MEAL’
- Green eating means choosing responsibly grown fruits and vegetables. But when you commit to eating green it is important to think of the health of the environment as well when considering the sustainability of foods, including fruits and vegetables.
- Eating green means eating whole, nutritious, minimally-processed foods that are healthy for you and the environment. Think about how your food is grown and where it comes from, it could be having a huge impact on you and the environment.
- In plain English, environmental eating means realizing that we have a limited supply of resources such as fossil fuels, farmland, clean water and food. It also means that we think about these finite resources when we choose how to eat.
WHAT HAPPENS TO YOUR BODY WHEN YOU EAT TOO MUCH?
What you eat also affects your mind, body and emotions. Recent studies suggest overeating, or consuming foods high in fats and sugars for an extended period, can impair cognitive function. One over-the-top meal won't ruin your health. Plus, too much guilt about eating habits can lead you to deny yourself. This can make you feel deprived and then cause you to binge again in an unhealthy cycle.
Eating a large meal can affect your sleep, your weight and your organs over the short and long term. Overeating can lead to unwanted weight gain, and carrying excess weight can increase your cancer risk.
But it’s not just about the unwanted calories. Overeating affects your body in a variety of ways. So, what happens to your body when you overeat?
- Overeating causes the stomach to expand beyond its normal size to adjust to the large amount of food. The expanded stomach pushes against other organs, making you uncomfortable. This discomfort can take the form of feeling tired, sluggish or drowsy. Your clothes also may feel tight, too.
- Eating too much food requires your organs to work harder. They secrete extra hormones and enzymes to break the food down.
- To break down food, the stomach produces hydrochloric acid. If you overeat, this acid may back up into the esophagus resulting in heartburn. Consuming too much food that is high in fat, like pizza and cheeseburgers, may make you more susceptible to heartburn.
- Your stomach may also produce gas, leaving you with an uncomfortable full feeling.
- Your metabolism may speed up as it tries to burn off those extra calories. You may experience a temporary feeling of being hot, sweaty or even dizzy.
Sometimes you end up eating more than your body can handle.
Eating too much can cause a spike in your blood sugar levels because your body begins to overcompensate and produce more insulin than usual to keep blood sugar levels at a healthy range. As a result, you might experience headaches, increased thirst fatigue or lethargy.
WHY SHOULDN’T WE WASTE FOOD?
Wasting food is bad, and it also bad for the Earth's environment. When food rots with other things in the landfill, it gives off methane gas, which is really bad and more powerful than carbon pollution. Food waste can also cause infestation of rodents, which can cause disease and sickness to everyone.
If you don’t want to waste food you can give it to the people who really need food. And if it is produced in vast range then buy less quantity of foods and then the production will be produced in lesser amounts.
Wasted food would be the third largest produce of carbon dioxide which can produce almost 3.3 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide. It also affects the world climate. Throwing of food in the sea can harm sea life and the natural balance.
WHY IS FOOD WASTED?
It is wasted for bad weather, processing problems, overproduction and unstable market cause food loss long before it arrives at the shop and also it can be wasted after arriving at the shop or thrown by the people who buy it because of bad quality. Reducing food waste by 15 percent could provide enough food for 25 million people.
Food loss can happen in many ways like farms, fishing boats, produce packing houses, manufacturing facilities, transportation, distribution networks, retail businesses, restaurants, institutions, and households.
Climate change isn’t just bad for our planet, but it also affects the production of food. Food prices are expected to rise by 84 percent by 2050, due to climate change. It’s also leading to a massive amount of money wasted already, with each household in the UK alone throwing away approximately 470 pounds worth of perfectly edible food. Food waste as a whole, amounts to 1 trillion dollars lost. So please stop wasting food or start giving it to people who really need it.
FACTS
Food loss can happen in many ways like farms, fishing boats, produce packing houses, manufacturing facilities, transportation, distribution networks, retail businesses, restaurants, institutions, and households.
Climate change isn’t just bad for our planet, but it also affects the production of food. Food prices are expected to rise by 84 percent by 2050, due to climate change. It’s also leading to a massive amount of money wasted already, with each household in the UK alone throwing away approximately 470 pounds worth of perfectly edible food. Food waste as a whole, amounts to 1 trillion dollars lost. So please stop wasting food or start giving it to people who really need it.
FACTS
- 30 percent: Increase in both fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions caused from shipping a pound of apples from a farm in Iowa to a market in Washington, compared to shipping those apples to a local market in Iowa.
- 5: Number of countries the average U.S. meal comes from.
- 1500 to 2500: Number of miles food travels between farm and market. That's 25 percent farther than it travelled two decades ago.
- 958: Liters of water it takes to make one litter of orange juice; excess water used for irrigation, water-pumping, pesticide spraying, and the occasional electric heater to ward off frost.
- 8000: Kilometers worth of travel required to gather all the ingredients to make strawberry yogurt in Germany.
COUNTRY-BASED RESEARCH
COUNTRIES THAT WASTE THE MOST FOOD
Many countries waste food but we are going to talk about the top 5 countries who waste the most food.
