Table of contents

Worksheet 6.2

Film questionnaire
“Putting people before palm oil in Guatemala”

Watch the ›film “Putting people before palm oil in Guatemala” ( dw.com/p/2WhEc ).

Once you have finished watching, answer the following questions:

1. What did the Jimenez family previously farm and why was that problematic?
- Corn, this will cause constant deforestation to give way to the new cornfields. When a
forest is converted into a cornfield, the original forest habitat is destroyed.

2. What has changed since then?

- The trees have become lessened and now they are trying to revive it. They become careless
to sustain their environment and crops.

3. What strategies were used by Heidy Garcia from conservation organization “Defensores de la Naturaleza?”
- First, they bring back vegetables and plant crops that were once part of their traditional
farming. Second, they introduce new varieties of plants that are more nutritious and
healthier, which is a source of food for them every day.

4. What’s behind the success of the new farming strategies?

- The cooperation of the villagers and unity of everyone to achieve their goal to survive each
farm and environment.

5. How does the new system – known as agroforestry – protect the rainforest?
- Agroforestry promotes the preservation of biodiversity by mimicking the natural structure
and functions of the rainforest ecosystem.

6. How does the system help people?

- It helps people to be responsible for the environment, especially their forest, to preserve it
and protect it at all costs. And it helps them to increase crop yields of their farm by
improving soil structure and fertility, resulting in crop growth.

7. What conclusion does the farmer Jimenez draw from his new approach to farming and what is your
opinion of it?
- They become self-sustained and can eat nutritious food and I agree with their new
approach to advocate their planting program because it helps to reconstruct the
ecosystem. It also helps to revive trees in order to claim back their nation as one of
the most trees in the world.

Global Ideas | Learning pack #2 17