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Chapter Two

The Context of It All

Part One

For a little context of why context is important, watch the story below!
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Video Questions

Featured Hot Take

We all need a little context. How to get it? Pollsters help! And few are as informed as Shachi Kurl, the Executive Director of the Angus Reid Institute. She took time away from analyzing the news – and our opinions on the news – to join us in conversation.

We’re featuring this podcast across all five Nature Labs subjects. You might not like every course you take in school, but they are all related. By listening to this podcast, hopefully you’ll better understand why.

More on Shachi Kurl
  • What did you learn from Shachi's story? What skills have helped her succeed?
  • Can polling help us do our jobs better? Does it help create more empathy for those we disagree with?
  • How valuable is it to have unbiased, impartial research to better understand public opinion?
  • Do you believe polling to be unbiased, or can the questions that drive the research be loaded or leading, helping create answers that reinforce certain perspectives?
  • How do we create more movements that unify, rather than divide?

Part Two

THE FOLLOWING ACTIVITIES WILL HELP YOU BETTER UNDERSTAND THE CONCEPTS YOU NEED TO LEARN IN THIS CLASS. YOUR TEACHER WILL SELECT WHICH ACTIVITIES YOU NEED TO COMPLETE BELOW.

Defining Your Community

Who are your people? Why do you need them? Get to know yourself and your communities.

Define

Mapping Biodiversity

What's your natural context? Find and map the biodiversity hotspots in your community.

Map it!

Understanding Your Views

How has your upbringing shaped who you are? Why is it important to understand the context of others?

Begin

Analyze Trends

What are the local and global trends in the job market? What skills do you need in the future of work? Find out!

Be trendy

What's Your Context?

How do you think we should balance people and nature? Start brainstorming your ideas and questions. * Recommended

Brainstorm

The Curated Library

Understand the context. Use the Curated Library to compare and contrast different perspectives on an issue that interests you.

Find resources

Part Three

HOW DOES THIS CLASS RELATE TO REAL-WORLD ISSUES?

Inquiry Media

Save the economy to save nature?

Go!

Further Exploration

Latest News

Alberta’s Referendum: What It Means

News
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has announced that on October 19th, 2026, the province will hold a referendum with multiple questions, including one about whether...
Read more

Happy International Day for Biological Diversity!

News
Think biodiversity is only about exotic animals in faraway places? Think again! Your backyard might already be hosting its own tiny nature documentary. There...
Read more

Resources From the Curated Library

Is the Process more important than the Product?

Is the Process more important than the Product? Bias: Centre Sub-Category: Advice Source: Future West File...

The problem with problems, and a better way to frame them visually

The problem with problems, and a better way to...

What is Context

Bias
What is it? Context refers to the circumstances, environment, background or setting that surrounds and influences a particular situation, event or communication. It's the information...
Read more
More From the Curated Library
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Unit completion

Chapters

Chapter One

The System of Things

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Chapter Two

The Context of It All

You are here!

Chapter Three

We Don’t Know What We Don’t Know

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Chapter Four

Hard Stuff is Hard

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Chapter Five

Here’s How

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Chapter Six

Your Turn

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Chapter Seven

Dig Deeper

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Chapter Eight

Be Better

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Chapter Nine

Own Your Hypocrisy

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Chapter Ten

Keep Going

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Chapter Eleven

One Last Thing

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Chapter Twelve

The End (of the Beginning)

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