COUNTRIES FOR WHICH THE FOOD TRAVELS THE FARTHEST
FOOD THAT TRAVELLED THE MOST FOR UK IN MAY 2003
COUNTRIES THAT WASTE THE MOST FOOD
Many countries waste food but we are going to talk about the top 5 countries who waste the most food.
- Germany: it wastes almost 11 million tons of food every year.
- United Kingdom: it wastes almost 6.6 million tons of food every year.
- Malaysia: it wastes almost 1.1 million tons of food every year.
- Netherlands: it almost wastes 0.6 million tons of food every year.
- Denmark: it wastes almost 0.2 million tons every year.
COUNTRIES FOR WHICH THE FOOD TRAVELS THE FARTHEST
- USA – 2,410 km approx.
- Canada – 2,500 km approx.
FOOD THAT TRAVELLED THE MOST FOR UK IN MAY 2003
- Apples – 16,310 km approx. (delivered from the US)
- Sugar snap peas – 8,780 km approx. (delivered from Guatemala)
- Asparagus – 10,160 km approx. (delivered from Peru)
- Pears – 11,080 km approx. (delivered from Argentina)
- Strawberries – 1,540 km approx. (delivered from Spain)
- Broccoli – 1,540 km approx. (delivered from Spain)
- Spinach - 1,540 km approx. (delivered from Spain)
- Potatoes – 3,520 km approx. (delivered from Israel)
- Tomatoes – 4,970 km approx. (delivered from Saudi Arabia)
- Chicken – 10,690 km approx. (delivered from Thailand)
- Brussels sprouts - 17,000 km approx. (delivered from Australia)
- Marlin – 7,260 km approx. (delivered from the Indian Ocean)
- Carrots – 9,620 km approx. (delivered from South Africa)
- South African peas - 9,620 km approx. (delivered from South Africa)
- Lettuce – 1,540 km approx. (delivered from Spain)
COUNTRIES THAT PRODUCE THE MOST FOOD
Food is one of the most fundamental economic products, only a handful of countries actually excel in agricultural production. Most agricultural commodities require a lot of land area, and land area is something only the largest countries have in abundance. In fact, four of the world's dominant food-producing countries - China, India, the U.S., and Brazil - also ranked in the top ten countries in the world for total geographic land area.
China
It is no surprise that China is one of the world's biggest producers, importers, and consumers of food products. While much of China's land is too mountainous or too arid for farming, the rich soils of the eastern and southern regions are extremely productive. China also has one of the world's largest workforce; some sources estimate that their workforce specifically for food production may be as high as 315 million laborers. (To put this number in perspective, the U.S. is the world's third most populous country with 328.2 million people, as of 2019, according to the U.S. Census Bureau). China is one of the most prolific producers of an impressive list of foods:
- Rice
- Wheat
- Potatoes, lettuce, onions, cabbage, green beans, broccoli, eggplant, spinach, carrots, cucumbers, tomatoes, and pumpkins
- Pears, grapes, apples, peaches, plums, and watermelons
- Sheep milk
- Chicken, pork, lamb, goat, and fish
- Peanuts
- Eggs
- Honey
India
While India is one of the largest food producers in the world, its farm productivity is far lower than in China, the U.S., or Brazil. In addition, many of India's citizens are too poor to purchase the food it produces. There have been major strides in this century as the Indian economy emerges, but many experts worry the Indian population is growing faster than the economy. In 2019, the World Bank estimated that India's population was around 1.37 billion people. The country also has a very high birth rate and is projected to eclipse China as the world's largest population at some point in the future.
The United States
The U.S. has one of the most efficient food production systems. Despite having a significantly smaller workforce than China, the total U.S. agricultural production is almost as high as China's. Food production is spread across much of the country, but the largest food-producing states in 2018, according to the United States Department of Agriculture (U.S.D.A.), were as follows:
- California
- Iowa
- Texas
- Nebraska
- Minnesota
- Illinois
- Kansas
- North Carolina
- Wisconsin
- Indiana
Many American companies dominate the food export market, which is, in part, due to an increasingly productive farming sector. The top export destinations of food produced in the U.S. include:
- Canada
- Mexico
- China
- Japan
- Germany
The most popular exports from the United States are maize, soybeans and wheat. Other common exports include almonds, cotton, potatoes, and chicken.
Brazil
The Brazilian economy has historically centered on agriculture, in particular sugarcane. And approximately 34% of Brazil's total land area is used as cropland, primarily to produce coffee, sugarcane, soybeans, and corn. Brazil is also a major producer of oranges, pineapples, papaya, and coconuts (thanks to its warm, fruit-friendly climate). The country also ranks high in total beef output.
COMMUNICATION
Coordinating with the European students was a fun experience. Our team got to share ideas and create an understanding among each other. The students from Europe, too, were quite creative and had many interesting and wonderful ideas.
We constantly kept in touch using a WhatsApp group, in which all the group members from both the countries were included, and chatted regularly.
The students from Netherlands were going to compare the food habits between students from their school and our school. They were able to record our team’s food habits through the video conference.
