Deploy Seaweed Farming for Food
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Provided by: Project Drawdown|Published on: December 5, 2022
Articles/WebsitesScientist Reviewed
9101112AP
Scientist Reviewed This resource has been reviewed by SubjectToClimate's climate scientists and verified for scientific accuracy and up-to-date information. Learn about our review process →
Synopsis
- This article assesses seaweed farming as a climate solution and reports that increasing the amount of seaweed in the ocean could be an effective and sustainable solution for reducing greenhouse gas levels.
- This report provides quantitative data and evidence to analyze the carbon sequestration potential of seaweed farming based on different levels of implementation of this solution and describes how macroalgae (seaweed) can be used as food.
Subjects: Biology, Earth and Space Sciences
Authors: Project Drawdown
Region: Global
Languages: English
Teaching Materials
Positives
- This nature-based solution to climate change is an exciting one to consider due to the vast coastal areas in which this could be implemented and the current innovation and growth in this sector.
- This reading will support learners in developing their scientific literacy as they read a technical text with domain-specific vocabulary, multiple units of measurement, and a concise tone.
Prerequisites
- Learners should be familiar with the unit gigaton, the unit in which carbon emissions are measured.
- Learners should understand concepts such as ocean carbon sinks, carbon emissions, and macroalgae.
- This solutions explorer can be used to show students the rankings of solutions by scenario on the Drawdown website and may make it easier to understand the relative impact of grassland protection.
Differentiation & Implementation
- Consider having students discuss any potential social and economic barriers to seaweed farming and talk critically about the viability of this solution.
- To investigate other solutions to help reduce greenhouse gas levels check out the articles on forest protection and grassland protection.
- To learn more about macroalgae, see this article and video.
- As an extension, students can investigate marine protected areas and consider how these areas could possibly support seaweed farming.
This resource introduces a solution to reducing emissions by developing and encouraging seaweed farming. A brief introduction of seaweed as a fast growing marine organism that absorbs high amounts of carbon dioxide that could aid in reducing emissions and become a large carbon sequestration opportunity. A methodology, scenarios, and models are provided along with a results and discussion about the scaling of seaweed farming. This site would be a great addition to a lesson discussing alternative methods to reducing carbon emissions. This resource is recommended for teaching.
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About the Partner Provider
Project Drawdown
Project Drawdown is a nonprofit organization that seeks to help the world reach “drawdown”—the future point in time when levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere stop climbing and start to steadily decline. Cities, universities, corporations, philanthropies, policymakers, communities, educators, activists, and more turn to Project Drawdown as they look to advance effective climate action. Project Drawdown resources for educators include the database of Drawdown Solutions, educational video series Climate Solutions 101, the Drawdown Stories initiative, and more.
Scientist Reviewed
This resource has been reviewed by SubjectToClimate's climate scientists and verified for scientific accuracy and up-to-date information. Our review process ensures that every resource in our library reflects the current state of climate science.
Learn about our review process →
