Grade level: 3rd-4th grades
Skills: Addition / Number Comparison (3 digit)
Related environmental issues: Climate Change
The British band Coldplay, a performer of the 2016 Super Bowl halftime show, has decided not to launch a global tour because going on tour generates more carbon dioxide than they want. The band thinks having a global tour is not beneficial to the environment.
To have a global tour, band members need to take a flight. The table below shows the amount of CO2 a flight generates per person.
Suppose a British band A had a global tour and had a concert in London, New York, Los Angels, and Tokyo, and wend back to London.
- Which flight generated the largest amount of CO2 per person?
- Which flight generated the least amount of CO2 per person?
- How much CO2 did the global tour generate per person by flying from London to New York, New York to Los Angeles, Los Angeles to Tokyo, and Tokyo to London?
- The United States generates 1,333 kg of CO2 per person a month. Which generates more CO2, the average American in a month or a member of the Band A who went on the global tour?
Source) Niko Kommenda, 2019, How your flight emits as much CO2 as many people do in a year, The Guardian.
Answer keys
1. Tokyo to London
2. New York to Los Angeles
3. 2,516kg of CO2 (493 + 349 + 776 + 898 = 2,516)
4. A member of the Band A