We were prepared for both the video conferences being online, because of the ongoing COVID-19 outburst. We held the first video conference on the ZOOM platform in which all of us introduced ourselves to the partner group and discussed how well each group’s project was going. We held the second video conference on the Google Meet platform. Each group member shared ideas with the partner group and they asked us various questions relating to our food habits.
We were able to compare ideas smoothly and comfortable with each other without any delay, as the video conference was online and people had to go about their work too.
We learnt a lot about their daily food habits in Netherlands, too. Like, they usually went to restaurants at least for one meal a day, apart from the fact that coronavirus is still on.
We constantly kept in touch using a WhatsApp group, in which all the group members from both the countries were included, and chatted regularly.
The students from Netherlands were going to compare the food habits between students from their school and our school. They were able to record our team’s food habits through the video conference.
We were prepared for both the video conferences being online, because of the ongoing COVID-19 outburst. We held the first video conference on the ZOOM platform in which all of us introduced ourselves to the partner group and discussed how well each group’s project was going. We held the second video conference on the Google Meet platform. Each group member shared ideas with the partner group and they asked us various questions relating to our food habits.
We were able to compare ideas smoothly and comfortable with each other without any delay, as the video conference was online and people had to go about their work too.
We learnt a lot about their daily food habits in Netherlands, too. Like, they usually went to restaurants at least for one meal a day, apart from the fact that coronavirus is still on.
COMPARISON & REFLECTION
Comparison:
Our group has learnt many things about our international partner group. For instance, during their recess in school, they are allowed to leave the school to go to a restaurant or grocery store for their breakfast and lunch.
Our group has learnt many things about our international partner group. For instance, during their recess in school, they are allowed to leave the school to go to a restaurant or grocery store for their breakfast and lunch.
The table above mentions the main similarities and differences between the students from both countries, which we were able to interpret from the video conferences, but the differences outnumber the similarities by far.
Conclusion: differences are, that the timings of the meals of the European students and the Indian students are different. The amount of food, too, that each person consumes is different, with the students from the same countries having their amounts closer to each other. There are some more mentioned in the table, too. As for the research methods, we used books, the internet, and primary sources, whereas, the European students used the internet and books. We interviewed one family member per group member, and one person who has an expertise on the topic of making your meals greener. The students from Europe did not interview anybody, because of the severe lockdown situation, then. They said, to us, during the second video conference, that they still found it really hard to cope up with the lockdown situation, so had not taken any interviews yet.
Reflection
In our project, we had really good communication towards each other. Everyone submitted their work on time, and had written amazing answers, which enhanced our report. Two special things we have done in our project is we calculated how much of CO2 emissions we produced each day, based on what we eat. Also, we have interviewed our family members and a land owner to analyze, from their point of view on how they help the environment. Our collaboration with the students of Netherlands went extremely well. Due to this collaboration, my speaking skills have improved gradually, and my listening skills have improved too! Also, I have started to speak more confidently. Even they were fond of our research and said that there was nothing to be changed as it was already perfect. We worked effectively together. We understood each of our strengths and made sure they were used. What we did was assessing and recognizing our strengths and bringing them together to create something more powerful than any of us individually. The main learning point is not to rush into the task and spend some time evaluating the issue fully. The video conferences with the students of Netherlands went very well. We discussed about posting the work on the Weebly website and how it can be done. We had a fine time collaborating. This was a successful team and no major changes were needed but each of us can use this experience for enhancing the effectiveness of other teams we worked with. We gave our best to design the website and help the other group members. There was no change needed in the research as well as the website. Our meetings were extremely productive and every group member completed their designated task. Another thing we did well was gathering information. On a personal level, I feel gathering information actually is not more important than presenting the information. Presenting the information was one thing that could have gone better. All the group members made this project worthwhile. |
It couldn’t be better. Everything went so smoothly and to our expectations. The introduction – part one of the article, felt like the easiest bit. Every group member submitted his work at the earliest, so we could move forward with the other parts of the article. I understand that each of the group member was dedicated to the project, which made all this possible. There was nothing like it. Not even the tiniest sections of our webpage need to be changed or edited, because, we as a group understood each other’s ideas well and took into consideration everybody’s knowledge on the topic to complete this project. We also relied on various methodologies to make our work look more attractive. It was a marvelously collaborated project, as the video conferences went smoothly and as planned. During the collaboration, we gained knowledge on their research and the methodologies they used. It also gave us more confidence in ours, as they said it was amazing and needed no editing. In our project we all were very helpful to each other. Everyone submitted their work on time, and if had any problems then everyone helped him to complete it. Also, we did two very exciting things in our project - we asked one of our teammates to ask questions to a farmer, and we talked about the different nutrients we consume everyday. We had a collaboration with the students of Netherlands which went extremely well and we all decided to post all our work on Weebly website, as our work was very promising, and needed no more changes. It was a good experience. At the start, it was a bit difficult to collaborate with the European students, but then gradually, everything went smoothly. We also created a WhatsApp group for doubts, etc. There was no change required in the research as everyone was so good at it. |
AWARENESS
Below, you can see a poster that Samarth has created to spread awareness about how important it is, to eat greener food.